fun
Photographing people drinking coffee or smoking is a routine for a photographic investigator… Photographing them eating cookies on the other hand is more challenging and a great deal more revealing. One way or the other, most photographic subjects have mastered the art of gesturing while enjoying a coffee or a smoke. Cookies are more unconventional. But I think much more enjoyable both for my subjects and me.
Read MoreSometimes a photographic investigator has to invent her own words...
Read MoreIt's a freelance photographic investigator's -like myself- dream... Temperatures are ideal for photographic investigations, subjects are more open and the aloha spirit flows through everything... That's paradise.
Read MoreIn between investigations, listening to the Xanadu soundtrack and drinking black coffee, dreaming of Christmas magic, miracles, abundance of all good things and seeing guardian angels shining their sparkle all around me... But most of all, being grateful... Someone should seriously think about introducing Thanksgiving instead of Black Friday in our little place of the world. My photographic investigations are certainly more fruitful around subjects that are thankful as opposed to subjects that are fighting in order to buy very cheap things...
Read MoreAstrology for coffee is like sympathy for tea... a perfect match that doesn't exclude the presence of an occasional cigarette which promotes a deeper understanding of the planetary movements. Besides, investigating an astrology reader is always more fun over coffee. My assignment was to investigate the moment of realisation that the prediction were correct, and I think it went pretty well...
Read MoreWeekends are sometimes made of unmade beds, messy kitchens, realising that the things you forgot to put in the supermarket list were the most important after all, and one or two cats running up and down, providing that "je ne sais quoi" quality that would turn a fairly manageable situation into a complete chaos... meet Juanita Romero Vargas Stergio, one of my two faithful helpers in the photographic investigation business...
Read MoreThis time my photographic investigation was taking place in Martinique and I wasn't complaining… This paradise was once known as "Madinina", that means "island of flowers". And I found plenty. It was one of those "treasure hunt" style photographic assignments… in this case the investigator must find out where the investigation is happening and what she is supposed to investigate. The provided clue was "Caribbean flowers" and for me it was very easy. Having a life long affection towards exotic paradises, I knew all about their history and traditions. And a beer with one's subjects after the end of a long investigation was one of them…
Read MoreMy only clue was that she used exclusively panama rolling papers for her cigarettes. Things like that may seem insignificant to an untrained observer, but they make an experienced photographic investigator's life much easier… All I had to do was follow the imprint that the smell of the panama papers left everywhere they were used -sometimes for weeks- and wait. As it must be obvious to you by now, a successful photographic investigator must sharpen all of her senses with diligence, discipline and determination with every change she gets so that she is always ready to follow a sensory lead instantly. Of course the objective of my investigation about this particular subject was totally unrelated to the panama papers, but thank god she used them.
Read MoreIt was Valentines Day and for some unknown reason, all the heroes were out of town. Some said it was because of an unscheduled hero meeting. It wasn't a pretty sight. My subject had a hero date that afternoon and she was disappointed. But that worked well for me. Disappointment is more eloquent as far as a photographic investigation goes. My subject tried to be open minded about it and check out the non-hero population. But the disappointment escalated and it got to a point were it woke up her sense of humour. That date could be rescheduled, after all…
Read MoreIn between photographic investigations, not sitting at the dock of the bay, not wasting time...
Read MoreShe drove a bright red 1969 Ford Cortina GT with white leather seats. She wore a bindi between her eyes and she ordered cold coffee. I knew she was a time machine malfunction visitor when I saw her taking out of her purse a bright yellow plastic toy film camera and started taking photos of everyone around. I stole that camera from her, the moment she handed the DJ a vinyl record with the soundtrack of Henry Mancini's Pink Panther asking him to play "Cortina" -if he wouldn't mind. She dissapeared in a flash, the moment Super Mario, the DJ, touched the record. And this was probably the reason why the record hadn't disappear as well. But when I reached for the vintage film camera in my bag, it wasn't there. "Maybe I am not here either", I thought.
Read MoreIt's funny how the lyrics of a song that you randomly hear on the radio or at the end of an episode of your favourite TV series sum up your understanding of a situation, of a day, even of your life. Or gives you a pretty good idea of how you would like things to be from now-on. "May the good Lord shine a light on you. Make every song (you sing) your favourite tune. May the good Lord shine a light on you. Warm like the evening sun", sung the Rolling Stones. And that was it for me... It's true there was already a connection between us, of course. You know, since "Angie"...
Read MorePhotographing people drinking coffee or smoking is a routine for a photographic investigator… Photographing them eating cookies on the other hand is more challenging and a great deal more revealing. One way or the other, most photographic subjects have mastered the art of gesturing while enjoying a coffee or a smoke. Cookies are more unconventional. But I think much more enjoyable both for my subjects and me.
Read MoreStolen from time...
Read MoreIt was a particularly hot and bright day. A big sun spot has caused a huge coronal mass ejection and everything in the city was going crazy… If you were lucky enough that your cell phone didn't explode, there were many chances that a private message you had the inspiration to send on Facebook would go public on Twitter… Crazy staff like that happened all the time but Irene was used to it… All she cared about that morning was how fast she could reach the coffee shop. She looked out the window and saw all she needed to know… The big red alert sign said: "Multiple sunglasses are needed".
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