Kevin Day's photostream  

Even though Charlie is one of my strangers (No.30) I don't think I will be adding this shot of him to my set, to be honest I am not sure which one I will choose, Charlie let me take plenty of shots for me to pick from, the trouble is deciding which one - as you can see the camera just loved Charlie.
I have uploaded this shot early in my sequence of strangers because I had such an enthusiastic email from Charlie just after I got home from taking these shots I didn't think I could delay it any longer before he saw it.

Hope you like it Charlie, I'll upload more tomorrow

I found a location right in the middle of Slough that generated an interesting light, so it was really a matter of hanging around there and watching the people walk past.
I spotted Colin walking towards me with a group of friends and knew I had to approach him, so I walked out of the spot I had planned on using to approach him before he got there and then as I asked him if he would be interested in the project knew that as he slowly continued to walk in the same direction as we talked we would arrive where I wanted. The idea sort of worked as I hoped and I will certainly use this location on future very bright days.

Colins first response to my approach was "What's in it for me?" and I must admit I thought this was going to be a refusal but with a little light persuassion he kindly agreed to a shot after I gave him my card and said I would send him the resulting shot.

I knew this was going to be a brief encounter because his friends were standing around waiting for him but neverthless thank you for the time you did give me Colin.

This picture is #28 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page

As I was photographing Eva (Stranger 26) I heard someone behind me call out "Always the girls that get photographed" I turned and saw a very cool looking guy in a full length black leather coat standing within the columns of Covent Garden smiling at me. "Don't worry, I'll be with you in a minute" I replied and he laughed.

This was the first time someone had sort of approached me for a photograph so I wasn't going to let the opportunity slip and as soon as I had left Eva went straight over to Shandy who had been watching what was happening and explained the project. Shandy is one of the performers in Covent Garden, he does a mime act and was between performances and happily agreed to become my stranger No27.
Again I didn't think it wasn't the best light to get a portrait but I think Shandy was so charismatic that he compensates for any failings on my part.

Thank you for agreeing to take part in the project Shandy, I do hope you had a successful afternoon.

This picture is #27 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page

I saw Eva walking through Covent Garden with a friend and they were chatting away so I didn't want to interrupt them but I did follow hoping for a pause in conversation. As they reached the far end they stopped and looked around - this was may chance I thought - and as I approached them I saw Colin grab the moment and start to engage them in conversation. I thought I had missed my moment when I noticed Colin was actually talking to Eva's friend, so seeing that Eva was just standing and waiting I asked her if I could take her portrait for my project as she waited for her friend. Eva is from Czechoslovakia and has been in the UK for about 5 years and was just enjoying a sunny Sunday afternoon wandering around Covent Garden and the West End. The light wasn't great in the shade of building but we tried to make the best of it.

Thank you for agreeing to take part in the project Eva, and our brief encounter.

This picture is #26 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page

I've hesitated over uploading this shot of Richard, I'm not that happy with it and I think if Richard happens upon it I don't think he will be that happy about it, but there is something that I can't put my finger on that I find makes it interesting and I have to admit to really liking the blank stone column that he was standing against as a background for the shot.

I saw Richard standing up against a large pillar in Covent Garden, I got the impression he was waiting for someone and when I approached him and explained the project he was happy to let me take his photograph. I tried chatting and offering direction as he looked down and sideways but not in my direction at all but there was always a distance between us. With the majority of the strangers I have met so far it has been getting easier for me to feel more relaxed and chat away, in turn I think this has made each stranger more comfortable and (hopefully) the shots have been conveying that. But with Richard I just couldn't make a connection and I think that put me on edge which most probably communicated to him and he just couldn't relax. Perhaps I caught Richard unawares or just not on a very good day but in the end I think we were both happy to say goodbye for our own reasons.

I have decided that whilst this may not be a flattering shot of Richard I think it is an honest one, and the lesson I have learned is about the importance of communication between the photographer and subject.

Thank you for agreeing to take part in the project Richard, and I am sorry if our encounter didn't turn out as well as you might have hoped.

This picture is #25 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page