To practice for my trip to Oaxaca in a week, I went to a Day of the Dead celebration yesterday at the Oakland Museum. Lots of bright sun, which is great for the event, but not for people photography. I managed to either find people in the shade or maneuver them into it, which helped.

I especially like the skeletal-looking black-and-white painted faces , which make for dramatic close-ups.

This shot was taken in the sun, but it’s not that objectionable because she was wearing a mask and was facing into the sun.

This woman was from Oaxaca and I even knew the name for the type of costume she was wearing, a huipil.

This woman wasn’t from Oaxaca, but had been there many times, and had good travel advice.

This was one of the performers.

I got some practice with Day of the Dead looks, and spoke Spanish, but didn’t get any practice shooting flash at night in graveyards, which will be a big part of the photo experience in Oaxaca. Too bad there weren’t any graveyards at the museum.