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Cedric Roux was our winner for our January POTM on Instagram.  The theme was “Wild Winters” and Cedric sent us an amazing crazy wind shot!  

We caught up with Cedric to find out more about that day - Cedric said:

“I was in Marseille for the week. The weather was beautiful and I heard there was lots of wind that day at Notre Dame de la Garde which is a famous spot in Marseille altitude. 

So, I turned around during one hour and shot some scenes in the wind, which was called the “Mistral”.

I tried different things with people in the place.  Sometimes it was clothes, sometimes it was hair.  I had some interesting shots and I finally choose this one because of the fantastic hair thing and the sailor tops at both side of the picture and the sea in the background”.​​

Cedric showed us some more of his Mistral hair shots taken in that windy hour!

To see more of Cedric’s photos, check out:

Website: https://www.cedricroux.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cedricroux/

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/138770841@N02/

We got so many great submissions this month for our ‘Hands’ challenge! The judges had a tough time, but in the end, Rome-based street photographer Fabio Renzi won the day.  There's a lot to love about Fabio’s photo: the optical illusion of the extra hand, the stark contrast between light and shadow, the pastel colours that Rome provides so well, the repetition of the shape of the bollard on the wall behind it, and the pattern at the top-left that looks like someone rolled a die and threw a five.

Congrats, Fabio!

Two ice creams are better, Rome 2020

We caught up with Fabio to find out more about this intriguing shot. He told us:

“In the center of Rome there are ice cream parlors on practically every corner. I often stand at the exit of these to try to take some interesting photos. When I took the contest photo, my attention was captured by the sharp cut of light. I lurked in the hope that an interesting situation would arise, and in the end, it did. The person holding the second ice cream was one step behind the woman in the photo, completely in shadow, and there was only a fraction of a second in which that person had just their arm with the ice cream in the light. I found myself in front of a surreal and funny scene, which thanks to luck and timing, I was able to capture.”

If you would like to see more of Fabio’s work, please check out his Instagram profile at https://www.instagram.com/eyes_look_rome/. 

The winner of our 'Hats' competition is Manuel Castañeda! We received a lot of great entries to this one, from the ridiculous to the sublime (and we mean both the photos and the hats themselves). But one artist seemed to stand out as THE hat photographer, thanks to many great entries, and that was Manuel, a Mexican street photographer. Even choosing which of his photos to choose wasn't easy, but this one seemed to provide mystery and a feeling of anticipation that the guitarist could emerge from the shadows and start blasting out a tune at any moment. Very well done, Manuel! 

Epílogo 17, Rioverde, México, 2021

Manuel told us that this photo, and some of his other entries, are part of a larger project:

“I took this photograph in the local market in the center of Rioverde. He is one of the few musicians left here. He didn’t want to be portrayed, but he accepted when he saw that his face couldn’t be seen in the photo.

“It is difficult to get a portrait of a stranger done in a small city like Rioverde. Older people are very suspicious, though fortunately my photographic style gives them a little more confidence as I focus more on details, either their clothes or some object they have, and not on their face. Yet many times they tell me that they do not want to be photographed anyway.

“I want to document everything that is disappearing in the region of San Luis Potosí, and that includes the market musicians. I’ve included several other photos from the project here.”

We had a huge number of entries for our competition, “The Beach”. It was clearly a subject close to many of your hearts. As tough as it was to choose, the winner is...Kathleen DiTanna!

This shot clearly takes the spirit of seaside humour and makes you look twice. It's also a high quality photograph and the photographer has clearly thought about how best to line herself up to get this shot. We just hope this guy doesn't try to buy an ice cream. Congratulations, Kathy!

Coney Island Foot in Mouth, Coney Island, NY, 2019

Kathy described to us what sounds like a great day, and not just for the photos she made:

“The Professional Women Photographers of NYC was holding a meetup in March last year to visit Coney Island and to witness the famous Polar Bear Plunge. This was a great opportunity to photograph a special Coney Island experience!  As it turned out, I did take loads of photos of the polar bear plunge but also spent time on the Coney Island pier. 

I had noticed this man exercising by the railing.

