Street Convergence, San Rafael | Mark Lindsay
A delivery truck speeds by. A man crosses the street with a bag lunch. In the distance, a woman and child hold hands. In the foreground, a tattoo parlor waits for its next customer, reflecting the convergence of activities in its shop window.
This moment came and went with the click of the shutter. Today’s photo has in it all that I love about snapshots; the unexpected drama, the forever-frozen moments, the uniqueness of one spot at one time. We are left with more questions than answers. We can stare into the reflection, looking deeper and deeper into it. The image is about nothing and everything.
The great photographer, Jay Maisel, apparently once said, “If you are out there shooting, things will happen for you. If you’re not out there, you’ll only hear about it.” I love that quote because I know it to be true. Things happen when you have a camera with you. Sometimes things happen that you don’t quite understand until you go back to the studio or darkroom to look at the images. But, in order to make an image, you need to have your camera. This is a lesson that is often learned the hard way.
When time is frozen, the world takes on a curious pose. Nature did not quite intend for us to see things this way. Yet, we behold a still image within the context of an ever-moving world. So, the photo still moves in its own way. A static tension is developed. We crave resolution but never quite receive it. The characters in our drama are forever going somewhere, motivated by something. And we never learn why.