Windows and mirrors, right?

you are right….and this is part of what i was writing to michael…..photog talk can lead to tech talk (particularly these days!) but mostly photog talk is about some project or story we are working on and the education we get from each other is second to none…and also, so often we are working alone in unfamiliar surroundings and cultures , without our friends and families around, and totally immersed in someone else’s life…when we get back to our “own lives” or around other photographers who have been doing the same thing somewhere else there is an “outpouring” of understanding and a general unspoken “yes, I know what you do”….

david

i am always just as interested in spending time with a shoeshine boy on a corner in madrid as i am in hanging with the ceo of the bank that looms over his head…

cheers, david

cheers, david

A couple of thoughts

1. Id love to join one of your workshops. They seem not only like a blast because of where you guys go but also because of the feeling of camraderie I can sense through your writing.

2. I like spending time with other photographers because of a very simple reason. Its my passion, something that I cant imagine not doing. So how great is it to spend time with people who have the same passion and with whom we can share. I dont have the same problems of competing with Alex Webb for stories, so this is just an amateur’s perspective:) But when I go shooting I prefer to do it by myself. I like to have the freedom to go where I want and to hang around in a spot for 30 minutes if need be. But if you ever wanna shoot with me David, I wont complain:)

It’s a unique occupation. As is photography. I know there are millions of photographers around the world, but I’ll be damned if not every time I tell someone what I do they tilt their head to the side and say, “Huh. Really?” They don’t really know any photographers. (Or archaeologists, I’ll bet!)

I generally don’t talk photography at all unless I’m with another photographer. I mean, nuts and bolts photography talk: f-stops, shutter drag, RAW vs JPG, personal projects, etc. We’re a unique bunch…if I do say so myself!

(Though some *cough-cough-David Alan Harvey-cough-cough* are more unique than others!)

i”ll be in DC next week, and get to meet with Sadie at NG, thanks to Robert and your efforts!! Thanks for being supportive!

kim

It is sad parting after one of your workshops. Everyone becomes such good friends and have shared so much together. The editing, critiquing, the dinners together that last till 2am. It’s great being around all that passion. It’s tough to go back the the real world where you’re not shooting nine plus hours a day, living and breathing photography. Maybe it’s time for a change…

Here’s some photos from the Street Life of Rome workshop in 2004. Hope to join you again soon. Cheers!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/whoopicat/sets/

It’s been such a great experience working with you and the others, shooting deep into the night at these deeply moving and passionate easter celebrations.

Equally impressive has been seeing how you are able to be critical of our work while remaining supportive and encouraging.

I look forward to working with you again in the future and will definitely stay in touch.

Here’s a photo of you chimping at one of our “secret” locations.

http://tinyurl.com/2v33dx

Cheers,

Nick

my experience with fellow photographers is very similar to yours. When I’m out shooting I don’t like having another person with me – except a fellow photographer. Probably this has a lot to do with the things we do which sometimes seem very strange to people outside of photography. Our shared interest in people around us and their activities certainly also helps create a bond.

Not too long ago I spent five days on the tiny island of Mexcaltitán/Mexico (I think you know how small it is) with a photographer friend. It was fantastic, we pushed each other, shared ideas and, more importantly, friendship with people who live there. Five days there with a non-photographer would be very tough, I guess…

For me photography has been, among many other things, a great door-opener. Almost anywhere I go there are other photographers who help with logistics, contacts, equipment etc. etc. Of course they are in a way competitors, but I never look at them that way.

Another aspect might be that a photographer is IMHO very much defined by his or her personality, not so much by a technical skill that one could learn. What I mean is that each of us is more ‘unique’ as a photographer than, say, a lawyer or a dentist would be in their respective profession (I’m not implying lawyers and dentists don’t have unique personalities; it just seems that their profession and their personality are less intertwined than is the case with photographers). This makes us more interested in one another than people with very similar skills would be.

Cheers

Carsten