In my previous blog, I told you that I was going to try to do everything I could to rediscover the pleasure of walking the streets of Saint-Denis to document them. For almost 7 years now, I have been indulging in this practice that many people have difficulty understanding. Street Photography. What is the point of taking pictures of strangers ? Of course, if you are a frequent visitor to this Blog, I will be pushing open doors by explaining to you what this practice consists of. I have already exchanged with friends or even strangers and I must say that it is complicated to explain Street Photography. At best, you look like a madman, at worst, like a perverted voyeur who takes pictures underhandedly …

I must admit that last year was complicated because I really felt a lack of motivation. I didn’t want to take pictures anymore, I didn’t want to write anymore. These two things were linked for me. Writing and photography. I even asked myself if I was not giving up everything gradually. I didn’t stop abruptly, I continued to take photographs, but I had lost the urgency to document and simply to do what Garry Winogrand said: I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed. I took refuge in reading and it was very comfortable because my mind was occupied by all these stories I was reading. I didn’t miss photography because I had found another activity.

But there was always that sparkle that shone deep inside me. Street Photography is not just a practice for me. I’d kind of forgotten about it. It’s a part of me. A way of living, of breathing. I needed a little something to remind me of what I’ve been doing for the last 7 years. If the first years, I surely had things to prove to myself or to others, it’s been a while now that Street Photography has become something else than a genre for me. It’s been several years since I gave a big FUCK to all social networks and cut myself off from almost all Street Photography communities.

The beginning of 2023 marks a new beginning. I can tell from my year 2022 that I have missed Street Photography. Not being on the street anymore. My sterile wanderings… So I made my return to the streets of Saint-Denis. This return reminded me that Street Photography is ungrateful. It is hard and will not show mercy and you have to earn every photo you make. You have to be there at the right time. You have to be quick and attentive to everything. You have to be bold. In short, I know all these things, but I’m more than rusty and only practice makes you feel more comfortable on the street. The eye is a muscle like any other. If you stop using it, it becomes sluggish and less reactive. So you have to retrain it to see things. It’s quite frustrating but that’s the normal process.

I wanted to make this beginning of the year 2023 with the Ricoh GRD IV quite quickly. It’s true that I had started to use it during our holidays in Rodrigues and I must say that it felt really good to be back with this camera that I know like the back of my hand ! Of course, the camera is not enough. That would be a bit easy. The GRD IV allows me to free myself from all technical constraints. It goes without saying that knowing your camera perfectly on the street is one of the most important things on the street. You need to have settings for every given situation to focus on one thing and one thing only : capturing moments.

But as I told you, that’s not enough… To get back on track, I knew what I had to do. Here in Saint-Denis, there is hardly anything going on in the streets. Well, I would say rarely. Looking at my archives from my early years, I had forgotten that a city like Aix-en-Provence could be much more lively and bustling ! And to think that I complained at one time… Today, I would dream of living in a city like Aix again. But I have to get used to it. My present and my future are written in Saint-Denis. I needed to see people, to have material to be able to take photos and it was quite natural that I went to the market to regain my confidence. I have never been a fan of going to markets, demonstrations, parties or other gatherings of people to take pictures, but in the current state of affairs, it was necessary to rebuild my confidence and re-educate my eye.

This week, I even went to document the strike against the pension reform that is taking place at the moment. I simply enjoyed it ! Like a kid in a candy shop. People everywhere, smoke bombs… There are other dates already scheduled and I intend to do them. I’ll share some pictures and impressions in a future blog. I’m quite excited about this new year. It’s a rare thing, but I was certainly hungry for photography after this truncated end of the year 2022 ! A little teaser for the next article.

All the photos were made with the Ricoh GRD IV.