Ordinarily I don’t take shots of destitute people in the street unless I have engaged with them in some way as the images look cheaply exploitative to me. But in this case I thought the intensity of the conversation between the young woman and the man deserved documenting.
I agree with your comment. It is very difficult you don’t want to exploit either the homeless individuals or the specific situation they find themselves in, but at the same time homelessness should be noticed, documented and hopefully individuals assisted and treated with dignity. Your photograph reminded me of some of the ‘Dust Bowl’ images. On occasions I guess it comes back to the age-old question of whether a photographer should just take the shot or get involved. All very problematic.
Yes. Complex issues that probably have case by case answers rather than a single uniform one.
Yes, despite our love of black and white imagery we do live in a nuanced grey world that requires tactful negotiation.
That’s why a lot of great B&W photos have deep blacks, bright whites and a full range of tonal values in between.
Absolutely!