Outside the Sondheim Theatre, workers are changing the publicity material including the Les Miserables sign. But is that really what’s going on?
In an earlier post, The Trick Shot, I talked about “the street photographer’s brain”, that’s “fully engaged, with all your senses operating, seeing everything that’s happening around you, predicting what’s going to happen next”. In What a Coincidence and other posts, I talked about ‘juxtapositions of coincidence’, situations with two or more elements which appear by coincidence to be related but which aren’t in reality. Situations which can trigger your street photographer’s brain. And in this latter post, I put forward some ideas as to how you could ‘train your brain’ to notice these juxtapositions, and make meaning out of them:
Look for contexts or backgrounds that suggest a possible coincidence, and think about what kind of coincidence you might see there. Whenever you see a possible subject for a street shot, check out the background where that person or those people are standing, walking, or whatever. Look for anything with words on it that can give a context: posters, signs, street names, and so on. Look at other things in the background that can give or add context… And notice the behaviour of the subject; is there something in the background that somehow ‘echoes’ that behaviour?
You might have already noticed that the photo above, Miserables, shows one such scene.
To some people, it’s just some guys replacing the publicity material for Les Miserables on the front of the theatre. But as I came upon the scene, I saw two guys climbing up and two guys rappelling down to help man the ramparts. The sign told me why reinforcements were needed: “Audiences are still fighting”! There’s a battle going on in there! It’s a theatre of war!!
Yes, of course it’s nonsense. But the scene makes for a good photo, and viewers can make up their own story about what they see. For me, the opportunity for the viewer to make their own story is a vital ingredient of good street photography. And finding it is half the battle.
“The surprise is half the battle. Many things are half the battle, losing is half the battle. Let’s think about what’s the whole battle.”
― David Mamet
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