Abandoned

When I first began taking photographs, the thing that intrigued me most was abandoned houses and buildings. To me, it felt like they could tell you a story, but you had to listen in order to hear the details. I remember walking around, the crunching of glass and wood beneath my feet, it felt hollow, and worn out, like an old pair of sneakers. Everything was just as it was the day the inhabiters left, clothing, papers, light switches in the on position. All that remains is the memories, and that's the beauty of it, you can almost feel them when you're there. I recently visited an old house I first shot almost six years ago. Still the same, still just as beautiful. 

Texas State Fair

Recently went to the Texas State Fair in Dallas. I knew as soon as I walked in the gates, it was gonna be a good day. For a street photographer, the fair is like a kid in a candy store. My brain felt overwhelmed and my eyes were constantly darting everywhere, so much to capture, so many people. Below are a few of my favorite photographs. If I can come home at night with a handful of great photographs, I'm content with that. 

Raw Portraits

"When I have a camera in my hands I feel as though I am the hunter holding his gun. Quietly stalking my prey, waiting to take that precise shot. Unlike the hunter, I am not trying to take a life, but merely trying to take a soul and capture it in the confines of a rectangular frame. Like the hunter, I am looking for that prize, that trophy. Except my trophy is the photograph, the perfect photograph. The one where you get lost in the subjects eyes, and in that glimpse you can feel every single emotion they have ever felt. That to me, is the beauty in the hunt." 

Below are a collection of photographs I've taken. Ranging from family and friends, the ones that have impacted my life most. 

My Only Camera

I recently got a camera I've had my eyes on for quite some time. I sold my DSLR, and every digital camera I have, but kept my two 35mm film cameras. I got a limited edition FujiX100. A fixed focal length lens at 18mm, completely black, and only 10,000 made worldwide. It's a street photographers secret weapon. Small, discreet, and basically silent. A camera like that doesn't attract attention, which in turn, makes you look like an everyday normal sightseer. I haven't had the chance to visit Dallas and walk around, but I recently heard a quote from someone saying "You don't have to be walking in the street to be a street photographer, it can in the grocery store, walking in your neighborhood, anywhere." I'll top off the quote and say you don't need half a dozen lenses to make you a good photographer, nor do you need a 25 megapixel camera that costs as much as a small car. You gotta be creative, and make the best out of what you have. Learn it, tweak it, memorize it, and let it become an extension of your eye.

Twelve Inches

I've always remembered what Ansel Adams said... "The most important part of a camera is the twelve inches behind it" That right there tells you enough. It isn't what you use to capture the photograph, it's HOW you capture the photograph. I recently went to Downtown Dallas with a point and shoot digital camera. Some shots from my hip, some from the viewfinder. I'm slowly learning as a photographer, that it is luck just as much as it is skill.

Square

All these photographs were taken with my iPhone 4. I've always lived by the quote "The camera doesn't make the photographer, what is inside his head is what makes the photographer" Couldn't be more true.