I enjoy street photography. Walking around thinking I’m the next Robert Frank or Cartier-Bresson, I find that I enjoy taking photos of people. And I realize there are certain people who grab my attention more than others. Some have an appealing or unique look. Some have a weathered or haggard expression, created by a lifetime of hard living I imagine. Others have expressions of joy or sadness or simply catch my attention with a smile or nod. And most often it’s their eyes that are most interesting.
Peter Lindbergh, the famous photographer said, “I focus my lens on the subject’s eyes, so that I can see what is inside - the eyes are always honest”.
And as I photograph people, I’ve found it’s fascinating to try and imagine what their personal stories might be. Are they happy or sad, what do their expressions tell us, or maybe what are their expressions hiding? What are their eyes saying to us? What can you really tell about a person from a photograph?
It has been said of David Heath’s work, another famous photographer, that he charted the geography of the human spirit – the joys, pains, and uncertainties that unite us all. His photographs reveal that the faces of strangers are never truly alien to us. In them, we recognized basic elements of ourselves, evidence of our emotional and spiritual kinship.
So, when I’m out shooting people on the street I’ll look for an expression or glance, maybe just s smile or a nod and I’ll compose the shot hoping to capture a lifetime in a fraction of a second. I will fail of course, knowing that there is more to a person’s life, and more hidden stories than I will ever capture in a single image.
But for a moment there’s a brief connection and I like to think I’ve captured more than just an image, but a chapter however brief of a hidden story. What do you think? Be sure to let me know and to see more images go to www.jarrettstreetphoto.com.
Until next time…