Together
Together
Could there possibly be anything more important.
Together. The image above was created back in 2014, at least I think that’s the case. I do know that it was within the first three times that I went out, but when I first started practising street photography, I was not at all good at keeping all the files organized. Plus, I really was not good with using Photoshop. If you look closely at the image, you will see a fuzzy boarder thingy (overlay) that is actually baked into the RAW file! There was a time way back when using Photoshop, where I’d make some permanent edit by mistake, and in a panic quickly shut the whole thing down, not knowing how to undo it! It was bad. But this image is very important to me. It was the inspiration behind my first series called Together, the series most dear to me. When I first saw it, that word just screamed out to me. There was this obvious connection between her and the person she was talking to. I liked the feel, wondered what was being said, but there was obvious joy involved. So starts my obsession with creating series, and there are many. And it works two ways for me, one, a collection of individual images with the same theme, which may take years to develop. And two, a number of images recorded in quick succession all at once of something happening in front of me. The second way is one of the most challenging scenarios to manage, mainly because my camera’s shutter is quite loud, so the more I press the button, the more chance of me getting caught, which obviously ends the candid element of the images. But it is so worth it when it works out.
Can’t think of anything else to say about that. Writer’s block?
Maybe this will help. From my book People Photography, Life, and the Street, Chapter 5. Examples of Shots to Look for, Creating Series. (Please note, this is from the original manuscript, it’s dated, and in the process of being edited and updated):
At the beginning of the section Example of Shots to Look For, I wrote about my process of creating a series of related images to create what we call a photographic series. I explained that this is something that I don’t try to create; I don’t purposely have a plan for a photo walk where I will only photograph things with the colour blue, as an example. The reason again, is that I just feel going out like that with this set idea or plan is too restricting. Doing this may prevent you from being open to anything you may encounter, and this may cause you to miss shots. Photographic series are a group of pictures that most people find pleasing to view. We tend to like patterns and things that appear to go together. Photographers will often create entire books related to a particular series of images that create a theme, and this is terrific. So, what I mean by all of this is that it is definitely a worthwhile practice to create photographic series, it’s just not something I like to pursue consciously. And again, the reason for this is that I like to go out with an open mind to be ready to react instinctively to anything I encounter, without the restricting thought: oh, I must only shoot subjects with the colour blue in them. Being open to anything allows for creativity and variety to flourish in my work, and this is something that I strive for each day.
But now here’s the thing, if you go out to practice street photography as long as I have, you start to see repeated subjects that absolutely fit nicely into the photographic series category. Without a doubt, this has happened to me a number of times, and in fact, I believe it is quite inevitable. It just happens, and that’s the important point. I don’t like to force these things. Examples of series that I have recognised and developed after the fact are: Moments, Together, Hoop Earrings, and Aritzia (which is a clothing outlet). It’s not at all surprising that these examples have appeared in my work. I always see people together as I’m out, and “moments” are certainly special to come across and capture, although this doesn’t happen as often. Women like to where “hoop earrings”, so no surprise there. And lastly, there are a lot of women that like to shop at the store Aritzia, and this store always provides a nice big shopping bag with their logo printed boldly on the side. This is something that I see often, but I mainly photograph these women because they are typically fashionably dressed, and this fits in well with my style of photography.
Another series of photographs I’ve developed over the years has to do with the white wall I described before in the Locations chapter. Photographing someone in front of an all white backdrop is and age-old shot, and one that I often try to achieve with simple walls that I find around the city. And not surprisingly I have amounted quite a few which when shown together, create a nice series. Now the only difference with this situation is that I purposely went out to find a plain white wall to photograph people. That was my intent with this shot. But I left myself open to the possibilities of whatever passed in front of this wall. And by doing this, I managed to include a nice variety. Again, don’t restrict yourself while out shooting. Keep an open mind and react on instinct. Trust your judgement.
So, there you go, let photographic series develop in your work over time. But just be careful to not let a particular idea limit your vision and observations skills while out shooting street. You need to keep an open mind to all the possibilities you will encounter each time you go out. Just something to think about. See examples of my series below.
End of chapter.
Please enjoy a selection of images from my series called Together. Until next time.
Thank you for being here, and for your time.
October 25, 2025 Michael Gordon White
