Randy Olson, Melissa Farlow Photography

  • Portfolio
  • About
  • Contact
  • Archive
    • All Galleries
    • Search
    • Cart
    • Lightbox
    • Client Area

Search Results

Refine Search
Match all words
Match any word
Prints
Personal Use
Royalty-Free
Rights-Managed
(leave unchecked to
search all images)
Next
245 images found

Loading ()...

  • Headlights and brake lights illuminate the darkened road at dusk as traffic moves both directions through customs at the Texas and Mexico border. Commercial trucks and private vehicles cross one of the four international bridges that connect Laredo and Nuevo Laredo over the Rio Grande River.
    MELISSA FARLOW_04526_1187567.jpg
  • A U.S. Customs Service agent plays with a search dog near trucks crossing at the Mexican border.<br />
<br />
The Canine Enfocement Program is used to combat terrorism, interdict narcotics, and other contraband while helping to facilitate and process legitimate trade and travel.
    MELISSA FARLOW_04526_1187039.jpg
  • A Kwegu woman holds a baboon as a fertility custom.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_12.TIF
  • A Kwegu woman holds a baboon as a fertility custom.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_10.TIF
  • A Kwegu woman holds a baboon as a fertility custom.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306512.TIF
  • Funeral and burial for a Suri woman.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306446.JPG
  • Funeral and burial for a Suri woman.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306608_8.TIF
  • A Hamar female, wearing butter, awaits her fiance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306458.TIF
  • Preparations for a wedding in Tulgit.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306450.TIF
  • Funeral and burial for a Suri woman.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306445.TIF
  • The Kara tribe come racing over the hill from their village when they hear engine noise to greet one of the few boats on the Omo.
    MM7661_20090909_13932.tif
  • Pygmy boys dance wear leaves on their mouths for silence as they go through a manhood initiation called nKumbi.  They wear ceremonial skirts for their circumcision ceremonies, and when the ritual is completed, the skirts will hang in the trees at the entrance to their village in the Democratic Republic of Congo.<br />
<br />
Pygmies are nomadic hunter-gatherers who rely on a healthy forest to survive. They have no claim to their own home territory, however, because the colonial Belgians assigned land rights only to sedentary groups
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_972605.TIF
  • Banna males prepare for a bull jumping initiation ritual and participants are photographed by tourists.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_6.TIF
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_2.TIF
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_3.TIF
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_1.TIF
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_11.TIF
  • Banna males prepare for a bull jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306608_6.TIF
  • Ornamental cuts on a Suri girl will heal in a raised pattern of scars.
    MM7661_20090225_03142.tif
  • Ornamental cuts on a Suri girl will heal in a raised pattern of scars.
    MM7661_20090225_03115.tif
  • A Banna man prepares to whip a woman during an initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306608_3.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306608_2.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306608_1.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306608_4.TIF
  • Young girls in their finest dresses dance as the wedding party in the Khailino town hall that celebrated the first event in several years.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7593_1260983-6.TIF
  • A bride checks her makeup in a mirror as she readies herself for the wedding ceremony.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7593_1260983-4.TIF
  • Mbuti boys sit together, painted for the nKumbi manhood ritual ceremonies in the Ituri forest.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_972262_2.TIF
  • The Kara tribe prepares for a coming of age bull jumping ceremony.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306571.TIF
  • The Kara tribe prepares for a coming of age bull jumping ceremony.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306570.TIF
  • Kara men prepare for a coming of age ceremony
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306569.TIF
  • A Kara son prepares for bull jumping initiation into manhood.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306559.TIF
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306547.JPG
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306546.TIF
  • A Kara man painted and dressed for an evening dance carries a goat.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306545.TIF
  • Suri covers himself with clay body paint for ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306536.JPG
  • A man prepares to whip a woman during an initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306522.JPG
  • Kara children kick up dust during a bull jumping celebration.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306519.TIF
  • A photographer takes images of the Kara tribe during bull jumping.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306518.JPG
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe dance at a bull jumping initiation.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306516.TIF
  • Kara women dance as their sons prepare for a bull jumping initiation.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306510.JPG
  • Hamar tribesmen prepare for a bull jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306485.TIF
  • Hamar tribesmen prepare for a bull jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306484.TIF
  • A caucasian man photographs a bull jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306483.TIF
  • A Hamar woman prepares for a bull jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306482.TIF
  • Children of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306470.JPG
  • Men, women and children of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306469.JPG
  • Nyangatom women dance at a peace treaty celebration.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306466.JPG
  • Nyangatom women prepare to dance at a peace treaty celebration.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306464.JPG
  • A photographer poses with a Nyangatom woman.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306463.JPG
  • Nyangatom women prepare to dance at a peace treaty celebration.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306462.JPG
  • A Banna male becomes a man during a cattle jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306457.TIF
  • A Banna man whips a woman during an initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306456.JPG
  • Banna males prepare for a bull jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306454.TIF
  • A family has a fourth day ceremony for a newborn child.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306434.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306433.JPG
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306432.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306431.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306430.TIF
  • Suri cover themselves with clay body paint for ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306429.TIF
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283985.TIF
  • Nyangatom women prepare to dance at a peace treaty celebration.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283984.TIF
  • Crushed minerals are dusted over a Hamar girl   s hair.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283982.TIF
