30 november, 2008

gary . 44 years old  /  new york city . new york

today was a rough day in the land of the photo project. after saying goodbye to my friends in the city, i made my way through the rain towards a train because i needed to get to chinatown to catch a bus back to boston.

the city was dark. the rain. the buildings. the winter. i was feeling very unmotivated to shoot out in the rain, but knew that i needed to get it done because there would most likely no chances of shooting it later in the day. i had to shoot with a slow shutter speed and high ISO, so this shot falls apart at bigger sizes. i don't like that very much.

gary was walking towards me as i passed by a construction site. he had his hood up, shielding his head from the rain, i would assume. he did not look to be in a hurry, but no one was out to enjoy the weather so i figured it was a gamble to ask him. i have nothing to lose, though.

he looked at me like i had three heads. this guy was definitely a skeptic, or playing the part very well. i explained the project and asked if i could photograph him. i gave him a business card, which he looked at, and then promptly asked, "what are you doing?" i was not exactly sure how to answer that.

he finally agreed to the pictures. he stared into the camera with dark blue eyes. he just stared. i like it when the people just stare. after a few frames, he started laughing and said, "this is so weird!" the first shot is the beginning of his laugh. he looks like he likes to laugh. he looks like he also knows that life is not only about laughing, but his face wears his smile well. don't you think?

"this is what you do all day?" no, gary, i do this with one person every day. who's next?

29 november, 2008

santiago . 58 years old  /  new york city . new york

this was a rough shoot. i went for a walk through the streets with my friend. i saw this wall and decided i liked it, so i waited at the corner for a while. i thought santiago had a warm face, so i asked him.

he was very hesitant. he wanted to know if any money was involved and had other concerns. i assured him there were no catches and finally, he agreed. he told me he was waiting to meet someone so he had a few moments.

i struggled with the light. with his hat. with his attention. his phone rang a lot. he was obviously concerned with his meeting. at one point, he asked me to take the phone for him to try to communicate with the woman on the other end of the line. it was very confusing.

he eventually left, leaving me feeling frustrated with the project. i've decided to only shoot the one person that agrees to help me, but today that left me out in the cold. anyway, i've stuck to the program and here we have another stranger. all in all, despite the circumstances, the shot could be much worse. santiago was very nice. i think it is kindness i see in his eyes.

28 november, 2008

inma . 37 years old  /  new york city . new york

my friends and i were going to take a walk through the city, so i decided to head out a little early so i could find my stranger. i found an interesting building which ended up being a pretty good location for the shot.

i saw inma and her companion looking at a statue. i liked inma's hat and jacket and decided to approach her. i normally would not approach two people together, but they looked like they had some time.

they were from barcelona, probably here visiting. and they were gracious to give me some time for the project. one shot closer. every day.

27 november, 2008

james . 40 years old  /  new york city . new york

after riding the bus down from boston, i started walking up to my buddy's apartment. i had about 24 blocks to go, so i was casually perusing the thanksgiving day crowds for my new friend. with only 5 streets to go, i saw james walking with olive ( the little black dog in the other picture ) in his arms.

james turned out to be a photographer also. he shoots on film and happened to have many of his photographs on his iphone which he showed me. i was blown away - they were very very good.

another great interaction with another great individual. the anthropological nature of this project is becoming just as important as the photography... maybe even more.

26 november, 2008

sarah . 63 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

it looks as if i have finally evened out the male to female ratio. it took some deliberation, but was well worth the push. i met some interesting women in the last week. tomorrow will provide me with some freedom to look for the one who catches my eye, regardless of gender.

today i decided i wanted to shoot in front of this wall. it is made up of squares of convex white glass. very modern looking, so it would have been interesting to shoot some modern looking person in front of them, but i like the structure it provides this photo of sarah.

i saw sarah walk into the bank and was disappointed she had not continued my way. but after just a minute she came back out and proceeded down the street towards me. i debated asking her in my head for a moment, but then decided i had to.

i think she wanted to say no before i even said anything, but as i explained the project she became more interested. her only concern at the end was, "why me?". sometimes i feel like saying "are you kidding me? look at yourself! your are too good to be true!", but i haven't. not yet. i explained that her flowers and her hat made for a great combination. she was very gracious and an excellent sport.

i wonder who those flowers are for. i wonder something about nearly every person i photograph. i'd like to make this project a bit more formal and give more of my own time and ask people for more of theirs. dig a little deeper.

