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Me and my kickstarter, selling prints of my hometown, my capital city, my london

I have an ongoing series called “dead in the mincers” (cockney rhyming slang for looking someone straight in the eye – as in ‘mince pies’ -eyes) and this is a perfect example. It looks like I’ve been caught red handed capturing the moment and the menace in her eyes would certainly indicate as much. However sometimes people look straight at me but don’t know for sure if I am taking a shot or not as I literally ‘shoot from the hip’. I use the touchscreen on my Olympus OMD as find it hides my photo taking action much better than pulling the camera up to my face and pressing a button. It also means I never look directly at my subjects and in this instant, if I had, I think I would have been rooted to the spot in fear.

I had just seen this trans person, who was now eyeballing me with a look to kill, attack some woman on Soho square by repeatedly hitting her with a handbag. It was over in a flash and she stormed off with her mate after said battering and just by sheer fluke  I ran straight into them being interrogated by the police shortly after. She was actually claiming she had been hit rather than the other way round.  I did think about offering up my alternative viewpoint of the event in question but thought better of it as didn’t really want to be on the receiving end of her wrath or her handbag.  Did I allow justice to fail to protect myself from violent repercussion – yes, absolutely.

There used to be a lot of characters like this around Soho but they have all but disappeared. Relics of a former era now gone forever. I miss them. They brought a vitality to the area that is now sadly lacking. The question I have to ask is when the area got cleaned up and boutiqued to oblivion where did they all go? Where are they now? Hanging out in the suburbs? Mooching about in Margate? It seems unlikely. I really would like to know. Same goes for all the characterful and colourful residents of Old London who got moved on by excessive rents…where the fuck did you all go?

Me and my kickstarter, selling prints of my hometown, my capital city, my london

This was taken on Portobello Road, a road which I have walked down almost every day for at least the last decade or so. And if you are going to walk down the same road over and over it might as well be Portobello as there is nearly always something or someone going on that will be worth documenting. In this case, the someone was the woman in this picture, who for reasons unknown, stepped out in front of this car holding up an open book to her chest and then refused to move. The driver also seemed unaware of the cause of this human blockade but his attempted solution was to scream at her and beep his horn repeatedly which failed to work. She just stood there, determined and resilient, seemingly oblivious to everything around her, including the irate driver and the small traffic jam behind him she was causing.

I have  often wondered what the book was. My first choice would be a bible or some religious text as it is often only the word of God that can inspire such commitment and fortitude. However, it could have been Harry potter and the Deathly Hallows for all I know. This situation went on for a while and I ended up leaving them to it so I don’t actually know how the situation resolved or what was ultimately behind it but I was grateful to have captured such a truly bizarre occurrence. London is full of these fleeting moments of madness as lives collide.  That’s what makes it such an interesting place to live.   You just need to keep your eyes peeled. And I try to keep my eyes peel free at all times…

This photograph is one of the selected prints you can order via this kickstarter campaign where I am trying to sell 100, one of a kind, one off, 1 of 1 prints which are never to be repeated or replicated. As I am only printing 1 of each shot you will not be able to choose your print but you will be the only person in the world to ever own it – please click through on this link to view the campaign and  join the lucky dip: https://tinyurl.com/ya43j8bw – your support is very much appreciated. And thank you to everyone who has pledged so far. Muchos Muchos x

tally so far: 31 prints sold, 69 to go, 23 days left.

Me and my kickstarter, selling prints of my hometown, my capital city, my london

Sometimes the planets align to produce a moment of magnificent random chaos that just somehow becomes ordered, designed, destined always to have been. The  instant I captured in this photograph I think delivers this to beautifully. I love how the policeman is looking at me, his expression kind of says it all. What I think is great that buried deep in his furrowed brow is the acknowledgement of how ridiculous this situation is and he feels embarrassed and a bit guilty that he has been caught in this predicament. Its not good cop vs bad cop, its real cop vs fake cop and its difficult to tell who’s winning. This is what they call in photography a gift from the gods and all you can do is get it in the bag and declare your gratitude to the universe.

