Bob
Street Photography with Permission
Lexington, Massachusetts, September 2020
I was seated outside a cafe with a friend, enjoying the warm sun and a cup of coffee, when this gentleman struck up a conversation with us. I was too lazy to get off my duff and move closer, when he agreed to have his picture taken. As a result, I had to crop the images severely to get these head-and-shoulder shots, and lost some image quality in so doing. Incidentally, it's worth noting how the cap’s visor nicely modeled the light on his face.
Robert Capa, the legendary World War II photographer famously said, "If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough." If this exercise in lazy photography has any value, it is to help me remember that wise counsel in the future. Incidentally, I regard this series as a warm-up—like a pianist playing scales—to the art of "cooperating candids," or street photos taken with the subject’s permission.
