A Proud Man

This is not meant to be a travel blog, but since I'm constantly on the move now a days, I thought I'd include my latest location. Two days ago I left Bangkok and arrived in Chiang Mai. The people here seem to know even less english, but on the bright side, they also seem to be more relaxed and easy going about meeting foreigners. Sadly, my lack of thai knowledge and their lack of english skills results in fewer, cosy people stories. My meetings though, doesn't feel any less interesting. This man surprised me from around a street corner. I loved his outfit, the way it reminded me of a military uniform from the olden movies. Quickly I tried to catch his attention by showing him my camera and ask for a portrait.  At first he seemed confused, but without saying anything I kept pointing my camera at him, knotting my head. Suddenly he stopped and went into this position, without moving, just looking at me. I took a few steps back and snapped the photo.

Shy Looking Man

Since early Januar 2012 I've been mostly shooting my portraits in the southern part of London, Peckham and surrounding areas. The beauty of the people there is hard to compete against. However, a few days ago I left for Thailand to work on a people-project in Doi Saket, Chiang Mai. On my way, I've stopped in Bangkok and spent the whole day roaming around looking for subjects. Without a map, without a plan and without a clue on where I was going, it sure was a hot and interesting experience. Chalit, in the photo above, was one of the few people that actually agreed to be photographed. I thought Thailand, The Land of Smiles would be an easy target, but it turned out that people here are quite shy and more than average sceptic to curly haired foreigners with glasses. It didn't help that most people I felt like asking couldn't understand a word of what I was saying.  

Man With Scarf

From a distance I noticed John's outfit. It instantly intrigued me because it seemed like he still lived in the olden days, only this was Camberwell 2012. The 81 years old was fashionable,  old-school looking and classy all at the same time. I got closer to him and was about to stop him to have a talk, when I noticed what looked like tears running from his eyes. For a second I questioned myself if it was okay to ask a crying person for a photograph. We got eye contact and I decided to ask anyway. On a second thought, it might just have been the wind in his face, that made the tears, but I'm still to this day not sure. 

Woman in Yellow

In front of this partly painted wall I met Sandra. I instantly fell in love with the combination of colors and her beautiful head piece. I wanted to photograph her so bad that I think it made me a bit extra nervous when I decided to stop her. In general people are sceptic when I approach them, and Sandra was no different. She even confirmed this in an email she sent me today. After some stumbling, I kind of explained to her what I was doing, whereafter she made my day and agreed to be photographed.  

Man in Black

Tommy(69) had just exited the pub and came walking straight towards me. At the moment it felt like he was about to ask me something, rather than the other way around. This is always a good feeling to have when I'm out shooting, as I then kind of know already that he's up for being photographed. And as I thought, he gave me the thumbs up. Tommy was very interested in learning from me what to do, where to stand, how to smile, etc. I told him he was perfect as he were and asked him to hold his position. 

The Red Glow Man

It was early morning and I was walking around for hours receiving plenty of rejections from people too busy, on their way to work. The frustration was getting to me, but then on a small street just of the main road, this man got trapped between the wall and myself. I guess he felt the pressure, and kindle gave me a yes to be photographed. When I showed him a preview of the photo, he raised his voice in excitement, yet it didn't stop him from walking of. In a desperate attempt to maintain contact,  I shouted; 'what is your name?' With a turn of the head, I received the answer; 'Michael'.  

The Passport Man

This is the second Frank I meet in only a few days. Does the same name mean same look and personality too? In this case I would have to say no. Whilst the previous Frank was very neat and tidy, the new Frank had a more rough look going on. Long hear, beard and an old leather jacket. Our meeting was very short, yet we got to know each other quite well. He told me in anger how he had just spent £6 on new passport photos, and showed me them together with an empty wallet. I told him that I would be happy to send him some copies of the photo I took of him for free, and asked for his email address. Unfortunately Frank wasn't that much of an internet user and didn't have an email, so he asked if I could send it by post instead. After some writing problems, I got the address and hope to send the photo soon. 

Old Man Covering Face

Of Frank's 80 year old life, 50 of them had been spent living in Peckham. Clearly he knew a lot. As for me, having lived in Peckham less than a year, I felt inexperienced talking to him. Yet the more interesting it became. Myself I would describe Peckham as a very multicultural, up and coming area, filled with young people and artists due to the low prices (compared to Central London). Frank however, ensured me that it wasn't always like this. Over the years he had witnessed a lot of changes to the area, both in terms of local residents, culture and environment. If it was for the better or worse, he kept a little bit secret, but I didn't get the impression that he wanted to move anytime soon. 

Artist - Julie Verhoeven

Julie's yellow hair and pale face was quite easy to notice along the sidewalk. It made me curious and I  wanted to know more about her, so I decided to say hellu. Little did I know that Julie is a really great multitalented artist, working with a mix of fashion, illustration, design and video. After a quick look at her website (julieverhoeven.com), I found out that she had done work for pretty much all the biggest names in the fashion industry; Versace, H&M, Louis Vuitton, Dazed, you name it. As well as some beautiful decoration work for one of my favorite London restaurants, Sketch.