📸 Photo series #10: Our modern world becoming one big city
Thoughts about the impact of globalization on our cities.
Hello fellow subscribers 👋,
Hope you are doing great. This week, we deep dived into the importance of collecting street photography. Everyday, we encounter tones of photos across the web, through books, or at exhibitions. It can be a way to stimulate our creativity, to get inspired, to connect with other photographers, to explore diverse styles, techniques, and perspectives captured by others. On the other hand, it can be a great way to support artists that we like, or to invest our money into something we believe in. Building a collection is a powerful way to feel part of a community that makes sense to us. A community of people aligned with our art.
We are curious to have your opinion on this topic. Feel free to answer the poll below and comment this edition 💬.
In this Sunday’s edition, we welcome Juan Rodríguez Morales, a Spanish and talented street photographer with a unique vision of his urban world. He plays perfectly with shadows and lights to communicate his powerful message.
Make yourself comfortable with a good coffee and enjoy the photos! ☕️
One Big City by Juan Rodríguez Morales
⏱️ Reading time: 4 min
Globalization has transformed our world into a much smaller one. While the distances between countries are reduced, their greatest cities have experienced a gradual process of standardization. The cities of the Western world increasingly seem alike to each other. Large urban centers have become an amalgam of common and interchangeable elements such that a street in Madrid could easily be mistaken for one of Berlin. The intrinsic characteristics of the major Western capitals are diluted leading to one big city that we are all part of. It is in this scenario where the inhabitants of the city seem to be passing, becoming a sort of disoriented tourists. The citizen is increasingly becoming an anonymous individual in a place without identity.
My project focuses on this vision of the city. What I try to pick up with my camera are fragments of different cities that make up a single place we've all transited but at the same time is difficult to identify it like our own city.
Written and shot by Juan Rodríguez Morales.
Who’s behind the lens?
Describe yourself as a photographer and where you are based
I am a Spanish photographer based in Madrid. After finishing my studies in Psychology I began to study Photography at my hometown Alcobendas (Madrid). Since the beginning, I am interested in documentary and street photography. In 2011, I participated in a photo workshop with Alex Webb and Rebecca Norris Webb, which changed my vision on photography. Some of my projects have been published in several digital media and I have participated in some collective exhibitions around the world.
Today, I am still working on street photography.
Your favorite camera and lens
I prefer to work with the simplest equipment possible. I have shooting with Sony Alpha 7 for few years. My favorite lens is 35mm.
Your favorite places to shoot
The street is a backdrop with infinite possibilities when it comes to taking photos. I use to choose places where there is a lot of hustle and bustle and that exude life and movement. I also like to take photos in places where people are passing through, such as bus stations, train stations, etc.
According to you, what makes a good picture
It is a right combination of composition, light and narrative. A good photo has to suggest a story. It has to take us somewhere or convey some kind of feeling.
Your favorite photographers and where you get inspired.
Some of my favorite photographers are: Alex Weeb, Lee Friedlander, Sheron Rupp and William Eggleston. You can find inspiration in lots of places: other photographers, books, novels, films...
Portfolio and/or social media links
Portfolio : http://www.juanrodriguezmorales.com
Instagram : @juanrodriguezmoralesphoto
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