In Street Photography Magazine, we publish many personal projects and discuss them with photographers on the podcast. In this episode, I had an opportunity to speak with street photographer Valérie and writer (and photographer) Gina Williams about their collaboration on one of the most creative projects I’ve seen in a long time.

Gina, a very talented writer, photographer, and artist, attended one of Valérie’s Paris workshops several years ago where they became friends. Several times over the years, they discussed a collaboration where Gina would create fictional vignettes inspired by subjects in a selection of Valérie’s street photos.

Last year, they made it a reality. Valérie gave Gina access to her archive to choose photos that resonated with her. That in and of itself was a challenge because Valérie has a huge archive of very powerful street images. Some stories came to her instantly while others marinated in the back of her mind, only to be revealed while she was gardening or taking a walk.

The result is an ebook titled Street Stories. It’s a collection of about 50 of Valérie’s street photos. Each photo with its vignette is depicted in a short chapter. The chapter opens with a title, assigned by Gina, on its own page followed by the photo on another with the page on the next page. This format can get very expensive in a printed book but works well in an ebook.

We’ve reproduced one of my favorite stories from the book in the show notes of this episode to give you an example of what Gina and Valérie created. The title is Resistance.

This type of book is best consumed a few chapters at a time rather than in long sittings. I imported my copy of the book into the Kindle app on my iPad. It gives me the ability to move between pages by sliding the screen right to left just like any book on the app. That way, I can glide through the images and titles and stop on whatever catches my attention. Each time, I’ve come away with new inspiration.

Valérie’s strong images combined with Gina’s imagination and mastery of the language is a magical combination.

Street Stories costs only $12.00, and Valérie has offered our listeners a $2.00 discount (so it’s only 10 bucks) by using the code SPM on checkout.

In the meantime, give the podcast a listen. I know you’ll be inspired by their story.

Here’s a sample chapter from Street Stories

RESISTANCE

I can hear their voices and feel their spirits in the wind when I visit this place. The horror. Fear. Desperation. Determination. Bravery.

My father was on this beach in the summer of 1944. A resistance fighter, he guided the Americans to a river crossing, then helped stand guard over German prisoners as they cleared the beach of obstacles and brutal tangles of barbed wire.

He didn’t talk much about it after the war—none of them did. But I can feel their presence here. Every gust of wind feels like youth leaving the body and I want to push it back like a rescue breath, return to them what they lost.

Places like this hold memories forever.

Now, the message of peace is peace itself. Lovers strolling arm-in-arm. Tourists sipping cocktails. Children splashing about and making castles in the once dangerous sand.

No matter the weather, I let it chill me. I never cover my head or button my coat. I want to feel the cold air in my bones until it hurts.

I scoop up a bit of soft sand and let it fall through my fingers, each grain a reminder of someone who sacrificed everything for the freedom I now enjoy.

And then I look to the horizon, watch the storm clouds swirl in the distance, and offer a humble prayer of gratitude and remembrance.

Links from the show

• Street Stories Download Use Discount code: SPM
• Valérie’s Website
• Gina’s Primary Website
• Gina’s Photography and Art Website
• Valerie’s Instagram
• Gina’s Instagram

Matt Jerrams sheltering in place.

I hope you’re are enjoying yourself sheltering in place. Of course not. It has been an interesting time, hasn’t it.

Because we’ve been stuck inside Matt Jerrams and I got together the other day to record an episode indulging our favorite guilty pleasure which is street photography gear. If you are a regular reader of Street Photography Magazine or listener to this podcast you probably know that we don’t talk much about gear.

But that doesn’t mean we don’t like like it. In fact, I’ve found most of us have a bad case of GAS (gear acquisition syndrome). That’s why Matt and I got together to discuss some of our favorites. I know it may seem a little Fuji-centric at the beginning. That’s because we both shoot with it regularly. But Matt is such a gear head, he’s got plenty for everyone.

Have a listen.

Links from the show

• Matt Jerrams Instagram
• Fred Miranda Website Buy/Sell Forum
• KEH USCamera World UK
• RangefinderForum Gear Classifieds
• Fujix-forum Classifieds
• Fujixseries Classifieds
• Fuji-x-forum (similar name, different site):
• Fuji X USA Buy/Swap/Sell Facebook Group.
• Fuji Second Hand Market (UK/Europe)
• Micro 4/3 Forum Classifieds

(Sorry for all the Fuji links. I had them in my bookmarks so I thought I’d share them)

For most of us we choose street photography as a creative outlet, while we follow another pursuit to earn a living. The two endeavors are often kept separate.

