All of Essays, Page 4

171 Photo Essays, Shot on Film

Catching Myself in Reflections
Self-Empowerment Through Portraiture
July 13, 2020
One would think that not having someone to shoot photos of me is why I end up with so many pictures of self on random street reflections. When I do have someone, I tend to obsessively direct them to get the picture I have in mind. When shooting digital, perseverance and patience could probably get us there.
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A Terrace in the Sky
Exploring the Pedestrian Platform, Elevated Over the Bank of Thames River
July 9, 2020
The flâneur’s philosophy is to seek to understand the city by experiencing it on foot. It is an urban exploration that involves embracing serendipity and chance discoveries. A few years ago, I came across a public terrace with views of the Thames located at the back of St.
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Comuna 13: From Violence to New Horizons
Exploring the Infamous Neighborhood in Colombian Medellín
July 6, 2020
Colombia — a country that I’ve been fantasizing about visiting for the past two decades. When the time finally arrived, the decision had to be made on which cameras and lenses to bring. In a mood to capture the essence of the place in an emotional way rather than just pleasing pictures, I decided to bring my 1979 Minolta XD-7 together with the Minolta MD Rokkor 50mm f/1.
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An American Fault Line
The U.S./Mexican Border
July 2, 2020
The U. S. /Mexican borderlands would be a hauntingly beautiful place if the scars of humanity were not so deep. One is reminded of prison, on the one hand, a cemetery on the other. The ghosts of asylum seekers and migrants are omnipresent through the carefully placed crosses and memorials that line the border wall.
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Nostalgia for an Undefined Something
Panorama Photographs of Brexit Fans Near the British Parliament
June 18, 2020
From late 2018 to early 2020, I spent many a spare moment photographing in the area surrounding the British Parliament, Parliament Square and Westminster tube station. I would train my camera at the various groups of people protesting, marching or merely standing in front of Parliament for and against the United Kingdom leaving the European Union.
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Rooftop Halcyon
The Days of Bliss We Took for Granted
June 16, 2020
Fernweh (n. ) | German — A longing for far-off places. An ache to travel. [Literally: farsickness]I think this word perfectly describes how many of us are feeling these days. While we’re all stuck at home staring at the rolls of unused film, I’m sure that at one point or another we’ve thought to ourselves,“I really should've taken a picture of that one place last month.
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The Shape of Dancing
June 11, 2020
The Shape of Dancing is a creative collaboration between the contemporary ballet dancer, a ceramic artist, namely their shop, and the photographer. This series is the result of a photoshoot made at the rustic interior of a ceramic workshop. Shot outdoors, with no additional gear or lights.
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Kids, Cameras, and Landscape Photography
The Adventures of a Haphazard Landscape Photographer
June 9, 2020
With a young family, you need to get out. Of course, you’ll be loaded down with the correct paraphernalia, pushchair, nappies, changing mat, mashed banana etc. Your days out, though tiring, are fun, and of course, you want to document those important years.
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Portraits of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Killeen, Texas
June 4, 2020
The purpose of this project is to explore how the people are protecting themselves during the COVID-19 pandemic in my neighbourhood: Killeen, Texas. I find black-and-white film particularly effective for focusing the viewer’s attention towards the subject.
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Forgotten World
Postcards From Aue
May 14, 2020
The world is smaller than it has ever been, yet it contains more than it ever has. Global communities have replaced local communities. International stock markets have supplanted farmers’ markets. Progress is made for the sake of progress. Progression is not just transition or movement; it is pursuit.
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What They Hide
From the Series ‘Cheekh’
May 11, 2020
Cheekh translates to “scream” from Urdu. This series is my, as of an artist, cry to society. Women are often regarded as symbols of beauty and grace. These ideals, however, are intertwined with a horrifying and ugly existence. My works focus on the concurrence of the sacred and the profane.
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At Work on Central Avenue
May 5, 2020
I made these photographs as I walked the 16 miles of Central Avenue in Phoenix, Arizona. The sequence starts in a rapidly gentrifying mid-town, following Central due south as it cuts through glassy downtown before dipping under Jackson Street and into the historically Black and Latino neighbourhoods of South Phoenix.
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Kinesics
Looking Past Facial Expressions
April 13, 2020
“Photograph what interests you. ”A quote that I kept with me since reading it in an article a year or so back. It’s an esoteric quest that will always be hard to satisfy. Sure, one can enjoy different genres of photography. Be it landscape, documentary, street or portraiture; there’s a cornucopia to choose from.
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Waterways
Exploring London’s Canals
March 26, 2020
London’s canal system forms part of the Grand Union Canal; a 137-mile-long canal line running from London to Birmingham. I have always been fascinated by life on the waterways — especially since my mother lives full-time on a houseboat herself. A few weeks ago, on a rare day off, I decided to walk the canal route between Kings Cross to Little Venice — a part of London I had never properly explored before.
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An Immigrant Story
1999, 2020
March 22, 2020
Having landed back in Vancouver, I ride the train home in a stupor. As if I woke up from a lucid dream, not quite able to separate the reality from the mind’s fabrications. After moving to Canada in 1999, I never revisited my homeland until 2020. In Moscow, I lived with my grandma and grandpa while attending grade school.
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Dreary Town
March 17, 2020
Arriving at each new city, the traveler finds again a past of his that he did not know he had: the foreignness of what you no longer are or no longer possess lies in wait for you in foreign, unpossessed places. This photo essay is inspired by the book Invisible Cities.
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Vancouver — an Urban Street View
March 10, 2020
Street photography. I’ve had an interest in urban street photography for some time now. It doesn’t pay the bills; for me, it is “for the love of it” kind of pursuit. I shoot what I see. There are no visual or aesthetic goals. It’s just what leaps out and grabs me at the time.
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A Seven-Month Trip Across Asia
With a Small Backpack, My Pentax K1000, and Eight Rolls of Film
March 3, 2020
Back from my seven-month Asia adventure. Haven’t got much to unpack: I travelled with one small backpack that can fit on a plane as a carryon. I didn’t limit my packing space to follow a minimalist fad or to make a statement. I did it so that I would not have to pay the baggage fees and wait like a peasant around the airports’ luggage carousels.
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Lombok, Indonesia
February 18, 2020
Lombok is an island east of Bali, a part of Indonesia’s West Nusa Tenggara province. Lombok’s unspoiled landscape and preservationist traditions set it well apart from the touristy beach towns of its western neighbour. Lombok’s Sade Village people pride themselves in their freedom from the technological gadgetry most of the world can’t seem to live without.
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10 Summer Road Trips to Do From Banff National Park
February 11, 2020
Banff is a famed North American tourist hub, laden with young Aussie visitors. Here, to live their working-holiday dream of partying and snowboarding. But it’s not all about powder: Canadian summers bring a unique experience to this postcard-famous destination.
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