25 november, 2008

sophia . 24 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

pouring rain here in boston. awful weather.

i went out with my roommate to run some errands. as we were parking the car, i saw sophia walk by with her black umbrella, black coat, and those completely awesome black glasses. i jumped out of the car and ran down the street (no lie) after her.

"excuse me... excuse me", to which she retorted with a don't-even-waste-your-time-because-i'm-going-to-shut-you-down "WHAT!!?". i must be getting better at this because i whipped out one of those killer smiles and told her i was a photographer and was working on a project. after a brief explanation, she forgot where she put her skepticism and agreed to help me.

the rest is fairly self-explanatory. when life gives you rain, make some awesome photographs. this is one of those combos that was sent straight from the gods.

24 november, 2008

denise . 72 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

i went out for a walk today, for fresh air, for the shot, for a trip to the post office. it is mild in boston today. the sky looks like it could drop some snow, but i'll not hold my breath.

i found this wall and decided to wait by it until someone came my way. a tall asian man in a red patriots hat and a hunter orange jacket walked by twice. i let him go once, but when he came by again, i figured i had to ask. he said no. a very decisive no. more waiting. then i saw denise walking my way with a target bag. she looked like she was in no hurry.

she agreed to the project. i asked "can i take your picture?", to which she replied, "yes, you may." i wish i had used proper grammar. next time. denise quickly cleared up that she was not from around here, that she was from california, visiting friends here for the holidays.

so meet denise.

23 november, 2008

jenny . 28 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

i was not feeling particularly motivated today, but managed to get myself out the door anyway. as i was walking down the street, i was thinking about how great it would be to shoot someone right on my own street, on this white wall. it is very residential and not heavily populated, so i thought my chances were pretty slim.

but then i saw this woman (jenny) walking her dog (tucker) and figured she was worth taking the chance on. to my pleasant surprise, she agreed. the shoot went well as she was very easy to photograph. she had a very steady, calm gaze.

the second shot was a no-brainer, too, as the street and the tree and her dog and the white and the black all work so well together. while i could have done something better with the portrait, i am thankful for an easy day. walk. shoot. edit. post. done.

22 november, 2008

clare . 58 years old  /  cambridge . massachusetts

cool has turned to cold here. and it was not subtle. i was out in harvard square to look for today's stranger and was relieved when clare readily agreed to helping me out. she was very friendly, very easy to photograph, and even seemed a little bit interested in the project.

i wanted to take a detail shot of her hat because she said she was "overcoming her insecurities" by wearing it, but could not quickly figure out a way to make it look interesting.

21 november, 2008

maura . 38 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

after eating some late breakfast with a friend at a super tasty restaurant, i started the search for today's victim. it was not long before i saw maura walking across the street. i approached her, gave her the rundown, and she agreed. it was really very simple today. no bells. no whistles. she was difficult to photograph with her peculiar facial expressions, but i think this shot is becoming to her.

20 november, 2008

jenny . 29 years old  /  cambridge . massachusetts

i ended up in the same neighborhood as yesterday. i was on my across the street to make use of a blue wall, when i saw jenny walking down the street behind me. i was hoping she would cross... and she did. she was walking with her bike and looked like she was not in tremendous hurry.

i told her about the project and she was very accommodating. as it turns out, she was on her way to get her bicycle tire fixed and since i have the necessary tools to make such a repair, i offered to do it for her. she is going to bring her bike by later. one thing leads to another and another and another. this project is good.

19 november, 2008

ken . 61 years old  /  cambridge . massachusetts

when someone looking this incredible comes walking towards me down the street, it is nearly impossible for me to ignore them.

ken had such a warm personality and was amused by the project. he, like many, assumed i was in photography school. when i told him i was a working professional he wanted to know what the project was for. i don't have a well-crafted mission statement for the project as of yet, but with each passing day, i have more to say about it. some days i really feel good about what it could turn into. this is one of those days.

it is cold here in boston now, which makes it quite a bit harder to pull the camera out of the bag. but today my efforts were rewarded!

