Bangkok Photo Rambles: Your photos are quite unique, using interesting perspectives to capture captivating images. Do you consider this when taking photos?

BOB MATKODA:  When I take pictures of a moment, I always hope to get results that match my imagination, and God loves me because sometimes the moment that I get is beyond my expectations. That’s what makes me always want to keep on working. I like photos of moments; I don’t like concept photos.

BPR: Many of your images are very dramatic, using light and shadows or other enhancers, such as smoke and fog. The results are quite striking. Is this something that you seek out, or are you just good at noticing them?

BM: Yes, I always admire the light, like the photo (below) of an old man and the light. I happened to pass by a cow shed on the side of the road and coincidentally I was carrying my camera. I saw the light falling through a gap in the roof; it leaked in causing an amazing lighting. It was afternoon light, before 4:00; the old man with the cows sat there relaxed and I asked him for permission to capture the moment. I excitedly pressed the shutter and thank God the result was in accordance to what was in my mind.

BPR: : Your work that we have seen is done in black and white. Why have you chosen that medium? Do you do any work in color?

BM: I have known about cameras since 1990 when I was young. The first time I used a camera I worked in black and white. I always admired the black and white photos that I saw in magazines and photography books about the legendary world photographers like Ansel Adams and others. They influenced me when I started studying photography, so when I started taking photos in 1990, I bought black and white film. Even though black and white photos are deeper into my soul, I still like color photos also.

BPR: How did you get started in photography? How long have you been a photographer?

Surprising to many visitors, and to many residents, there are more than 1,600 canals, or "klongs" in Bangkok, totaling over 2,600 km (1,600 mi). Once known as "The Venice of the East," streets, highways and trains are now the main mode of transport in Bangkok.However, in the western district of Thonburi, the khlongs remain an important part of Thai Life.

Bangkok Photo Rambles took a boat ride through the small khlongs of Thonburi, which still reflect life much as it has been for generations. These empty into the Chao Phraya River, or "Mae Nam Chao Phraya," the term "mae nam" means "river," or literally. the "mother of waters."