Briefcase
A photographer’s sidewalk view of style around fashion shows.
I remember the first time I walked up the steps of New York Fashion Week at Lincoln Center a decade ago, armed with my camera and a new zoom lens I bought just for this occasion. I had no expectations except for the fact that a friend of mine thought it would be a good boost for my growing love of collecting portraits of strangers on the streets.
It was intimidating: the people hanging out at the shows were better dressed than any other people I’d stopped on the street weeks before, and there was a cool energy in the air, like I’d just walked into a party that was out. of place. my league
I spent the day away from almost everyone, and when I returned home that night to look at my photos, a feeling of disappointment washed over me. Thinking that the zoom lens would allow me to get closer ended up being a crutch for shyness.
I decided to go back with a small 35mm plastic lens. It was cheap, but it was the lens I had been taking portraits with and it would force me to mingle with people for the photo.
When I arrived the next day, the moment was incredible. As I passed the fountain in the middle of the courtyard, a show must have ended, and I found myself swimming in a stream of people running in the opposite direction. Everything was happening too fast, I had no choice but to take my camera and start.
When I sat down later that night and uploaded the photos to my computer, to my delight there was singer Solange Knowles, the first portrait I focused on.
About three years ago, I abandoned traditional street-style photography and returned to the kind of street photography that excited me when I first started: wider perspectives, greater depth of field, but most importantly, pose as little as possible.
It’s a discipline I learned from searching for party photos on the internet. The images in which people pose for the camera are almost always the least interesting. But I love a proper portrait. It will always be the basis of my work.
Source: www.nytimes.com