COME TOGETHER by Chris Eustace
“I felt a rush of dopamine or adrenalin or both, as I managed to capture the photo I had envisaged. “
© Chris Eustace
I needed at least eight days a week to keep on top of everything as I immersed myself in my new-found world of street photography. The second lockdown began in the UK on the 31st of October 2020, and I, just like millions of other lockdownees around the world, began searching for new hobbies that would help keep me entertained during this period of exclusion from the outside world.
For a while, the flurry of lockdown memes and videos that circulated the internet kept morale high, from the overzealous shoppers with trolleys full to bursting with essentials like their favourite chocolate bars and biscuits, to the images of empty supermarket shelves, with the exception being the aisles of untouched cans of Corona. I’m surprised they weren’t masked for good measure!
The country was also offered light relief from Dave at 63 being filmed losing his dignity, while washing himself with his garden hose, after seemingly failing to stock up on extra supplies of toilet paper. In reality, he was the sensible and rationale one, but still befell the fate of becoming the nation’s laughing stock. Still, he improvised well, as we all did, for better or worse. I attempted to cut my own hair but could easily have been mistaken for a chessboard afterwards. I was forced to wear a baseball cap for a week, but needn’t have worried, because I didn’t have anywhere to go or anyone to see.
We tried to fill the time by buying the world’s largest jigsaw puzzle; I gave up after an hour, but my wife and son stoically battled on for a week until they had completed the complicated labyrinth, before briefly admiring their handiwork, and then promptly dismantling the whole thing. It didn’t make much sense to me, but then nothing did at that time. I looked forward to the weekly banging of saucepans from our doorsteps to honour the NHS for all their hard work, but really, I just wanted confirmation that other people existed, and the opportunity to share a wave with the neighbours.
Eventually, I attempted to do a Magnus Magnusson and finish reading all the books I had previously started but hadn’t finished. This included the Beatles Anthology, and the Victory in Europe Experience, both of which still remain thoroughly unthumbed. I also stumbled across my small collection of photography books at that time, which comprised of Think of England by Martin Parr and Masters of Photography by Henri Cartier-Bresson.
The seed of creativity had evidently been sown and continued as I relearnt how to play the piano and drove the family mad by excessively belting out Let it Be on the ivories. In addition, when I began decluttering the house (which eventually struck us all) I unearthed all my old travel photos in the loft. This sent me off in a path of distraction I’ve never quite returned from. As I viewed many of the 35mm Boots’ photos, I thought “I used to really enjoy this” and “these photos aren’t too bad”. I had even managed to avoid the dreaded seal of disapproval in the shape of an oval Boots, quality control sticker, slapped across the print. It was the only form of critique many of us aspiring photographers had back then, and often rendered the photos to be out of focus or overexposed.
That trip down memory lane inspired me to dust off my old Canon EOS Kiss x7. Part of the deal upon being gifted this, was that I used it to take and share photos of the family with my father-in-law out in Japan. Until now, I’ve been poor in holding up my end of the agreement, but the camera has at least had a good airing in recent times. Indeed, as lockdown restrictions eased further, the family looked forward to the weekends, and dog walking time. We went to a different park or nature reserve on each occasion, and I made sure I had my trusty shooter with me. I took some nice autumnal photos, but that’s all they were-just nice, and they really didn’t get my juices flowing.
At the start of 2021, I happened upon Brian Lloyd Duckett’s (BLD) StreetSnappers YouTube videos, and consequently binge-watched them all. I had already overdosed on Breaking Bad and reasoned that my addiction to Brian’s videos would prove to be healthier and more educational in the long run. I soon became hooked on street photography, but the obvious intervention to my new compulsion was that the country still functioned behind closed doors. Thus, I began my foray into street photography during the quiets of isolation. My first street shoot was in Castle park, in Colchester, and despite only photographing a few dog walkers, I returned home feeling enthused, energised, and motivated in equal measure.
It inspired me to respond to one of Brian’s StreetSnappers YouTube videos about street photography tips, where I shared 10 of my own. I cringe when I read them back now, but they seemed profound and relevant at the time. Something must have resonated with Brian though, because he included them in that week’s street photography newsletter and titled the article: “Chris Eustace and 10 things he learnt last week”.
As February 2021 approached, I made a leap of faith by joining Instagram (IG) and uploading my photos for many strangers to see. I still felt like the fool on the hill because this was uncharted territory for me, and I found it extremely daunting at first. Sharing work on a social media platform can be a vulnerable experience, and I initially struggled to make connections with real people as I fought off all the bots and spam accounts. I also faced the social media piranhas who will follow you one day and unfollow the next. I believe the phenomena is called “follow to unfollow” and it really bothered me during my IG inauguration. Indeed, it felt like the proverbial long and winding road as I tried to come to terms with this modern approach of self-promotion.
© Chris Eustace
Luckily, that lonely feeling didn’t last too long. It may have been due to the IG algorithm linked to Brian’s account, but I coincidentally chanced upon Jovis Leigh Howieson’s gallery. I liked and commented on several of her photos, and soon shared an extensive conversation about everything and nothing with her. Jovis invited me to the 52 assignments online walkthrough induction, and I began to feel a part of something positive and inclusive. The first critique session I attended blew my mind; I had no idea that photos could be analysed in such detail, but with a little help from my (new, online) friends, it helped me develop more of a critical and reflective approach to my photography.
Shortly after that, exciting news arrived that an upcoming photo walk was pencilled in for Saturday and Sunday the 12th and 13th of June in Liverpool. As an avid Liverpool Football Club (LFC) supporter and Beatles fan, I knew I was onto a winner from the beginning, and just had to sign up for it. I shared a story on IG about the planned trip and used LFC’s anthem You’ll never walk alone by Gerry and the Pacemakers as the accompanying music. I felt it was a nice touch because the photo walk would be approached as a collective, rather than an individual experience.
