Operathon

Civic Opera House
Wacker Drive
Chicago, IL

SPNC - Year 4 - Instruction #23
"Pointing, waving, clapping, throwing, rubbing, gripping, counting, showing." - JB.Maher

Untitled

Chicago, IL

SPNC - Year 4 - Instruction #19
"Be ambiguous [not vague]" - Kramer O'Neill

Arcade

Market Street
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year 4 - Instruction 16
"Keep the Rhythm" - Oscar Palomares

No Smoking

Mason Street
San Francisco, CA

 SPNC - Year 4 - Instruction #13
"Perfection is Boring." - Regina van der Kloet

Where's the Action?

Via Flickr:
Brunswick Zone
Vernon Hills, IL

SPNC - Year 4 - Instruction #03
"Avoid tunnel vision, let the edges compete for attention in the frame." - Don Hudson

The music videos drew as much interest as the cosmic bowling.

Also submitted to SliderSundays. HSS!

Gramps

Via Flickr:
Market Street
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year 4 - Instruction #01
"When photographing, behave with strangers the same way you behave with your relatives." - Frederic Le Mauff

Untitled

Via Flickr:
Market Street
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year3 - Instruction #22
"Reveal improbable moments in the expressions and attitudes; penetrate the soul of the street by choice framing harmonious and balanced." - Laurent Roch

B-Side

Muni

Via Flickr:
Market Street
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year3 - Instruction #22
"Reveal improbable moments in the expressions and attitudes; penetrate the soul of the street by choice framing harmonious and balanced." - Laurent Roch

Night Run

Via Flickr:
Geary Street
Union Square
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year 3 - Instruction #19
"Look for unusual street light. Study it from all sides until you learn to control it. Let the light be the main character in your picture." - Maria Plotnikova

B - Side

Geary Street

Via Flickr:
Union Square
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year 3 - Instruction #19
"Look for unusual street light. Study it from all sides until you learn to control it. Let the light be the main character in your picture." - Maria Plotnikova

Abbey Road

Via Flickr:
Metra North Central Line
Chicago, IL

SPNC - Year 3 - Instruction #19
"Take a safari. Photograph the Human Zoo from the safety of a car, taxi, bus or train." - Simon Kossoff
B-SIDE

Western Avenue

Via Flickr:
Metra North Central Line
Chicago, IL

SPNC - Year 3 - Instruction #19
"Take a safari. Photograph the Human Zoo from the safety of a car, taxi, bus or train." - Simon Kossoff

Hesitation Amongst Chaos

Via Flickr:
Powell & Market
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year 3 - Instruction #3
"Find the one among the others." - Julien Legrand

Look Alikes? - Plate III

Via Flickr:
Downtown
Chicago, IL

SPNC - Year 2 - Instruction #26
"Photography should be fun and humour an important tool. Make me laugh-out-loud." - Peter Dench

Is she stalking him? Does she know him? Why is he running from her? Why do they look alike? So many questions...

Gerald

Via Flickr:
SPNC - Year 2 - Instruction #24
"Surprise Yourself!" - Damien Chrobak
This image selection for the theme is not obvious, so please read on.

Near the corner of State and Lake in Chicago's Loop, he stood in the middle of the sidewalk, cup and sign in hand, asking every passerby for help. As he approached me, I told him about the $2 Portrait project. "Oh man, can't you do more than two?", he asked. We settled on $3 and began what turned out to be a lengthy conversation (surprise #1). When I gave him the money during the early part of our conversation, he counted it - making sure I was living up to our deal. We both laughed when I asked if he really thought I was going to rip him off (surprise #2).

Gerald was born in Mississippi but came to Chicago as a young child and has lived here ever since. He's 58 years old and was diagnosed with the AIDS virus about 4 years ago. On his wrist was what appeared to be a hospital wristband, but I couldn't read it and tell for sure.

Gerald lives on the streets and sometimes sleeps on the "L" trains. He used to work as a packer many years ago at a warehouse in Franklin Park. He was very proud of this job and continued to describe in great detail how he packed the boxes, taped them up and stacked them 5 or 7 high, depending on what was in them. Gerald wishes he could get that old job back, but when things slowed down many years ago, he was laid off.

I asked him if he had any family that could help him. He shook his head no and began to tell me about some of his family. He has a child who lives in Detroit who is 25 or 30 years old who he hasn't seen in several years. He also has a grandbaby who suffers from sickle cell. Gerald talked about his younger brother who died from sickle cell at the age of 23. And he talked about his father who was an "upstanding man" who at the age of 10 could name every car on the street.

Gerald asked me why I take photos of the people I talk to (surprise #3). I told him that it is a way to tell a story about people who are often forgotten and that I've met a lot of interesting folks. He wondered if some of the people I've met like being homeless because he doesn't, even though he's been so for a long time. I told him that some do and some don't…everyone's story is a little different.

We talked for about 15 minutes. Our conversation started on a more downtrodden note, but by the time it was over, Gerald seemed in better spirits. We shook hands and walked our separate ways.

For the surprises noted above, I decided to submit this for SPNC-Year 2-Instruction #24.

Taken 8/24/12

Beef Dipped w/ Sweet

Via Flicker:
Portillos
Arlington Heights, IL

SPNC - Year 2 - Instruction #23
"Reveal a moment of human introspection within a bustling environment. Evoke the viewer to identify their own moments of reflection." - Brian Sokolowski

Booming

Via Flickr:
SPNC - Year 2 - Instruction #21
"Feel, smell, hear the street ... contemplate life and capture your senses in an image" - Nayeli Cruz

The music was flowing out onto the street, drawing you in to experience the vibe up close and personal. While not technically taken on the street, the shot of this blues jam was certainly about the street.

Stag on a Bike

Via Flickr:
Pilsen
Chicago, IL

SPNC - Year 2 - Instruction #20
"Look for the strange amongst strangers, the hidden oddities or things that are out of place." - Jo Paul Wallace

Converted to b/w and submitted for SliderSlider Sunday. HSS!

The Reader

Via Flickr:
Along Canal Street
Chicago, IL

SPNC - Year 2 - Instruction #18
"Color matters, but carefully." - Andy Kochanowski

Hmm....

Via Flickr:
Powell Street
San Francisco, CA

SPNC - Year 2 - Instruction #17
"A fleeting gesture caught on the fly, can distill the meaning of a relationship, hint at a moral lesson or subvert what’s really happening." - Justin Sainsbury