I guess in was only a matter of time, an inevitability, before I started stopping strangers in the woods, talking to them and taking their photos. I do it everywhere else!
Like so many things I have started or done, I didn’t realize that I was doing it initially. Looking back on my photos last night, I saw it was a good two or three months into the venture, before it dawned on me. My ventures into the woods became a daily excursion when Covid arrived. Covid also saw the end of a few projects I had either just started or was in the process of starting that involved people. When I went into the woods there was never any intention of shooting people, because at that time, I didn’t associate the wood with people photography!
Wood Walkers can be seen here.
Since that time, I have walked many miles and shot a few people in there, at one point in time, last summer, I pursued the project avidly. But like so many things, it came to a natural end, though I still shoot people in the woods as I’m always stopping and chatting with people anyway - my walks through the woods can really take some time depending on meeting people or not!
I have met many interesting people in the wood, some I see on a regular basis, others less frequently, on the odd occasion I might see no-one at all. Almost all were strangers to start with. One thing is for sure, you’ll find a good number of people in there walking their dogs, which gave rise to another mini wood project – Dog Tales – I’ve made a few friends there too!
Unsurprisingly, most people, especially if they meet me for the first time, assume that I’m shooting birds or some form of nature…well as I’m in the woods, I do. But it’s the people I’m really after!
Shooting people in the woods has been a fun and a fulfilling experience (especially because of Covid), many people were very agreeable, a few don’t want their photo taken – and that’s perfectly okay. On one occasion, someone stopped me and said, “I’ve heard about you” – told about me by one of his friends no doubt – I remember – told by his father!! All the people I have shot, I have stopped to chat with and it makes a difference, as once talking with them, they are more relaxed and the wood itself is a very calming place. A few people are conscious of themselves, they may be running and sweaty or dressed for a walk, but I will reassure them – I want them as natural as possible. It seems to work. The way in which one approaches people too is important and I’ll often tell people about my “wood projects”, it’s a good ice breaker. The wood, whatever our own reasons for being in there, is something we have in common and we have all greatly enjoyed it and continue to do so.
Covid has no doubt deprived us of many things, parted us with loved ones, changed our lives in some shape or form… although it ended many of my projects it gave me one too. The countless hours, in the wood, have turned into days, weeks, months and now years – going into the third and I have shot things that I perhaps never wood (forgive the pun) have. Capturing images of people is perhaps the most fulfilling enjoyment of all my wood projects and my time in there, as it has allowed me to continue to photograph people, albeit in a format I hadn’t thought about before.