The 100 People Project
The idea behind The 100 People Project began in 2012, as many things in this world do, with a problem – a creative rut and a lack of focus. This was the problem I was dealing with as a photographer. I needed some way to inject new creativity into my photos, and to get a sense of focus behind my work. Then a quote came to mind, “If you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got.” If I wanted different results I needed to have a different focus. With that in mind, I turned my attention to something new for me, photographing people, and started The 100 People Project. The goal was simple: capture compelling images of 100 strangers, everyday people going about their everyday lives, over the course of a summer. The result was an adventure of meeting people, the capturing of exciting images, and the opening up of a whole new area of photography.
I set up some basic guidelines behind the project. First, I had to ask the person for permission to take their picture. I didn't allow myself to simply pull out my long 200 mm lens and photograph a person in secret from across the street. Second, after getting the picture I had to start a conversation in order to learn an interesting fact about the person. Third, I had to capture the images between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Lastly, I endeavored to capture in each image some aspect about the person to tell their story.
I set up some basic guidelines behind the project. First, I had to ask the person for permission to take their picture. I didn't allow myself to simply pull out my long 200 mm lens and photograph a person in secret from across the street. Second, after getting the picture I had to start a conversation in order to learn an interesting fact about the person. Third, I had to capture the images between Memorial Day and Labor Day. Lastly, I endeavored to capture in each image some aspect about the person to tell their story.