Something I think about everyday. I’ve come to the realization that the reasoning is self serving. It’s for me to grow as an individual. To experience life in a different way from others. To observe and understand humans. To feel emotions. Think I’m full of it? Let me tell you about an experience I had this weekend while out on a photo.
I witnessed a collapsed man being revived by firefighters for over 15 minutes. I was one of the first people on scene and had front row seats. The moment was touching, to witness these brave heroes calmly and efficiently attempt to revive this fallen man. They started with CPR and eventually brought over the Lucas 3 chest compression system. A large machine attempting the pump the life back into this man. This lasted 10-15 minutes. I was so captivated by the scene, I wasn’t thinking about taking photos. Only about the well being of this man and our tax money hard at work. About 10 minutes in, I looked behind me to at least 500 over lookers. And just like that the suspense was over and the Lucas 3 became victorious as the mans chest was now slowly pumping up and down. He was quickly placed on a stretcher and hauled to an ambulance after being dead for 15 minutes. It was quite the scene.
I could go on about this moment, probably something I’ll think about forever. I’m surprised by my strong reaction as I’ve witnessed quite a bit of death in my life. Maybe I’m getting older and appreciate life more.
But to the point, this happened because of street photography. I came home and told my better half how much I love her. I have a greater appreciation for life now. I’m done trying to justify my weird hobby of taking photos of strangers as my contribution to society. It’s not, it an exercise in self realization and greater understanding. Totally selfish and that’s okay. Who cares if my photos touch anybody else. Now that I’m okay with the experience of photography, I feel more liberated and less pressure. My goal everyday is to have an emotional reaction to something. I want to be touched.
So why do street photography? So you feel something. Bring you back down to Earth and enjoy what’s in front of you.
Chris Athanasiadis 