Chance
It should come as no surprise that she caught my attention as I was walking past Toronto’s downtown Eaton Center mall. She was sitting on a ledge with a friend, chatting. Apologizing for the interruption, I introduced myself and said I would love to have her participate in my Human Family photo project on Flickr and showed my contact card. I noted that her amazing hair only added to her being photogenic. The two of them conferred through eye contact for a brief moment. It turned out the only issue was time; he was just on break from his job in the mall. She was eager to participate so I suggested we “get to it” without delay, using a sheltered service doorway next to her as a location. It was my second “the clock is ticking” encounter of the day. I had just met and photographed Brandon fifteen minutes before. Meet Chance.
After the first photo, Chance started striking some poses, changing her position and look and pausing for me to take the photo. I struggled to keep up, not being used to several opportunities in close succession. I was also struggling a bit to be sure of focus and dealing as best I could with the nook we were in which had door hinges, a no smoking sign, and a decorative panel – all of which were distractions to the photos rather than being additions. I expressed my surprise at her professional posing by saying “Yikes! Are you a professional model or what?” She and her friend, Nixon, laughed and told me that she does “a bit” of modeling, mostly outdoors in an urban environment.
Photos taken, we briefly reviewed the results to ensure that I had at least one usable portrait (I wound up with more than that) and proceeded to talk. Chance was outgoing and friendly and when I asked her a bit about herself she didn’t know where to start. Nixon chimed in and said “I can handle that one.” They went on to play verbal leapfrog, taking turns telling me about Chance’s activities which embrace (among other things) being a part-time model, a stylist, and photographer. Her goal is to establish her own clothing line. I don’t doubt that she could succeed at any of these with her energy and outgoing personality. Before he had to return to work, I suggested doing a photo of Chance and Nixon together since that is how we met. They sat next to one another just as they were when we first met. I suggested they get in closer for the photo, joking that it shouldn’t be difficult since they are a couple. Nixon laughed and said “No, she’s not my girlfriend. She’s my best friend. She’s always there for me. She even came down just to spend a few minutes with my on my work break.” I stood corrected and said “It sounds like you have a great best friend.” He agreed.
Chance told me that she is 27 and was born in Toronto of Guyanese, Scottish, and Polish ancestry. Her advice to her younger self was “I should learn to say no. I have lots of friends and everyone comes to me for advice with their problems and needing favors and I always say yes. There are times when I should say no but I find that difficult.” Nixon agreed with Chance’s description of herself.
We parted with friendly handshakes all around, each of us thanking one another for what had been a fun encounter. Chance gave me her email and made me promise to send the photos. I said I never forget. It had been a fun few minutes.
Thanks Chance, for taking the time to meet and participate in my photography project. Thank you Nixon for giving up part of your brief coffee break. This is my 511th submission to The Human Family Group on Flickr.
I decided on the somewhat reflective first photo taken as the main submission, partly because Chance expressed a preference for it. I felt lucky to have wound up with several that pleased me (see comment photos).
You can view more street portraits and stories by visiting The Human Family.
Chance
It should come as no surprise that she caught my attention as I was walking past Toronto’s downtown Eaton Center mall. She was sitting on a ledge with a friend, chatting. Apologizing for the interruption, I introduced myself and said I would love to have her participate in my Human Family photo project on Flickr and showed my contact card. I noted that her amazing hair only added to her being photogenic. The two of them conferred through eye contact for a brief moment. It turned out the only issue was time; he was just on break from his job in the mall. She was eager to participate so I suggested we “get to it” without delay, using a sheltered service doorway next to her as a location. It was my second “the clock is ticking” encounter of the day. I had just met and photographed Brandon fifteen minutes before. Meet Chance.
After the first photo, Chance started striking some poses, changing her position and look and pausing for me to take the photo. I struggled to keep up, not being used to several opportunities in close succession. I was also struggling a bit to be sure of focus and dealing as best I could with the nook we were in which had door hinges, a no smoking sign, and a decorative panel – all of which were distractions to the photos rather than being additions. I expressed my surprise at her professional posing by saying “Yikes! Are you a professional model or what?” She and her friend, Nixon, laughed and told me that she does “a bit” of modeling, mostly outdoors in an urban environment.
Photos taken, we briefly reviewed the results to ensure that I had at least one usable portrait (I wound up with more than that) and proceeded to talk. Chance was outgoing and friendly and when I asked her a bit about herself she didn’t know where to start. Nixon chimed in and said “I can handle that one.” They went on to play verbal leapfrog, taking turns telling me about Chance’s activities which embrace (among other things) being a part-time model, a stylist, and photographer. Her goal is to establish her own clothing line. I don’t doubt that she could succeed at any of these with her energy and outgoing personality. Before he had to return to work, I suggested doing a photo of Chance and Nixon together since that is how we met. They sat next to one another just as they were when we first met. I suggested they get in closer for the photo, joking that it shouldn’t be difficult since they are a couple. Nixon laughed and said “No, she’s not my girlfriend. She’s my best friend. She’s always there for me. She even came down just to spend a few minutes with my on my work break.” I stood corrected and said “It sounds like you have a great best friend.” He agreed.
Chance told me that she is 27 and was born in Toronto of Guyanese, Scottish, and Polish ancestry. Her advice to her younger self was “I should learn to say no. I have lots of friends and everyone comes to me for advice with their problems and needing favors and I always say yes. There are times when I should say no but I find that difficult.” Nixon agreed with Chance’s description of herself.
We parted with friendly handshakes all around, each of us thanking one another for what had been a fun encounter. Chance gave me her email and made me promise to send the photos. I said I never forget. It had been a fun few minutes.
Thanks Chance, for taking the time to meet and participate in my photography project. Thank you Nixon for giving up part of your brief coffee break. This is my 511th submission to The Human Family Group on Flickr.
I decided on the somewhat reflective first photo taken as the main submission, partly because Chance expressed a preference for it. I felt lucky to have wound up with several that pleased me (see comment photos).
You can view more street portraits and stories by visiting The Human Family.