18 november, 2008

melissa . 27 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

i went out specifically to find my stranger today. i walked for a while, looking for backgrounds, for strangers, for anything interesting. i kept finding interesting locations, but there was a pretty significant lack of people around, and people make up a pretty significant portion of my photographs. so i walked on.

i finally came across this yellow wall, snapped a shot of it with an old film camera, and then stood around for a moment, just hoping someone would come by. then i saw melissa approaching with a little golden retriever. i figured she had some time.

melissa works for a doggy day care and was out walking gary, a four month old, energetic bundle of fur. i took a couple pictures of him, too, but this is not a dog project. the other photograph is of gary's leash (he's attached to it at the other end).

17 november, 2008

christie . 20 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

went out in the beautiful fall weather to scout out another day's victim and stumbled upon this red wall. walls like this are pretty hard to pass up. ideally someone would have walked by in blue or purple, but christie has such a great look that the red serves its purpose with her, too.

i was about to ask this pretty rough looking motorcycle dude, but he seemed like he was a little too into revving his harley engine. this person walked by. that person walked by. then christie... she said she had friends that were photographers, too, so she knew the courage it took to ask people.

nice.

16 november, 2008

betty . 58 years old  /  boston . massachusetts

fall returned to boston today. that air. that boston fall air is really something else. i took my bike out and headed downtown in the early afternoon. i had an appointment for a haircut at 5 pm, so i left myself plenty of time to find the perfect person today.

i locked by bike after finding a nice window to use as my backdrop. i asked a young woman today who looked at me with more condescension than i have ever seen before. i felt like a vagrant, begging for money. she could barely slow her pace to acknowledge my presence, then she shook her head in a disapproving "no". that was a real confidence killer.

and then there was betty. she might be one of the sweetest ladies i have ever met. she was happy to help me with the project because i told her she could of course have a photo. she was only the second person of the 70 who asked why i chose her. i find that odd.

she was very sweet.

15 november, 2008

steve . 23 years old  /  boston . massachusetts

rainy. muggy. boston in november? this weather is not right. i intentionally got up late today because i thought i needed to be to work at this time. unfortunately, i needed to be to work at that time. long story short, this morning was a scramble.

i put in my time at work and then set out to finding today's subject. i left my keys at home, so was unable to lock my bike. i found a great background to shoot against with a nearby corner where i could keep an eye on my ride. i asked a black girl if she would be a part of this project. nope. then i was looking for another woman to take her place and they just weren't having it. few people looked interesting / interested and i am still dealing with this sudden loss of courage.

eventually steve stepped onto the sidewalk and lit up a cigarette. he looked at me. i looked at him. then he stood on the sidewalk, taking in the street scene, looked back at me. i at him. then i made some sort of facial expression that sent the "i have a question message". steve came over to me, i gave him the run down, and he was all about it. he loved it. he asked if his beer could be in the photo, too, and i told him that it certainly could.

steve is from louisiana where, from what i understood of steve's story, they don't have a big problem with public drinking. he seemed pretty happy to crack his cold one open right there on newbury street. steve was his own man.

he asked how many people said "no" to this project. i told him "lots" and he said, "yeah, man. people just don't get it." that is exactly right.

14 november, 2008

saul . 30 years old  /  cambridge . massachusetts

i had a morning full of errands and meetings before i had to be to work, but i managed to get to the location of my meeting with some minutes to spare. i stood outside of MIT for quite some time, scanning the passers by, on the look-out for today's subject.

i approached a young woman in a bright green head scarf and thought that would make for a nice bright image, but she declined. there were not an abundance of women around, so i started scouting for interesting men.

saul was walking down the sidewalk in no hurry. as he got closer, i realized he was extraordinary. he was very supportive of the project and very patient with me. he was applying to attend MIT. i am not sure how that will turn out, but he definitely looked the part.

saul told me that his dad was also a photographer. i can only assume that that was a big reason why he agreed to be a part of this project. i am really thankful for the people that cross my path along the way. this is shaping up to be an interesting year...

