Click, Capture, and Walk Away
My theme for the Street photography Project was storefront displays and I concentrated on mannequins. When living in New York City, it’s easy to sense the commercial air of the environment, especially when it comes to fashion. We wear different types of clothes to display ourselves in a way, which may be unique from others. Sometimes, we want to blend in, and other times, we want to stand out.
Whatever the reason, our clothing plays a huge part in how we are perceived, whether we like it or not. It is no wonder store-fronts, especially those businesses dealing with clothes wear, spend huge amounts of money and time setting up their displays. The storefront is almost like the “clothes” of the business. In order to attract people, the display must catch the audience’s attention. The audience itself is important. Something that may be appealing to one person may not be so interesting to another. Some storefronts display their mannequins in casual clothes to attract people interested in shopping for “every-day” wear while others drape their mannequins in stylishly sparkling clothes to interest the New York City’s party-loving youth. In any case, everything must appeal to the senses of the customer and every display must “sell.”
Although, I experienced a beginner’s intimidation when it came to capture what was publicly displayed to me, the challenge of capturing the power of the storefront displays was one that I could not turn down. I took my first couple of shots rapidly hoping no one would suspect that I was taking a picture. I soon realized that I was taking pictures a little too quickly and they were not as sharp and planned as I liked them to be. Although the first couple of shots were not so well taken, they served a far greater purpose than I had anticipated. They helped me warm up as a street photographer. I became more concerned with the display and in my effort to ingeniously capture what was in front of me with my camera, I became less concerned about the awkward glances people gave me. I took the pictures fast but with enough precision to keep the images sharp and with respects to other photographic techniques at hand. I also had to be quick because I didn’t want any one to rush through my pictures. However, I didn’t bother to tell anyone to step away from the display when I was taking pictures because I had to take some time to plan the shot in my viewfinder. I angled the camera and myself in the best position to get a shot and I consciously made an effort to take in consideration the depth of the field and the lighting as well.
I received a variety of responses from people as I took pictures. There were some grins, smirks and frowns. Sadly however, people’s reactions were not limited to facial expressions. One of the workers from a store came out and yelled “Excuse me, you are not allowed to take pictures.” I gave her a lost look and said “Oh, okay I won’t take a picture then” but I couldn’t suppress my grin because I knew she had no knowledge of what laws existed concerning taking pictures of public displays in the store-front. Soon, I used the technique of walking quickly right after taking a picture, giving storeowners little time to stop me. This was very effective: No stops, no talks.
Since I was taking pictures of storefront displays, the glare on the windows was something that I could not simply factor out. Instead of trying to fight it, I decided to collaborate with it. The reflective quality of the window added the flavor of New York City’s liveliness and eliminated the stiffness from the displays.
One of the greatest difficulties I faced concerning this project was actually after I had taken all my shots. In total I had well beyond thirty pictures for my theme, which gave me a huge variety to choose from However with this great range, the hardest part was narrowing down my selection to only twelve pictures. This part of the process took me the longest time to complete. Nevertheless, it was an important factor in completing my street photography into the project it turned out to be. Everyone has an artistic side that is edging to capture and present the beauty in our environment. This project has stimulated the street photographer in me.
December 19th, 2007 at 12:32 am
I remember your photos quite distinctly — you seemed to almost bring the mannequins to life. No, not in a creepy “Chucky” way, but more like “Pinocchio.” But seriously, while many of the students got to work with live and moving subjects, it was remarkable that you were able to evoke emotions and make a statement only using plastic. My favorite one of your photos depicted a mannequin tied down to it’s post with a metal chain. It was witty, but more so, it made me feel sorry for the jailed prisoner.
It must have been hard to work with the display glass constantly in your way. I’m glad to hear that you found a way to work around the problem and incorporate the lens-glare as an effect. Lastly, I feel that this project really instilled a geninue love for street photography in you. At the very least, you sure seem to have the motto down — “No Stops, No Talks.”