From time to time I like to do a photo project… It’s a lot like gathering your thoughts but with images instead of thoughts. This one, admittedly, started purely by accident. After reviewing a handful of my street photography shots I realized that I enjoy photographing people just relaxing in the city. Here is where I would insert something deeply profound like ” in photographing a stranger relaxing I’m able to capture them in a more natural state, all pretenses are dropped and what’s left is the pure human nature and personality each of us is born with. Like capturing your cat licking itself on your kitchen table…”, or something like that.
In all honesty, what appeals to me is the hard lines of the city architecture meshing with the forgiving lines of the human body. When I see someone asleep on the sidewalk or cradled in a statue (clearly made for afternoon naps) I am reminded of the fleeting moment life is… there is a contrast there, like mortal versus immortal.
Though this photo project started unexpectedly, like a love child, the wheels have been set in motion and there is a definitive goal here. By drawing my own attention to this type of image I’ve began noticing scenes like this more often as I walk through the city. It’s like buying a car and then all of a sudden you see the same car everywhere you go, it was always there but now it’s on the front of you mind and you’re more likely to notice it.
If you’ve considered starting a photo project yourself you may want to go back through some of your old photographs and see if there is a foundation there for a project you didn’t even know about. You may surprise yourself with something profound.