13 november, 2008

phyllis . 56 years old  /  boston . massachusetts

i really needed to photograph a woman today. i told myself again and again. so, i did a lot of waiting. i showed up downtown with plenty of time to spare before work and patrolled the streets like a meter maid, watching like a hawk for the perfect subject.

i approached a white-haired woman who would not even slow her brisk step while i presented her with my pitch. she was not having any of that. c'est la vie. i walked most of the way down boylston street and then started up newbury until i came across a green mesh tarp that was serving as a barrier between a construction zone and the sidewalk. it would be my backdrop for the day.

i started to get super nervous and then i felt like i could not talk. i don't know why that sometimes happens but it is definitely something i will eventually spend hundreds of dollars and many hours on in my therapist's office.

phyllis, with her red hair and face full of character, came up the sidewalk at a leisurely pace, so i took my chance. she was fairly receptive to it until i asker for her name. she did not like that one bit. i told her i was only asking for the sake of keeping the project uniform and showed her the notebook full of 66 other names. she eventually agreed, but only after i was able to give her directions to a restaurant a bit further up on newbury street.

because she needed directions, i took a photograph of her purse and the map, but after she walked away, i decided i did not really love that shot. i took another of the caution tape that was behind her in the photograph, as that would make a good parallel for her skepticism, but then when i looked at the images, i decided that the map worked better after all.

12 november, 2008

robert . 29 years old  /  cambridge . massachusetts

it is getting chilly here and considering i don't have a vast wardrobe, i took a bike ride to a second-hand store called 'the garment district' to look for some sweaters. when i arrived, i noticed that the light was really beautiful, so i decided to camp out until i found someone to shoot. i told myself i would shoot a female today, but then i saw robert and decided to go for it.

robert had reently made a drive up to boston from wisconsin and was soon returning that way. he had pretty amazing hair, as you can see, and this wonderful coat. i liked the buttons a lot, so i decided to use one of them as the complimentary image.

come to find out, robert is in a band called 'poor boy rebellion', which you can get a sample of on the other online social network ( myspace ).

11 november, 2008

phillip . 22 years old  /  cambridge . massachusetts

i needed to bring my bike to a shop to put some air in the tire. i had a flat, fixed it, but did not have a pump. no other car was available, so i took out the dasher (which is not registered or insured) and drove it to the bike shop. on the way home, i saw phillip cross the street in front of us, so i made my way around the block through a series of one way streets and pulled up beside him. he was pretty receptive to the project, so i parked "the dash" and introduced myself.

it is pretty obvious that phillip has a great look about him, but he was also a super nice guy. because i was unprepared for the shot, i forgot to take the detail shot. i could have gone back to shoot the brick wall, but i don't particularly like brick walls, there just happen to be a lot of them around. i really wish i had taken a shot of his hat because it is a very cool hat.

anyway, i looked through the images i took and decided to use two of phillip - the first is nice to look at because he is a handsome guy, while the second is nice to look at because phillip has pretty fantastic style.

i wonder how many days i will have to do this before i remember to do everything the right way.

10 november, 2008

peter . 22 years old  / cambridge . massachusetts

my bike has a flat, so i went out for a walk. i needed to go to the bank and it was a couple of miles away. i figured i would see someone along the way to shoot for the project. i walked by this parking garage and saw all this crazy light on the wall, light bouncing from windows across the street and then off the windshields of the cars parked inside. it was hard to resist.

i waited for a minute or so and then saw peter stop just in front of the garage. he was listening to music and seemed like he did not have much of an agenda. he was laid back about the whole thing, so it worked out really well. i took some close portraits of his face, too, which are also very interesting, but i thought i needed to take advantage of his shadow, which makes a double appearance here. i also really like his posture, which leads me to believe that peter just did not care about much today. or maybe he cared so much that his whole body was carrying the weight of his thoughts.

09 november, 2008

kate . 30 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

we had another of those real fall days here in boston. blue sky, falling leaves, etc. i went out for my scavenger hunt while talking on the phone with my friend, richie. i tend to have a tough time shooting in this particular part of town, so when kate walked by i knew i needed to take advantage. i promptly let richie go and then chased kate down the street. i have to admit, i generally feel that people think that i am a creep. crazy hair, big beard, camera, "project"... i guess it is par for the course, though.

anyway, kate was pretty down with the project, but i was fumbling all over the place. the light was super off, so i asked if we could change locations, then i asked again. finally we made it across the street, in the shade, with this white fence as our backdrop. kate was a really good sport about my taking many more than my advertised "3 minutes".

