100 Strangers : Round 3 : No. 207 : Emma by phil_howcroft

100 Strangers : Round 3 : No. 207 : Emma

This is my second stranger shot from Saturday, when we went into Nottingham for some shopping and lunch. I went off looking for strangers for an hour before lunch. The city was pretty quite and my usual haunts, Hockley and the Lace Market didn’t prove successful. I decided to explore a new area of town and went up towards the castle.

As I approached Maid Marion way, I noticed hundreds of people queuing to go into St. Nicholas’ church. I thought it might be a special service, but when I looked closer it was a “Vintage Clothes Sale”. The offer was fill a bag full of clothes, £15 per kilogram in weight.

I saw two young women in sat in a doorway just down the street from the church. They had several big bags with them, so I assumed they had just been to the sale.

I went over to them (Emma and Francesca) and asked them if they had been to the sale. They had indeed been to the sale and had bagged some good bargains. £80 pounds worth of bargains ! Although it was free to enter the sale, they had bought a £1-00 early bird ticket, which guaranteed them early entry to jump the queues and bag the best bargains ! They had travelled from Mansfield to go to the sale.

We had a chat about what type of clothing they had bought and they showed me some nice fluffy coats.

I had walked across to them with my camera in hand, so I then asked if I could photograph them for my 100 strangers project. They both said yes. I said could I photograph them individually and they both agreed. I shot Emma first and then Francseca.

So meet Emma, who was sat on the floor having a cigarette. I crouched down to photograph her, so I was level with here eyes.

Emma works in a pub / bar in Mansfield. A large pub on the outskirts of the town.

I asked Emma what bargains she had bagged and she told me she had got some Tommy Hilfiger gear. I wondered if her hat was a new acquisition too.

I was struggling getting catchlights in her eyes, but a bright wall across the street seemed to create some decent ones.

So that the story of the meeting. It is essentially the same story as Francesca as it is rare that I get two strangers from one meet.

I have posted Emma’s photo in mono as anybody wearing a “slipknot” hat has to be in mono. The Slipknot logo, shows the rock band's name in a powerful heavy metal typeface which has a very rough, static appearance. The font style can be attributed to the band's loud music and wild live performances (thanks google for that bit of info’)

Thanks for being stranger number 207 Emma, I hope you like your bag of clothes and the photos I sent you.

Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page
https://www.flickr.com/groups/100strangers

My own strangers can be seen here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/57144254@N08/albums/72157657822400168
This and the shot of Francesca are both great. Great focus and clarity on the eyes. Not sure if I prefer the colour or the b&w - they both suit their subjects.
January 31st, 2020  
A lot of time has gone into this shot - its good and natural too!
January 31st, 2020  
I like her smile and her eyes, so full of life and thought.
January 31st, 2020  
wow - thats quite the project - I'm sure its a great way to have conversation with strangers
(not sure what the legal ramifications are for photographing people without a sign-off consent form?)
January 31st, 2020  
Such nicely captured Phil a lovely natural and friendly smile -
January 31st, 2020  
I'm always so impressed with these and what a body of work they are.
January 31st, 2020  
Beautiful smile!
February 1st, 2020  
I remember Francesca from your story. I like this shot, too. Great smile and headpiece.
February 1st, 2020  
@pdulis Peter, I always ask permission to post the photo online. I'm only an amateur photographer.

@sangwann thanks Dione, Emma's hat is fabulous

@kwind thank you :) the smile is lovely

@granagringa thank you madeline, that is very kind of you

@beryl many thanks , you are right too :)

@casablanca thanks Casa' the mono really works here for the reasons your say :)

@maggiemae thanks maggie, that's very kind of you to say :)

@nickspicsnz thanks Nick for your support and kind words :)
February 2nd, 2020  
I usually prefer portraits in B&W. It enhances their formality, don’t you think?
February 5th, 2020  
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