  • A Banna man prepares to whip a woman during an initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283981.TIF
  • Ornamental cuts on a Suri girl will heal in a raised pattern of scars.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283980.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283979.TIF
  • Kara women dance as their sons prepare for initiation into manhood.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283970.TIF
  • A Hamar male becomes a man during a bull jumping initiation ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283968.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1283962.TIF
  • A bride and groom drive away in a vehicle decorated with balloons as party goers light sparklers to celebrate.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7593_1260942.JPG
  • A bride and groom deliver food and drink and greet shut in villagers in their homes.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7593_1260915.JPG
  • Masai milk ceremony. First step in warrior becoming a man.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7314_1023459.JPG
  • Masai milk ceremony. First step in warrior becoming a man.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7314_1023456.JPG
  • Masai milk ceremony. First step in warrior becoming a man.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7314_1023452.JPG
  • Masaai men celebrate the end of the weeks-long orpul ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7314_985620.TIF
  • Masaai women trudge over the plains to watch orpul ritual festivities.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7314_985619.TIF
  • The mask of a medicine man at the door where  Pygmy boys are secluded before the rituals signifying their manhood.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976455.JPG
  • Mbuti boys during a puberty ritual where a medicine man watches over the ceremony.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976453.TIF
  • A Mbuti boy endures a ritual scarification by razor blade. It is the last of the manhood ceremony that follows months of training to learn skills and live independently.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976452.TIF
  • Mbuti boys endure whippings during a puberty ritual ending the manhood ceremony.<br />
Women carry whips to meet the men halfway through the village, and a melee ensures where they beat each other. Women try to control the destiny the child but the men traditionally win, and each boy is paraded through the village for the scarification ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976451.TIF
  • Mbuti Pygmy boys pass time during the endure rites of manhood alongside their peers.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976450.TIF
  • Mbuti boys wait to be whipped during an initiation into manhood. The Salate is at the end of the nKumbi Pygmy manhood ritual.  The men watch over Pygmy boys who have been secluded for 5 months preparing for this ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976448.TIF
  • A Mbuti boy displays welts from being whipped during a puberty ritual. The belief is that the harsh treatment makes them stronger to survive the challenges of life in the Ituri Forest.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976447.TIF
  • The Chief of Salate makes his way through the Ituri Forest to a secluded camp for the nkumbi manhood ritual.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976446.JPG
  • Mbuti boys sit on a log in the Ituri forest and endure rites of manhood alongside their peers.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976445.JPG
  • Mbuti Pygmy boys learn to fish and other survival skills at their hunting camp in the Ituri Forest in the Democratic Republic of Congo.<br />
<br />
Boys go through the circumcision ceremony called nKumbi. They are whipped every morning to make them tough, and then they sent off into the forest to hunt or fish. The boys pull a small hook out of their skirts and get a vine and a stick—they know where to dig for worms.  They catch five or six 2inch long fish and eat them raw for lunch.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976419.TIF
  • Mbuti boys wear grass skirts and leaf mouthpieces to stay silent during their circumcision ceremony. Pgymies are of the Congo's few remaining traditional tribes in the rainforests of the world. They are threatened by logging companies and growing modern culture.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976417.TIF
  • Mbuti boys wear grass skirts that swish when they dance during their circumcision ceremony. The leaf plates keep them silent from speaking.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_976416.JPG
  • Mbuti boys with photographer Randy Olson.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_972838.TIF
  • Pygmy Boys in a nKumbi Manhood Ritual wear a leaf mouthpiece to keep them silent. Forest Pygmies near Epulu, Democratic Republic of Congo are indigenous, semi-nomadic, hunter-gatherers in the rainforest of the Congo Basin. The BaMbuti Pygmies perform a  nKumbi or initiation that lasts five months where the boys live at a camp in the forest and daily learn survival skills.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_972262.TIF
  • The thin whisper of skirts dissolves into the Ituri rain forest as boys trail their elders on their way to a hunting camp. The Mbyte are one of several Pygmy groups still following semi-Nomadic traditions in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Part of the nKumbi manhood ritual involves young Pygmy boys learning survival skills. They walk single file on a path to meet net hunters wearing grass skirts while they train for five months before their initiation into manhood. At that time, they will be on on their own and will share adult responsibilities and feed their families.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_972253.TIF
  • Though blind, an Mbute boy endures rites of manhood alongside peers. He learns survival skills in the forest and takes part in all the rituals over a five month period until the group is initiated and boys become men. When the boys run along the trails he does also, with his hands on the back of the boy in front of him. All boys are whipped each morning which is believed to help make them tough to survive in the Ituri Forest. <br />
<br />
Pygmies are semi-nomadic hunter-gatherers who rely on a healthy forest for their livelihood.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7209_972252.TIF
  • A Ladin funeral procession seen trough a lace curtained window in a small village of LaVal in the Alps where the people are isolated and speak German and Italian but also Ladin, their own ethnic language.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7139_1024126.TIF
  • Islamic Turks mourn a dead relative.
    RANDY OLSON_MM6879_708213.TIF
  • Bugu has a dispute over a woman and challenges his rival to a Donga (stick fight)  Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights and will do it for tourist groups. You have to be careful so you aren't responsible for injury by being a tourist in this area.
    MM7661_20090219_00907.tif
  • Boys wearing ceremonial skirts trail their elders to a hunting camp.
    MM7029_005227.tif
  • Mbuti boys wear grass skirts during their circumcision ceremony.
    MM7029_004879.tif
  • Though blind, an Mbuti boy (in foreground) endures rites of manhood alongside peers.
    MM7029_002171.tif
  • Men and women of the Kara tribe gather for an evening dance.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306605_15.TIF
  • Men from Suri clans compete in bloody ceremonial pole fights as women wait at their huts.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7661_1306608_17.TIF
  • Negotiating bicycles and buggies on a dirt road are part of life in Kjailino, a remote village in Kamchatka.
    RANDY OLSON_MM7593_1260983-5.TIF
Next