08 november, 2008

john . 45 years old  /  boston . massachusetts

well, two months in. 62 days. who would have thought? in celebration, i figured i might try something new which is why this photo looks different than the others. the nicely dressed woman on the left makes a repeat performance in the background of john's portrait. i am going to try to take a detail shot to go with the portrait - maybe it will be an article of their clothing or part of the background or maybe it will be their fingers or a ring they are wearing. i suppose it could also be a penny that i saw on the ground just before i saw the person.

i had a rushed morning today. my main means of transport is my bicycle and it had a flat tire, so i was scrambling to come up with an efficient means of using the public transportation, when at the last minute, my friend offered me the use of her scooter.

after i made a hasty trip downtown and dismounted the yamaha, i asked a woman to be a part of my project and she said no, but she said it with such a smile and tone that it pretty much sounded like "yes". it made me laugh. then i saw john. he happened to be waiting outside a department store waiting for an interview. i guess that is why i think the mannequin works well. i hope he got the job because he was very sweet.

07 november, 2008

justin . 17 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

i went out for my daily subject hunt and just made it around the corner when i saw justin. he looked pretty tough, closed - not usually the type i would approach for the shot, but the location we were in was good and i liked his hat. i told him about the project and he had obvious reservations, but after a few frames, he seemed to open up.

the process did not take too long today, which was really great because i was just not feeling it. i really hope this project will get some exposure eventually because it is quite a bit of work if it is just going to sit on facebook.

06 november, 2008

kristie . 31 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

i think this was the first day that i was out shooting in a mentionable rain. there have been some rainy days, but i was getting pretty wet out there this morning. i walked for a while and came across no one of interest. i guess some people disqualify because i just don't find them interesting for some reason. on the other hand, some people qualify because i am tired of looking for someone else. for reasons of legality, i had just been turned down by a postal worker. kristie had her hood pulled up and all i saw was her little face and big eyes poking out of it. i shot some pictures of her with her hood, but i unfortunately screwed them up. clutch.

05 november, 2008

jon . 34 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

nobody was catching my eye on the streets today, so in my search, i went into this store called GRAND ( http://grandthestore.com/ ) to have a look around. this guy was working in there and the light was pretty nice inside so i asked him if i could take his picture for the project. the background behind him is part of a huge horse painted on the wall.

04 november, 2008

katrina . 25 years old  /  boston . massachusetts

i voted today. for obama. that put me in a pretty great mood. i rode my bike down to the polls and then rode back to downtown boston where i took care of another errand. it was practically summer in boston today, which was weird, but still enjoyable.

i had about an hour before i was scheduled to work, so had some time to dedicate to finding my subject for the day. i asked a couple of people, who both said no. then i ended up finding the location i wanted to shoot and proceeded to look around for willing takers.

katrina and her friend, tora, were walking towards me, so i stopped them on the sidewalk and gave them my pitch. i offered to shoot them both and they readily agreed. we spent a little bit of time talking and getting to know one another's stories and i found out that they are traveling around the world as performers with amanda palmer of the dresden dolls.

03 november, 2008

adham . 19 years old  /  somerville . massachusetts

the light is disappearing. and fast. this daylight savings business is not doing me any favors because i am not really inclined to rising at dawn.

i asked a couple of older people today - a gray-haired woman - she said no, and then a distinguished looking older gentleman who said he was too much of a commodity. it was funny. but sad. i was about to cash in my chips at this particular location, but my friends spotted adham, smoking a cigarette outside of a café. i approached him and he was all for it. he seemed pleased that i approached him, happy to contribute. i like it when it goes like that.

today i did something differently than usual - i found my background first and then waited there for a person to come by. it was nice to be in a little more control of the composition.

02 november, 2008

kate . 21 years old  /  boston . massachusetts

01 november, 2008

caillin . 19 years old  /  boston . massachusetts