Memories in ink. That’s basically what a photograph is. I started getting interested in photography when I saw these super cool cover shots for Vanity Fair by Annie Leibovitz, just like the one below. The idea of meeting and collaborating with different subjects is awesome, but ultimately creating relationships and listening to stories is what interests me most. In the last couple of years, the work of Brandon Stanton has caught my eye. Heard of him?
You’ve seen his work all over Facebook. He’s the creator of Humans of New York. I started following him in college and have been into his work ever since. It also doesn’t hurt that he’s also a UGA alum. He started off studying history in school, moved on to trade bonds in Chicago, and then left his job to start photographing. And then HONY came about. Now, he’s selling over a million books and telling the stories of thousands just through images and captions. He tells stories of the human condition, stories of happiness and sadness, and sometimes overall witty snippets of what goes on in life. These stories teach. They’re entirely relatable and represent the life of those that have struggled and those that have succeeded. But, it’s not always serious. You’ll find the occasional shots of silliness and weirdness too.
The reason why I wanted to put some spotlight on Brandon for this post is because of the work he does and how he does it. He just wants to tell stories and help shed light on some special people. This just goes to show you that following your passion goes a long way but so does taking the time to listen and learn. This is an important life skill to have and something important to remember when you’re interacting with those around you. So in other words, sometimes you gotta drop everything and listen because you’ll learn a lot more than you ever expected.
“You’re taking my picture!”
“Not sure that I’ve ever been so honored to introduce someone as I am right now. Gac Filipaj is a refugee from the former Yugoslavia. For the past twelve years, he has worked as a janitor for Columbia University. His job title is “heavy cleaner,” which includes emptying the trash and cleaning the toilets.
During this time, he has worked until 11pm every night during the week. After his shift concluded, he would start studying. This weekend, after twelve years of study, Gac graduated from Columbia University with a Classics degree. Rarely have so many qualities I admire been wrapped up in a single person.” -Brandon Stanton
Just in case you’re new to this whole HONY thing, click here to check out the blog. It’s also available on Facebook to follow if you haven’t done so already! It’s a nice and refreshing addition to have in your news feed.