I enjoy telling people about my pictures. There is one picture in particular that several people told me they really like, due to its simplicity and minimalism:
It was in April or May of 2015 when I took this picture. I have only just moved to the UK, to a town called Swindon - somewhere in the middle of Wiltshire - and was bored out of my mind. It was a fine town, but I needed the city life. I moved out of Amsterdam - a city where things happen - and moved to Swindon, for crying out loud! The boredom and monotony of everyday life in a quiet town soon started getting to me. So I decided to find refuge in photography while I searched for a job in the big city of London.
On a Saturday afternoon, as I was walking to the supermarket - carrying my camera and feeling like a damn tourist - Something caught my attention, just in the corner of my eye. I turned, and there it was - this simple clothesline, with laundry hanging off of it to dry, with a a lock that looked like a heart from far away tangled in it, a good 3 meters in the air. I only had my 35mm prime lens on me, so I couldn't get a zoomed shot of the lock and the clothesline, so I ended up holding the camera in all kinds of weird angles, trying to aim the lens at the curious lock. A good 5 minutes later I gave up, thought the shot was actually lost, and walked away to the supermarket.
A few months passed and I went through the pictures I took - I have moved to London since and was living in a flat on Mile End Road (don't go to the fried chicken shops there. Seriously. A £ 2 burger is not worth it, no matter how drunk you may be). I decided to try to crop the image, thinking the shot may still be salvageable. And it looks like it was - other people's taste is to be believed, that is.
A few months later, after I moved out of the Mile End area to Woolwich Arsenal (far into south-eastern London), I had the peace and quiet I so desperately needed to really think about what I wanted to do - this picture was on my flickr account for a long while. The compliments I got, especially for this picture, encouraged me to make the leap and start professional photography. So far it's been a hell of a journey - it's only started almost a month ago in earnest - and I'm enjoying every terrifying step of the way.
Anyway - I've unlocked the comments section on these posts and would love to hear what you folks think and what your personal stories are. Yes, I will actually read comments you leave on my website. GASP!
Thanks for reading!