Initially I was attracted to the scene of the man and the young boy in green because of the age difference and the pop of color.

As I watched the man exercising and the little boy running, I continued to take photos.

Fortunately, as I was photographing the man exercising, the boy ran out of view and another man walked right into the frame, thus the foot in the mouth image!

I am from the Philadelphia area, so going to Coney Island is exciting any time of year. Coney Island had a very low-key vibe in March when I visited. As the day wore on, people were seen walking the boards and getting some sun. The excitement of spring was in the air! Most businesses were closed, except of course Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs and those shops preparing for the Memorial Day opening. It was a really interesting day with the pier, the plunge, and the people making it a unique photo experience.”

Makes you want to head to Coney Island right now, doesn’t it? Congrats again, Kathy! If you want to see more of Kathy’s work, check out:

Rose Vandepitte is the latest winner of our Picture of the Month “Public Transport” contest! We all loved the moment she captured of two women - one real and one not (a poster) - mirroring each other in the gaps between cars on the London Underground. 

Underground Poster, London, 2017

We chatted with Rose and found out this image represents a common theme of hers.

“Being Belgian and living in Brussels I often go to London for the day, sometimes to visit an exhibition but mainly to do some street photography. On that particular day in March, 2017, the weather was very bad so I decided to stick to the Underground to do some photography. I got off at the Holborn tube station, noticed the poster in the gap between carriages, saw women get off, took quite a few pictures until the right girl with the right look appeared and took the shot. Had it not been a rainy day I would never have taken this picture! 

“As I sometimes look for this kind of “echo” in a photo, I do have a few other similar pictures. Each shot has a poster or a photo in it and a person more or less echoing what is happening in the poster/photo. All four of these photos were taken in London in May, 2015, two during “Photo London”, and two on New Bond Street. However, I think the winning picture is the best of the bunch.”

 New Bond Street, London, 2015

New Bond Street, London, 2015

Photo London, London, 2015

Photo London, London, 2015

To follow Rose’s work and travels:

https://www.instagram.com/rose_vandepitte/?hl=en

http://www.rosevandepitte.be

https://www.flickr.com/photos/rosevandepitte/

Chris Suspect

My interest in photography started in my early 20s while I was a bass player for a punk band. I used to go to the library to browse photo books and then make copies of the photos I liked for band flyers. I was primarily interested in war, crime, and political photography because those graphic images lent themselves to great promotional posters for the kind of music we played.

Fast forward 15 years and I wound up getting a point-and-shoot camera to document the birth of my son in 2005. I read the manual and would go out on my own to see what I could do creatively with the camera settings.

After some positive feedback on Flickr, many stolen images by bloggers, and requests by a few magazines, I decided to pursue photography seriously by purchasing a DSLR in 2011. The following year, I enrolled in a color photography class as a continuing education student at the Corcoran School of the Arts and Design. It was at this point I started doing “street photography.” Although I wasn’t really sure what made a good street photo at this point, I knew what I liked and that’s what was important for me. I was primarily shooting film - color and black and white - with a Nikon F2 with a 50mm lens.

Here are some of my early street photos:

This image of friars taking shelter from the rain under a large tree was taken in Washington, DC, in 2011. I shot it from my car window. What I saw in this image was an amusing take on religion. Not even God could protect these men of the cloth from the ravages of Mother Nature.

This photograph of a man hanging off the back of a city bus was taken in DC’s Chinatown in 2011. It reminded me of one of those absurd action shots I admired when I was making punk flyers in my 20s. I’m not sure if this is a great picture, but it would work for a show flyer. I always enjoy capturing stuff like this when I see it.

This photograph of three people walking by what appears to be a body bag was taken in Washington, DC, during the course of my color photography class at the Corcoran in 2012. What attracted me to this scene was the apparent disregard of the “body” as people streamed by on their evening commute. This image was in my first group show at the Corcoran.

I got this snapshot as I was leaving work for a lunch break in 2011. I was fortunate with the placement of the balloons; this was the first time I realized that obscuring someone’s head could make for a more interesting piece. It also reminds me a bit of Mickey Mouse. This image sparked my ongoing interest in trying to place balloons on people’s heads. It’s quite hard to do well. These balloons don’t like to remain stationary!

