traces

I made this work over several days of walking through Los Angeles and San Francisco, photographing unique people and whatever caught my attention. I shot digitally on a Sony FX30 and converted the images to black and white because I wanted the expressions and textures to become the focus. As I photographed, I began learning about some of the people who caught my eye. A shoe store owner, “Cool Cat,” on Melrose showed me the custom shoes he makes himself, and two men visiting from New York told me they came all the way to LA to buy Chrome Hearts. Others did not want to be photographed, while some never noticed me at all. That became part of the work too. Some people allowed me into a small piece of their lives, while others remained complete strangers. The second half of the work shifts from the people I spoke with toward those I could only observe, as well as the impact people leave on each other and their surroundings. I took notice to graffiti, worn sidewalks, and the traces of people constantly passing through shared spaces. Each image is a small piece of a life within a much larger chain of events that I happened to cross for only a moment. However, not every photograph is beautiful; some confront harsh realities, like the homeless man sprawled across the ground. I hope my work can maybe open the eyes of the ignorant, and raise awareness on realities that often go unnoticed.

Black-and-white portrait of a bearded man wearing sunglasses, a patterned vest, large beaded necklace, and graphic T-shirt indoors.
Black-and-white close-up of a person holding a lit cigarette over an ashtray.
Man wearing glasses, a baseball cap, and jacket standing on a tree-lined outdoor shopping walkway with umbrellas and pedestrians.
Black-and-white photo of tourists walking on a crowded pier beneath a roller coaster, with waterfront amusement park signs and rides in the background.
Black-and-white San Francisco street scene with a cyclist, cable car tracks, overhead wires, traffic signs, and downtown buildings.
Black-and-white street scene outside Castagnola's steak and seafood restaurant, with a wheelchair user, stroller, cart, and cyclist.
Black-and-white street scene with a person lying on the sidewalk, a parked car, and a bench.
Black-and-white street scene with pedestrians, parked cars, traffic lights, leafy trees, and urban buildings viewed through a concrete barrier.
Close-up black-and-white photo of textured rubber soles with round tread lugs on rough pavement.
Black-and-white urban scene with overhead utility wires, hanging woven lanterns, building silhouettes, and tall plants against the sky
Black-and-white street scene with pedestrians walking past outdoor café seating and a man in a white shirt carrying a shopping bag.
Woman wearing sunglasses poses with a peace sign beside a large stone sculpture in a museum.
Black-and-white view of a suspension bridge tower, cables, and roadway from below