Cairo Visit | Tintype Family Photo Album

I'm here in Cairo visiting family and, as usual, I take snaps of family and street scenes as I go about my business. I decided to use a tintype app on my phone to convert some of these relatively mundane photos and I liked the results.

Celebrating a union "Nubian Style" | The groom, Shams (4R) and bride, Sophia (5R), her South African family on right, his Nubian relatives on left | iPhone Panorama converted to tintype

I had experimented with medium format Kodak Brownie cameras dating from the 1930s to the 1960s and one particular series of images struck me and reminded me of early photographs. You can view them at this post |

I downloaded a free app Tintype app and started converting images. I wasn't even sure what a tintype image was, so here is the Wikipedia definition | A tintype, also known as a melainotype or ferrotype, is a photograph made by creating a direct positive on a thin sheet of metal coated with a dark lacquer or enamel and used as the support for the photographic emulsion. Tintypes enjoyed their widest use during the 1860s and 1870s, but lesser use of the medium persisted into the early 20th century and it has been revived as a novelty and fine art form in the 21st.

This was the first image I posted on Instagram from this visit and lots of people liked it. So I decided to convert a whole bunch of photos of my visit, and to create a family album "tintype style"

My son (L) walks a street in Islamic Cairo

The main reason for our visit to Egypt, was to meet up with my son and his new bride, Sophia, to introduce her to his Egyptian family (my wife is Nubian) and to have a little marriage celebration "Nubian Style". We had done one with our daughter the previous year and now it was Shams' turn. | see following album I created for that occasion

So here's a few from the actual gathering at his grandmother Fatma Badeen's home in Mit Okba | Cairo

Shams and Sophia | Henna Hands | posing with his grandmother Fatma Badeen | Sophia and her mother Daleen | cookies and sweets - notice Shams' hennaed hands - Nubian men also get henna

Shams and Sophia did not want an elaborate, multiple day traditional wedding celebration. They said "just a small gathering of family, nothing involved. Maybe an hour or two". Well, Nubians are not about small affairs especially when it comes to marriage. However, this time they were very restrained and only brought in a small troupe of Nubian singers and dancers. Also, family musician and renown Oud player, Karam Mourad, showed up and sang, including "Nabra" about daughter. Maybe a "Shams" song is next.

bride and groom dance as Nubian troupe performs | Nubian Oud player Karam Mourad | Sherif pays tribute to Karam | Talia, Hogla, Naswha and show off their henna hands

Mona, the mother of the groom, is a great dancer and knows all the Nubian songs including those in the Nubian language. Here she gets into the spirit. Her gown has an intense color, so I have included the original as well

Mona Mohie ed din Sherif Nelson dances up a storm

Daoud (2L) uses a serving tray as an instrument as the family dances with linked arms to one of Karam's songs

Shams and Sophia had arrived the day before and her family coming from South Africa and the United States arrived a few days later. They are very chill about visiting the sites, but we did do a quick visit to the Khan El Khalili and a felucca sail - though almost no wind necessitated a toe by a motor launch up the Nile. We drifted north on the way back.

The couple, sister Landie and husband Dan | Nubian felucca Captain Zizu dances to traditional tunes

Night-time downtown family stroll | Kasr el Nil Bridge | Father-of-the-bride Fanie and his daughter Landie | Fatimid-era Bab al Futuh gate built in 1087

....and some fine dining |

Fanie strikes a pose next to a statue of a pacha outside Le Pacha 1901 riverside boat restaurant | celebrating Daleen's (2L) birthday with another birthday girl (L) who was also celebrating at the adjacent table | La Taboula Lebanese restaurant

Grobler family visit with Shams to the Giza Pyramid Plateau | photos courtesy of the Groblers

While Sophia and her family jetted off to Luxor, Shams stayed with us to make more family rounds |

with his mom and Aunt Madiha | with Hoda and her husband | with cousin Mai and nieces and nephews

And some more together time before Shams and Sophia flew back to Mauritius where they live |

A warm hug on a cold night at the ultra-luxe-mega mall Festival City | New Cairo | selfie on "mamasetu's" balcony | Mit Okba

Dining at the "Masr Zaman" restaurant Antique Khana | Zamalek

A cup of tea on the balcony at the Jamine 4 pad | New Cairo

The view from the Agouza pad where Shams spend the first two years of life and then lived for a year as a freshman while attending the American University of Cairo | Mohammed Talat Street

...and now "going about" taking care of business in Cairo and spending more quality time with family | Mona needed to get some paperwork done for both Shams and ourselves. A daunting task anywhere, but Egyptian bureaucracy takes it to another level. She's still at it, but has made remarkable progress |