The technical trick that elevated this photo of Eid from Romania
Muslims wait before Eid al-Fitr prayers in a sports hall in Bucharest, Romania, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Vadim Ghirda is an Associated Press photographer based in Romania since 1989, where he documents a wide range of stories.
Here’s what he had to say about this extraordinary photo.
Why this photo?
A key part of my mission as a photographer at the AP is to offer a view into the lives of those who receive little or no attention.
Among them are people labeled as “minorities” — religious, ethnic, people with disabilities, or those with a sexual orientation different from the “majority.” The term itself can be misleading—some may believe that the minorities are less important than the majority. It is our mission as journalists to help them avoid this mistake.
While Islam is a minority religion in Romania, I cover Muslim religious holidays every year, aiming to include this community in AP’s global coverage of events such as Eid al-Fitr.
It is quite a challenge, as the photographic competition from countries with a large Muslim community is fierce.
Also, there are limits to the visual appeal of an essentially static image shot in a poorly lit, communist-era sports hall.
How I made this photo
Tough conditions are great for a creative approach.
I employed an unpredictable technical “trick” to turn the apparent disadvantage into an eye-catching image. I shot it on a 70-200mm Sony zoom with a shutter speed of about half a second, at F10 for depth of field, while zooming out.
The technique has a higher success rate on a wide-angle zoom, such as a 16-35 mm, as it is easier to hold the camera still while zooming. With longer lenses it requires less frequent breathing, more patience, remarkable luck, and something steady to lean against.
Why this photo works
It looks unusual and catches your eye, even as a thumbnail. If an image does not tempt you to click on it as a thumbnail, it is not quite “there.”
When viewed full-screen, there are characters to discover, each with different postures and attitudes. There is also a blend of present and past: people taking selfies on mobile phones alongside vintage traditional outfits. Everything tied together by white blur lines that create a mystical atmosphere, fitting for a religious event.
The key ingredients of this photograph are the idea, perseverance, and LUCK—the latter heavily outweighing the first two.
Photography is my “religion” and, much like with traditional religion, I begin with hope and belief that I will capture the photograph I imagined, without any guarantee or tangible scientific evidence that I will.
And sometimes — just sometimes — it happens.
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