But our guest today is doing both. He is combining his passion for street photography with a unique way of self-publishing a series of small books of his own work. This gives him full control over the process and end product. Plus generating revenue.

Vincent Comparetto, is a native New Yorker now living in Denver, Colorado. And after speaking with him, I don’t see how he could do it any other way.

Vincent is a filmmaker, an artist, a former graphic designer and most recently a photographer. His true passion in photography is street photography.

But beyond his artistic pursuits it appears that Vincent does everything in a creative fashion, including travel. And as you will see in our conversation with Vincent he is extremely enthusiastic about everything he does. We should all be so lucky.

So please sit back, grab your favorite beverage, and listen to Ashley and I have a very enlightening conversation with Vincent Comparetto.

Some photos from Vincent’s book Follow Focus

Vincent Comparetto is a native New Yorker based in Colorado for the past twenty years. Trained in fine arts, animation, and illustration, he first picked up a camera in college, and has been documenting and exploring cities and subcultures ever since. He enjoys teaching classes in filmmaking, and animation. Outside of photography, and animation he can be found skateboarding, bike riding, and making cubist stencil paintings. His work can be found at http://prometheusproductions.tv, and http://abstractcity.org.

Vincent’s Book – Follow Focus

Vincent’s Video – Available Light

Invest Pennies in Yourself

Get Inspired to create your own vision. Priceless inspiration, and advice from street photographers for street photographers.

Harvey Stein has been shooting in the streets of New York for over 40 years. To borrow a quote from George Jones, Harvey was street photography when street photography wasn’t cool.

In the process Harvey became an educator, curator and published author. In fact he’s published five books about street photography, including a trilogy about specific neighborhoods in New York.

The first in the trilogy is Coney Island: 40 Years, 1970-2010 published in 2011, followed two years later by Harlem Street Portraits and rounded out this month by his latest book Briefly Seen which is an up close study of the busy and chaotic streets of New York’s business districts, Midtown and Downtown Manhattan.

Harvey was kind enough to spend time with me to discuss his new book, the trilogy and everything else he’s up to (which is quite a lot) this year. We’ve also included a selection of photos from Briefly Seen which you can see in the gallery below. Click anywhere within the gallery block to view the images individually.

A Selection of Images from Briefly Seen

Click any image to open gallery.

Show Notes and Links

Harvey’s Website

F-Stop Magazine Review of Briefly Seen
New York Times article about Briefly Seen

Brroklyn Museum of Art Coney Island Exhibit featuring Harvey’s work

McNay Museum in San Antonio, Texas – the next stop for the Coney Island exhibit

Umbrella Arts
June Bateman Fine Art

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Antonio Pisani. He’s a photographer originally from Italy but now based in the UK, and he has some very interesting insights on street photography. What makes Antonio’s story unique is his journey and perspective. I think you will appreciate his insights.

Antonio shared how his father’s profession influenced him. His father used film cameras in the eighties and nineties. Antonio explained the magic of photography and his independent approach. He always had a clear idea of what he wanted. His father’s work had a subconscious influence. He saw his father developing photos and understood how to explore beyond the technicalities.

We dug into the concept of seeing beyond the surface. This is something that Antonio learned from his mentor, Yoshi Imamura. Antonio met Yoshi while working in a retail camera store. They connected over cameras. Yoshi gave him a pinhole lens as a gift which forced Antonio to focus on the art and meaning behind his images, not just the technical aspects. This helped him develop critical thinking and see images with his brain.

It was really interesting to hear Antonio’s thoughts on social media. He believes Instagram can be a double-edged sword. Antonio chooses to control his images and share them purposefully rather than posting everything online for likes. He aims to create meaningful projects that last. He develops bodies of work that can be exhibited or published.

Antonio is preparing several exhibitions in Europe for 2025 and 2026. He’s also working on a book. This takes time and effort, but he optimizes his time and manages his corporate job alongside photography. Antonio believes photography is a calling and a demanding journey. The goal is to develop work that goes beyond day-to-day pictures. If photography is your passion, you’ll keep going.

Antonio is planning 2025 workshops and master classes. He likes to teach the art of slowing down and being present. These classes cover theoretical and practical aspects. The goal is to develop themes and projects, print your work, and share your images. And he’s always open to discussing gear, black and white photography, and his choice of Pentax and Ricoh cameras.

Be sure to check out the full episode to hear more from Antonio. Keep shooting, keep exploring, and stay tuned for more inspiring conversations.

Links from the show

• Antonio’s Website
• Antonio’s Instagram
• Willem Flusser’s “Towards a Philosophy of Photography”
• Marshall McLuhan
• Sebastiao Salgado
• Claudia Andujar