I am always grateful for that lonely soul out in the dark street, for the driver who bought a red car, for the cyclist with the flapping hair, for him or her who made the effort to dress elegantly….
No, I don’t ask them to step into my image, let alone drive into it. They are there entirely voluntarily, at times I do not select or determine. And our encounters are always brief. Mere seconds, with no eye contact. But they are there when I need them.
I am often reminded of their presence when someone says they like a photo of me. Yes, I took the picture. The image was my choice, my idea, my composition. But in many cases I would never have pressed the shutter if it hadn’t been for that walker, car, bicycle. They added life, color, class, in essential bits.
It’s true, the picture exists because of me. But also because of them.