I got very little sleep on the Friday night, excited about the magical mystery tour that lay ahead of us all. Evidently, I couldn’t wait to get the camera out, and snapped off a few photos in Euston station as a warm up for the big event. It transpired, that fellow 52 photographers Ben Elvidge, Paul Nezandonyi and Sarah Twelvetree were all on the same train as me, so we shared messages during the journey, which helped develop a feeling of camaraderie. Upon arrival, I finally got to meet Jovis in Liverpool’s city-centre, and when I saw her standing there, I realised she existed in 3D form as well as 2D. In fact, I’m sure we all felt liberated at being able to swap our screens and keyboards for cameras and face to face interactions for the weekend.
Street photographers often describe finding their flow or getting in the zone when on the streets, but it’s something that doesn’t always come easily. At the start of most shoots, I tend to walk around for a short period, while taking in my surroundings. Slowly, I might begin to notice interesting sights and sounds, and before long I’ll feel completely immersed in what’s happening around me. You can lose yourself for hours once you’ve found that creative outlet, which is why I believe street photography is so appealing. That morning, I was still searching for a period of shooting bliss when lunch suddenly snuck up on us.
After that brief interlude, we hit the streets again. I gained a lot of confidence shooting with the group, but for periods during the weekend, I became completely detached from the others. It’s when I usually produce my best work and I actually thrive in getting lost and wandering off the beaten path. I soon noticed a bus stop that had interesting colours surrounding it, with yellow being the prominent one. Many of us were shooting pick a colour from BLD’s 52 Assignments Street Photography book, and yellow and red consistently stood out for me during that weekend. Shortly after choosing the background I wanted, an innocent bystander promptly walked into the frame with all the right ingredients needed to create the photo I had hoped for (photo 1 below).
The second serendipitous moment arrived shortly after that. As I walked around aimlessly, I spotted a colourful business man heading my way. Adjacent to him was a concrete, rainbow block, and the red stripe at the top seemed to emulate the shape and colour of his tie. I kept thinking “Don’t pass me by” and luckily, I managed to fire off a few shots before he had time to notice (photo 2 below).
In the evening, the 52 crew reconvened for dinner in a stylish restaurant in the Albert Docks, where I had the opportunity to meet BLD in person and buy him a drink by way of saying thank you for starting me off on this journey. After washing our meals down with a few more beverages, we headed to the Baltic Triangle where we witnessed first-hand the famous Liverpudlian humour. Photographs were taken of copious men dressed as ladies cavorting around in the streets, and lads riding past on scooters with naked bums on full display. I also managed to photograph a huge, well-known mural of Klopp-the Liverpool manager, which adorned one of the brick walls in the area.
I arose early the next day still with plenty of potential photos waiting to be taken, and I headed outside our hotel to try and experiment further. I soon came across a statue of a horse and man, and had fun experimenting with the f-stop, while trying to make the horse look as though it was jumping on a building in the distance. At that point, I noticed a man sitting near the statue, and my devious mind sprang into action. I realised that I could manipulate the statue into stroking the man’s hair (photo 3 below).
I felt a rush of dopamine or adrenalin or both, as I managed to capture the photo I had envisaged. To me, street photography was encapsulated in that moment and that’s why it’s loved so much. You just never know what’s around the corner, or what you might find on any given day. Street snappers remain heightened to their surroundings and everything that’s happening around them because they know one interesting moment is all it takes.
When Salah (LFC striker) plays for Liverpool, he might have a few chances and fail to score, but he keeps persevering, because he only needs one good shot for victory. That’s exactly how it is with street photography.
As for the weekend, it still had some life left in it. Shortly after my statue fun, the group visited Don McCullin’s exhibition at the Tate Liverpool in the Albert Docks. My BA arts degree had culminated in a dissertation on war photography, so I had previously researched and written about many of Don McCullin’s famous images and the stories behind them. As such, it was amazing to be able to view them in person, but also deeply moving to see the humanity and devastation within the images in such profound detail. Following the exhibition, the hardcore 52s, met for one final meal along the well-known Bold Street where we shared anecdotes and experiences from the weekend. Subsequently, we tried to squeeze a bit more shooting light out of Liverpool as we made our way back towards our hotel.
As luck would have it, our arrival in the foyer conveniently coincided with the start of the England versus Croatia Euros football match. After losing to Croatia in the recent World Cup semi-final, England had a score to settle, and didn’t disappoint as they ran out 1-0 winners courtesy of a Raheem Stirling second half goal. We sat there, chimping on our cameras, and revelling in the revenge, victory. Finally, at the end of an exhausting and fun weekend, me, Jovis, Sarah, and Ben all piled into Brian Boyce’s luxurious car for the journey home.
As any street photographer will know, that feeling of nervous excitement from a shoot will remain with you until you’ve had the chance to download and view your photos. The sensation could be likened to a child’s excitement on Christmas morning. They think they’ve probably got something good, maybe even amazing, but until they unwrap their gifts, they’ll never know for sure. As for me, I’m pleased to say that I had taken a few keepers from that weekend. It’s a photo walk that will forever be etched in my memory, and I can still remember it like it was yesterday.
Incidentally, for the Beatles boffins reading this, you may have spotted that I’ve dropped in some Beatles song titles along the way. There are 11 of them in total. Can you spot them all? The answers are below.
© Chris Eustace
Answers: Beatles Song Titles
1) Come Together
2) Eight days a week
3) Help
4) Let it Be
5) The fool on the hill
6) The long and winding road
7) With a little help from my friends
8) Magical mystery tour
9) I saw her standing there
10) Don’t pass me by
11) Yesterday