I am taking a trip tomorrow.
I’m going to Mexico.
I’ll be back within two weeks, and I won’t be able to update during that time.
No worries, there will be more ideas and more stories to tell in 2016.
Happy holidays!
Alice
Photo credit: Danist Soh at unsplash.com
Last week I talked about how challenging it can be to shoot portraits, especially when approaching strangers.
I went for it two days ago, and I met Jim Carson.
I spotted him around the Core Shopping Centre. He was smoking while sitting on a bench.
So I told him that I was working on a project for my photography class; I needed help, blah, blah.
He said: “yeah, I can help. Do you want me to remove my clothes?”
“No, it’s okay. It’s a cold day,” I replied.
After taking the pictures, the conversation kept going. That was pretty cool because I really felt I was overcoming my fear.
He’s from New Brunswick, but has been living in Calgary for a while. Even when he already knows what to expect from the weather, he still struggles to adapt.
Jim constantly asked if I’ll do Photography for a living. I said that I’m looking for the balance between writing, photography and design.
He wished me luck and said that if he could take a course on something, that’d be on photography. He’s thinking about it.
If that happens, he hopes our paths cross again to take each other’s pictures.
I hope so, too. That would be awesome.
On November 13th, I’m turning in a Photo assignment that involves portraits.
I must confess that this is challenging for me.
It’s difficult to approach strangers with a professional camera in hand. I feel they’re going to ask me to go away.
Actually, that happened a couple of weeks back. I was at a mall and introduced myself to a guy who had finished lunch. He was sitting at a table checking messages on his cell phone.
He didn’t even reply. He was just letting me speak.
When I told him that I wanted to take his picture, he stood up and said: “no, no, no…if you want, I can go sit somewhere else. Take a picture of someone else.”
That felt weird. I was amazed at how negative his response was. A single “no” was enough.
It’s an experience, anyway. Some people will say yes; some people will say no.
One moves on, right?
Now that I have this assignment, I wonder what’s in store for me.
Yes, I’ll approach strangers. I have to overcome this.
Yes, I’ll do so on my own.
I’ll let you know what happens, and hopefully I will post those pictures here.
Photo Credit: Benjamin Combs at unsplash.com
alicebarretosite.wordpress.com 