Have you ever seen someone with one of those faces that can tell a million stories of heartbreak and happiness? I was leaving the french quarter about to go over the channel to the 9th ward and saw a black man sitting on a newspaper stand in front of a liquor store. I was on a road trip with my father, and i told him i had to go back around and take the mans picture.

We went around the block, which took about 10 minutes, and i parked the truck about 20 feet from this man. I got out while my dad stayed in the truck on the phone. I walked up to this man and asked him if i could take a picture of him, and he said i would have to pay him $50. Not knowing what to say being put on the spot, i asked my dad to get out of the truck and come over and talk for a while hoping he may spot me the $50, because this shot would be awesome and worth it to me. The guy was joking, and we ended up talking to him for about an hour and a half. This man's name was Mike, and he was one of the most colorful people ive ever met in my life. He let me take the pic, and even posed for me. In the end we shook his hand and got his address so i could possibly see him again, and gave him $20 as a gift to buy some cigarettes. He asked us to buy him one pack. The encounter and conversation was so enlightening and special to me, i was sad to drive away.

Mike

I love it.

I dont have the balls to take photos of people on the street, but people can be some of the greatest subjects of all time.

Since I'm standing on a public sidewalk in a tourist town, I just raise the camera and snap away. Sometimes people try to duck out of the shot, sometimes they don't.

That pic really has a timeless quality to it.

Shot this last weekend in Detroit:





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