At the risk of making an unfounded generalization, I am beginning to suspect that when I shoot street portraits, older subjects tend to be more passive while younger subjects tend to treat the interaction more as a collaboration. So, for example, when I saw Jaleel standing across from Bellevue Square Park in Kensington Market and asked if he’d pose for a portrait, he came to it with a clear idea of how he wanted to present himself. He found a reflective door to serve as a backdrop, then put on his face. Usually, I do a lot of yakking to keep the subject engaged while I fiddle with camera settings. Here, that wasn’t necessary. Jaleel waited patiently because he knew he’d get something out of the deal: a shot he could post on social media.
I think social media explains the difference in the way younger people respond to me. They worry about things like personal brand and managing their public face. I never grew up with these concerns and I’ve reached an age where it doesn’t matter anyways. Nobody is going to fire me for doing something stupid online. And nobody is going to shame me, either; none of my peers care what I look like and, honestly, I’ve grown past caring what my peers think of me.
But if I were in my 20’s and a stranger approached me asking to take my photo, I think I’d want some reassurance that they weren’t going to make me look like a fool. It was so much easier when I was in my 20’s and the worst thing that could happen to me was that people found out I like listening to classical music.