This image of a photographer taking a shot of two people kissing was also made in DC’s Chinatown, in 2012. It was around this time I started focusing on trying to include more objects/subjects in a frame that would either compliment or juxtapose each other. I sometimes use this image to promote my street photography workshops. I think it speaks to the nature of street photography in general.

Since 2012, I have come a long way in photography and have branched out to focus on longer-term projects. In fact, this year I plan on publishing four mini-books, or high-end zines if you will. The first will be Gratuity Included, a fevered dream sequence of raw imagery taken in the heat of the night. It will be released March 15, 2020, on my website, www.chrissuspect.com.

Other places to find me include:

Instagram  @gratuity_included

Twitter  @chris_suspect

Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/chris.suspect.56

Our theme over the holidays was, appropriately, Winter Holidays, and our winner is Miami-based street photographer Lynne Kaplan! Congrats, Lynne! The shadow through the centre of the picture almost makes it seem like there are two images Photoshopped together, but the two sides are definitely pulled together by one of the elves looking at the men they’re sharing a bench with. It’s a humourous photo and mysterious, too. Good work!

Untitled, New York, 2019

Besides the great story going on in the photo, we wanted to know the story behind the photo. This is what Lynne told us:

“This is the photo that almost never was. On my way to shoot the Bergdorf holiday windows, I inadvertently got off the bus one stop early. As I did, out of the corner of my eye I saw an elf getting off her bike. I hung around for a bit, hoping to get something that wouldn’t look like a snapshot of just another Christmas costume. Patience paid off when her partner came along and they sat on a bench together to eat a boxed lunch, just like ordinary little elves. More good luck ensued, as they sat directly between two men to the right and two to the left. I took a few shots, but liked the contrast of this coupling the best. In the short time I spent shooting, the lighting went from all shade to dividing the frame in half sunlight, half shade. The thing I remember most about these photos is that my heart was laughing, feeling very satisfied at getting what I aimed for.

“I’m including another shot that shows the other, different lighting, but with no interaction between the elves and the men. Below that are several Bergdorf holiday window shots, which were my initial goal.”

You just never know what you’re going to find out on the streets. The lesson is to always be prepared for anything, even when you’re on another mission.

If you’d like to follow Lynne’s work, it can be found at the links below:

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/street.kred/

Website:  www.lynnellenphotography.com

The winner of our 'Verticals' competition this month is Andrea Diener. It was one of our most popular competitions so far. This meant it was tougher to choose a winner!

Andrea’s subtle pastel-hued piece was the firm favourite. Whether the woman with the beach towel is worrying about choosing the best position on the beach, we can't say. But she certainly chose a great spot to stand for this photo. The people, delicate structures on the sand, and the leading lines all add up to a superbly composed shot.

Midday Swim, Odessa Beach, Ukraine, 2019

We asked Andrea to tell us something about this shot: I am a travel journalist. While working in eastern Europe a couple of months ago, I caught an awful cold. On a free day I decided to sit at the beach and do nothing but get better (and take photos). I really love photographing beaches; they give a clear background, and there are often colourful towels and umbrellas and balls. As it wasn’t quite summer yet, the beach wasn’t full of tourists - it still belonged to the locals.

I want to return to Odessa. It is incredibly photogenic and not very far from central Europe where I live. Not a lot of people visit Bulgaria or Ukraine. So I thought I'd concentrate on that part of the world for a while. I recently decided to do more vertical shots, having gotten a bit bored with only landscape format. I’ve forced myself to turn the camera 90 degrees every now and then and not get lazy and just push the button. When I took the featured shot, I also took this vertical:

Here are a couple others I took at the same time that I also liked:

And another vertical here:

I upload all my keepers on Flickr and make an album for each of my trips. It is incredibly handy, I think. You can see them here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/andreaffm/  

My Instagram is a bit more curated, here:

https://www.instagram.com/andrea.diener/

My website/blog (in German) is here: 

http://photo.andrea-diener.de