This photograph is one of the selected prints you can order via this kickstarter campaign where I am trying to sell 100, one of a kind, one off, 1 of 1 prints which are never to be repeated or replicated. As I am only printing 1 of each shot you will not be able to choose your print but you will be the only person in the world to ever own it – please click through on this link to view the campaign and  join the lucky dip: https://tinyurl.com/ya43j8bw – your support is very much appreciated. And thank you to everyone who has pledged so far. Muchos Muchos x

tally so far: 19 prints sold, 81 to go, 26 days left.

Me and my kickstarter, selling prints of my hometown, my capital city, my london

This was one of those instants when you realise as a photographer that if you really want to capture unique magical moments amidst the humdrum of daily life you must have your camera with you and readily accessible at all times. I don’t think at any point on any journey I have ever travelled on the London Underground I have ever seen anyone sit on the escalators. Not once except on this single occasion. And she sat there with such poise and elegance and seemed so relaxed and at ease in a situation that definitely didn’t demand it, it was truly mesmeric. To this day I feel very lucky to have captured this fleeting moment and also feel very lucky that I was able to do it without disturbing her. She had no idea I was even there, lost so deeply in her own thoughts which were clearly transporting her far and away beyond the transport system she was within.

This photograph is one of the selected prints you can order via this kickstarter campaign where I am trying to sell 100, one of a kind, one off, never to be repeated or replicated, 1 of 1 prints. As I am only printing 1 of each shot you will not be able to choose your print but you will be the only person in the world to ever own it – please click through on this link to view the campaign and  join the lucky dip: https://tinyurl.com/ya43j8bw – your support is very much appreciated.

tally so far: 15 prints sold, 85 to go, 27 days left.

#freethejpeg

Me and my kickstarter, selling prints of my hometown, my capital city, my london

People who have seen this photograph have often asked me what is he doing and in all honesty I have no idea. He could be gardening, praying, have his head stuck in a fence, spying on someone in the basement. In some ways it is not knowing which gives the photograph its meaning as it is what we project on to it that makes us relate to it. The relationship between the viewer and the image is everything, more even than the relationship between the photographer and the image because it is the connection of the consumer which makes it personal and most impactful. This is what gives it greater resonance. So its really not for me to say. You decide. It becomes your picture…which leads me conveniently on to..

This photograph is one of the selected prints you can order via this kickstarter campaign where I am trying to sell 100 one of a kind one off 1 of 1 prints. As I am only printing 1 of each shot you will not be able to choose your print but you will be the only person in the world to ever own it – please click through on this link to view the campaign and  join the lucky dip: https://tinyurl.com/ya43j8bw – your support is very much appreciated.

tally so far: 12 prints sold, 88 to go, 28 days left.

#freethejpeg

Me and my kickstarter, selling prints of my hometown, my capital city, my london

This photograph was #MYLDN (1) – the first picture I ever posted in this blog. I always loved her expression. I think she could see me taking a photograph from over the road and it puzzled her as to why. She even looked a bit irked by it. Somehow this ramshackle parking space blocking construct annoyed her. And then you have this slightly sinister and mysterious figure in black heading into the house but he looks frozen, as if waiting to be beckoned in to the dark house. Three individual and random factors (actually 4 if you include me) unwittingly conspiring to make a scene. Order out of chaos. It are these seemingly unrelated connections between objects and people that I gravitate to on the streets of London. It shows how, whether we like it or not, we are all intertwined.

This photograph is one of the selected prints you can order via this kickstarter campaign where I am trying to sell 100 one of a kind one off 1 of 1 prints in just under 30 days. As I am only printing 1 of each shot you will not be able to choose your print but you will be the only person in the world to ever own it – please click through on this link to join the lucky dip: https://tinyurl.com/ya43j8bw – your support is very much appreciated.

tally so far: 7 backers, 93 to go, 29 days left.

#freethejpeg