Eyes wide shut.

 

“Taking it to the streets

No more need for running

Taking it to the streets.”

There are countless photographs that have been taken by people who roam the streets looking to capture what most people never see. Whether taken in their local towns, big cities or across the globe, the click of the shutter stops time. 

I am going to assume ever since the camera became strapped around necks, held in hands, or placed in pockets—-the intrigue of photography has only gotten stronger. During the “film” days, you had a limited number of pictures you could take; most of us now realize that number has multiplied almost a thousand fold, and there is no need to load, unload or take the film to a kiosk to get printed. Hence, the demise of Kodak and other film-based companies.

I still have my first camera. It isn’t like most cameras, it was a Minolta-16 Spy Camera Model P. My Dad brought it back from a trip he took to Japan decades ago. I still have the box and all of the components that came with it, the problem is, it took lousy pictures and I suspect the film needed is no longer available. But, I still have it and will never get rid of it.

With that camera, I perfected my talents of photographing water glasses, exit signs and other “amazing pictures.” I had no idea what to do with it, so I just used it and took pictures of nonsensical things.

It’s hard to believe how photography has evolved in my life; had it not been for some “life events,” I would never have gotten "the bug." Glad I did. Today I take more pictures than I ever thought I would; but am still not completely comfortable with street photography. There is something about walking around and taking someone’s picture without them realizing that creeps me out.

The photo above was taken on a side street in Chicago. I didn’t have to ask permission because the piece had no eyes or upper half of its face; sure it had a mouth, but I was long gone before it could let me know how they felt about my taking their picture.

Thanks for stopping by.