Luc

Boys often begin work from an early age and school enrollment in Madagascar is noticeably low. We found Luc cutting forest hardwood for a local timber business.

Romain

We found this young boy collecting glass bottles from the edge of a disused railway track. He struck an unusual pose with his straw hat and peered right down the lens of my camera.

Rugged Horizons

Madagascar has a mountainous spine that carves its way down the centre of the island, separating the dry western coast on the Mozambique Channel from the lush Eastern half that faces the Indian Ocean.

Misty Afternoon

Rainforests have a tendency to exhale wonderful plumes of mist as the cooler temperatures of the evening settle in.

Trapping Moisture

Ferns act like forest sponges, trapping beads of dew underneath their tiny leaves and acting as little fountains for amphibians, birds and insects.

Mansour

Romain’s older brother, a farmer and zebu rancher was jovial and kind. He encouraged his brother and cousins to join in for a photo.

Axel

A raincoat becomes a huge necessity once thunderstorms start to roll in and work still has to be done. Like his cousins and friends, we found Axel sifting through rubbish on the side of a disused railway track.

Cedric

In an over-sized rain jacket and cap we found Cedric tying fine strands of rope together to fly a kite in the light rain. He showed no interest in my camera, utterly absorbed by what he was working on.

Ramon

The ‘gang-leader’, as he described himself, led his comrades along a stretch of unused railway line in search of discarded junk.

Lucile

Warm jumpers and weather-proof jackets are important for life on the bare hills of central Madagascar.

Fosiah

We met this young girl, waiting eagerly for her brothers to arrive from school, behind a wire fence in the village of Ranomafana.

Waiting

A large wire fence separated these schoolchildren from the bus that would take them home.

Jérome

Wire fences, empty bottles, metal bins and skips make up much of young Jerome’s world as he grows up along the village streets of Ranomafana.

Ezekiel and Sanna

Young Ezekiel struggles to peep over a wooden barrier and join his older sister, Sanna, in her view of the world.

Green Market

Fresh produce fills the sacks and stalls in Ranomafana’s busy central market.

Angie

Safe from the rain, I took Fosiah’s photograph under the shelter of a wooden bus stop. Cellular storms are a common occurrence over the central massif of Madagascar.

Remi

The usual road to school passed typical houses made of wood and corrugated iron.

Sanna

Pushing her little brother Ezekiel out of the way, Sanna quickly took control of her portrait session.

Sanna

The walk to school fell into clownish chaos.

Sanna

The sound of rain, or perhaps her mother’s call in the distance, put an end to the horseplay and Sanna finally led her brother safely home.

Sanna

Highland weather calls for thicker clothes and furs to protect against the mountain chill.