Al

Your feedback on yesterday's shot of Shazad was fascinating and provoking of much further thought. I'm really grateful for those who stopped by and added some commentary. I think I succeeded in capturing his intensity but I'm still not sure how much of that comes from us rather than from him, driven by cultural cues. I hope to be able to respond more personally to you but I can't tonight as it's been a very long day at the computer and my eyes are beginning to fail me. Although I woke up feeling very groggy my head seems to have cleared as the day has gone on and I feel like I've actually got a lot done. Not been able to say that for a while!

One of the best things about my portrait project is that it seems to be inspiring other people to have a go at street portraiture for themselves. I'm often asked for advice and it's hard to describe the approach I take because it is always different and certainly evolving. The most important thing, to my mind, is that you are actually interested in the person you want to shoot. When I approach someone it is because I am genuinely interested in who they are. There is something about their appearance that makes me curious to know more, to hear a bit of their story. If you are coming from a position of being interested in the person then I'm sure you'll have no problem.

The other advice I can give is to simply prepare for people to say no and be comfortable with that. This was my biggest problem when I started out. I've always carried with me a fear of rejection - for as long as I can remember. I can speculate as to when and how it came about but I'm not entirely sure. I would avoid situations where I might suffer rejection and I'm sure I missed out on a great deal in the process. I think this project has gone a long way to help me overcome this fear.

Although I don't get many rejections, when someone does decline it's not a problem at all. I just smile and politely check that they didn't mind me asking. The conversation often carries on anyway because the photograph is not the be-all and end-all of the engagement. In all the encounters I've had, which must be getting close to a thousand by now, I've only come across one person who was rude. I suspect he was a little the worse for drink but this one old man told me to piss off. That's as bad as it's ever got!

Ultimately, it's all about confidence and the only way of acquiring that is to just get out and do it. I think you'll find the reward goes way beyond the photograph. My encounter with Al on Market Square today was thoroughly uplifting. We made eye contact immediately and although he was in a bit of a rush and I didn't get much chance to chat he was very open to being photographed. A really genuine guy. And a great face!