2012-ish in Amsterdam was the first time I recall embracing the simple joys of street photography. After years of lugging around a lot of lighting equipment, it was very refreshing to just have a camera bag on my back. That was also the first time that I remember having a focus on one subject. The first time I grasped the notion of a “series” of images. Maybe it was too much time spent in the cafe’s, but either way, the singular focus wasn’t intentional. After miles and miles of walking around Amsterdam, it just struck me that I had photographed a lot of bicycles. And all of a sudden, Emily would be saying “look at that one over there” or “that’s a good one”. The theme had caught on. She recognized what I was doing too. Probably because she always had to wait while I made 35 different images of one bike from 35 different angles. Regardless, it stuck and was most likely the beginning of the way I think about long term personal projects like Barbershops of America and The Hoops Project. Both of which are focused on one subject and have been going on now for 8+ years. They are a great balance to the commercial work, which I love, but it very involved with planning, time, and gear. Over the past couple years, my kit for personal trips has been cut down even further. In fact, on this last trip to Europe, all that came along was one camera body and one lens. The feeling of not having options is quite freeing. There is no need to think about switching lenses every 5 minuets to accommodate the situation. You just have to make do with what you have. ultimately, it makes you a better photographer. And it cuts down on weight. Nothing better than traveling light. Here is another batch of images from Europe in December/January. They were all made with very little thought as to why or a care of where they would end up.
Click HERE to see more street photography.
