20-MAY-2010
Waiting, Boise, Idaho, 2010
I made this image with a long telephoto lens – neither subject noticed my presence. One person is talking, the other listening, as they wait for their bus to arrive. I liked the way the tree divides the image down the middle, further abstracting the expression of the woman doing the talking on the left.
20-MAY-2010
Bus stop, Boise, Idaho, 2010
I was drawn to this subject by the hand grasping the post of a bus shelter. I felt a sense of exhaustion, and photographed it accordingly, as an abstraction.
03-OCT-2009
At the corner, Vancouver, Canada, 2009
This image expresses contrasts in life style. I found a clothing shop with windows on a corner facing two streets. The mannequins in those windows have no heads, and glow within the staid elegance of a vintage Vancouver building. I waited for several minutes as differently clad pedestrians passed this spot. I wanted my pedestrians to contrast as much as possible with the fashions displayed in the window. This pair of backpackers made it easy for me – they express just the kind of casual air I wanted to make the contrast with the formality of the expensive clothing in the window.
30-SEP-2009
Gastown, Vancouver, Canada, 2009
I used early morning light and shadow to abstract this street scene in one of Vancouver’s oldest and popular neighborhoods. A bearded man, holding a piece of paper, pauses in the middle of a rant to passing tourists. I abstract the image, wrapping him in shadow, and illuminating only his lower half in light. Just behind him, another man sleeps behind a window, oblivious to the rant and everything else. They may share the same general space, but they have entirely different agendas. This is an image based on human values, incongruity and abstraction – the three most important principles in expressive travel photography.
02-OCT-2009
The reader, Vancouver, Canada, 2009
It was the light that kindled my interest in this image. A photo of just someone reading a book is not an expressive photograph. However bathe the scene in dappled light that throws delightful shadows on a background wall, and bring the face of the reader out of darkness so that only the head and hand are visible, and the image acquires all the qualities of expression. It is abstract, incongruous, and speaks of such human values as knowledge and relaxation.
21-JUL-2009
Coffee break, Gloucester, Massachusetts, 2009
Three people were having coffee just across the street from where I was standing. A large Standard Poodle sat obediently by their side. I shifted my vantage to the left, simplifying the image by partially hiding one of the three people behind a post. The dog now appears to be peeking out at us from behind that same post. The dog, three cups of coffee, and two wonderfully expressive human faces flow horizontally across the image from left to right. Because I am shooting from within a doorway, and using waist level viewing, I don’t think anyone noticed me as I worked, which keeps the expressions natural and spontaneous.
24-JUN-2009
Chinatown, Victoria, British Columbia, 2009
The woman at the right appears to be walking into the past here. A mural, painted in 2007, depicts the old store in the background as it looked at the turn of the 20th century. While probably not Chinese, the woman at right does have a long hank of hair, tied five times, hanging down her back, a retro look which seems to fit the scene on the mural.
24-JUN-2009
Coffee in the rain, Port Angeles, Washington, 2009
Coffee and the wet weather of the Pacific Northwest seem to go together. This woman, standing in a steady drizzle waiting for the light to change, keeps on sipping her cup of coffee in spite of the soaking. Her stoic stance is both incongruous and symbolic of the town’s residents. They are used to the rain, and don’t let it get in the way of their pleasures.
22-JUN-2009
General Store, Lake Quinault, Olympic National Forest, Washington, 2009
Street photography often involves activity at the entrances to stores and public gathering places. In this small resort community, the general store has provided a meeting place since the days when cameras were called “Kodaks.” The “Kodaks” sign still looks out on the comings and goings of generations of locals and visitors. I was photographing the young couple conversing on the porch when a man in a hat, who may still remember when “Kodaks” were sold there, came out of the store. The young woman, about ready to pedal off, glances at him, while the young man’s attention remains focused on her. The man in the hat does not yet seem to see either of them. Soon all will depart, but the store will still remain to give the place its identity.
20-JUN-2009
Coffee shop, Portland, Oregon, 2009
I saw the woman working on her hot drink in the window of the coffee shop and walked across a busy street in order to relate her to people passing by. Using a long 400mm focal length, I photographed many passing pedestrians, but the woman in blue offers a perfect match. Both women reminded me of figures from Renaissance paintings, transformed here to another time and place. I liked the striking contrast in tone and color between inside and outside as well. The woman on the street, full of energy, has just come from inside the store, and carries her refreshments away with her, while the woman seated in darkness behind the glass remains quietly pensive, making a strong, story-telling contrast.
18-JUN-2009
Then and now, Grant’s Pass, Oregon, 2009
I was drawn to this mural because of the two trees flanking the couple at a park bench. The trees echo the real tree just in front of them, which in turn links us to the street itself and its traffic flow. The red truck entered my frame and stopped for a light. I noticed the expressions on the people in the truck – illuminated in the rich evening light, each person look straight ahead and seem to be lost in their own thoughts. The couple in the mural have the same intensity – neither look at each other, only straight ahead. Yet the couple in the mural and the couple in the car are a century apart in dress, time, and coloration, offering a strong contrast between then and now.
24-JUN-2009
Parenting, Port Angeles, Washington, 2009
I often use a fully extended telephoto lens for street photography. In this case, my focal length is equivalent to 400mm, long enough to not only be unobtrusive but also focus very selectively. This image is about parenting – the man not only must safely carry his vulnerable child across dangerous streets, but also must answer the inevitable sequence of questions triggered by such a situation. We can already see a question forming in the child’s expression and gesture, no doubt related to the softly focused cars that hurtle past them. I also liked the way the child’s shirt echoes the yellow hydrant at the bottom of the frame.
