The Looking Glass
Mirrors have been used throughout the centuries in literature to represent a neutral observer of the evil or strife around the characters. Sometimes a character is blind to their own ambitions and the mirror reflects that truth back to the character, even if they are unwilling to see it. Mirrors have brought foreshadowing of the inevitable. Mirrors provide a look into alternate realities and into the future.
In Reflections of Old Town, I look for a way to present the alternate reality reflected in the Main Street of this South Carolina town. As I press the shutter and make an exposure, the reality is all around me, except for what is rig in front of the lens. The lens captures this alternate reality.
I chose to take most of these images without people. This is a little outside the box for a Leica photographer as we mostly focus on documentary and recording daily life. However, here I wanted to focus on those aspects of Old Town that are maybe forgotten, or missed in daily life. People fill Main Street, but the reflections are meant for the people, not the other way around.
In this collection, what you see is not what you think you see. The more you stare, the more you are unsure. The reflection is a purposeful play on light. I look for that glass sparkle, that light that reflects off the glass causing a bright image and contrast. Here the shadows and the highlights are of equal importance.
I want the viewer to look and say, that's impossible. I want them to come up with their own story behind the images that mixes he two realities. All of these images incorporate light reflected from the glass and light coming through the glass. The challenge is to mix the scenes so that I create something new that doesn't exist, but still communicates something to the viewer.