Mono Portrait Challenge

Searching for a Portrait model takes me out of my comfort zone.

I tend to plan my photo shoots and I try to visualize how the final image will look so one Sunday morning in late September I was up early to find a suitable portrait model. My personal challenge was to find a rough-looking male character who would allow me to take his picture. Manchester was probably my best location so I decided to use the Manchester bus service so I’d be able to do some people watching on the way, it also avoided having to find parking in the city.

On arrival there were some other things I had earmarked to photograph before the streets got busy, but inevitably it was time to face my demon… Street Photography isn’t really my thing, I walked the streets looking for roughest, dirtiest looking vagrant in town and trying to memorize who was where! It didn’t take long before I realized that there was some form of organization where they appeared to have their own pitch for begging or selling the Big Issue. One thing to remember when looking for the subject I was after, DON’T make eye contact with anyone unless you have something to say, otherwise you’re likely to receive a volley of abuse. After spotting my DEMON I had 2 flyby’s and aborted approaches before I managed to successfully force myself to face the man, his head turned a little, just enough to look through me with his piercing eyes; his eyes then lowered and looking at the camera the blank expression changed to one of tension and anger. This really was my demon. Time to act fast, with full fixed eye contact I passed the time of day and commented on the lovely weather, only to get the angry reply “its f***ing freezing, I can’t get f***ing warm”. His eyes were cold and he was shaking from head to foot, probably due to alcohol and drug abuse but who am I to judge or comment. Time to ask if I could take his photo, he looked surprised and enquired as to why I’d want his f***ing picture and it would cost me the price of a coffee, so after negotiating a coffee would be £2 he agreed. This in itself was an experience because he tried to smile, I don’t think he’d tried this for a long time; he looked more like a child with severe wind, so when I asked him to just look normal and not to smile he seemed more relaxed. On giving him his agreed £2 he tried to smile and thanked me, since then I’ve often wondered whether he’s still on the streets or whether he’s passed away; but I can’t help but feel that there was a sad story behind the face that pierced through me even while I was editing the image. This is one photo-shoot I will never forget.

Click on an image to see a larger version.

Regards Martin.

P.S. I’ve got rid of the Demon..

Sorry about the rambling and bad grammar, but it’s an image that I feel humbled me.