Shooting Close to Home

Last Sunday I took a ride out to get some fresh air after a relatively stressful week following the Guyana Elections 2020. I needed some air and went out on my bicycle with the Ricoh GR ii. The day was relatively quiet, but I ended up capturing quite a few images I’m happy with. The more I rode, the more scenes I saw and stopped to shoot, and even ended up speaking with a Rastafarian who stopped me to ask about my photography. Ended up asking if he would be willing to be photographed, and he agreed (a bit hesitantly at first), but I believe he sensed that I meant no harm. I got a good candid shot of him, and moved off. There some other shots I took on the way home, and spoke to another guy playing cricket with a spliff in his mouth.

It’s quite amazing how a simple ride out on Sunday turned out to be a good day for photography. I think when we appreciate the ordinary, simple things can become quite extraordinary, and become great opportunities for street shots. I would say that I’ve decided to make the aim of my street photography the documenting of Guyanese society as I see it. I see no issue with being prolific - there’s so much to capture that I wouldn’t be doing myself any favors by waiting for some ‘perfect’ shot in any given situation. I move and I shoot. Occasionally I’ll wait for a particular shot, but it’s not something I dedicate much time to - there’s too much going on to be waiting for one single shot for too long in street photography (at least this is how I feel at the moment). However, I do feel that I need to focus more on the way I compose my shots to maximize the impact I’m looking to achieve.

One thing I need to work on is being more bold in approaching strangers to take their shot if I discover a scene that might yield worthwhile results. That, I’m sure, will come with time - all I need to do is keep practicing.