Here’s another set of images I made in Barcelona last week. Before I went I was really looking forward to shooting some street portraits but I found the language barrier to be a hurdle although I was able to overcome it sometimes with hand signals. Other times I had no problems because people spoke english but overall I didn’t feel the right energy on the street to approach people. The vibe I was feeling was people seem more guarded than I’m used to Oxford or London. My theory is that people are so used to being approached by others on the street trying to sell them things or asking for money etc that they automatically ignore anyone approaching them. It’s a shame because I saw so many people I wanted to photograph but alas it was not to be.
[Tech info:] Mamiya C330f loaded with Kodak Tri-X film, processed in Rodinal (1:50) for 13:30.
First of all,I have been following your website for quite some time and I really like your work.
I was in London, Paris, and Barcelona a few weeks ago. I completely agreed with you. Folks in Barcelona were not quite welcoming of being photographed compared to other two places.
Hey Sam,
Thanks for your comment and for confirming my gut feeling. It’s a real shame because I’m sure you’d agree that there are so many photogenic people to photograph in Barcelona.