Street Scenes

Street Scenes brings together photographs from Basel, Berlin, Biel-Bienne, Boston, Cologne, Dorset, Frankfurt, London, Melbourne, Naples, Paris, Rome, Sydney, Tokyo, Zurich and also India, although the majority of the images are still from New York. 

LFI: What surprised you most when comparing the images and themes during the selection process for your new photo book? 
Phil Penman: I think what really shines through is that I’m a city boy, even though I was brought up in the countryside. I moved to NYC in my early twenties and have been there the past 25 years. There’s just an energy about cities I’m drawn to. I think, all in all, we had about 15 other cities included in the book, but one thing you can take away is that I like gritty, urban landscapes. I’ve always tried to see the beauty in the mundane and the small details about a city that most people just pass by. Largely, I look for these things from city to city, but generally, people are people no matter where you go.

How do you go about your wanderings; how do you find your subjects?
The key is to just start shooting straight away and have no agenda of where to go. You’ll often get a feel for a city pretty quickly if you’re paying attention to all the little details. Every city has its own charm, but they all have certain characteristics, such as graffiti, that tie them together.

What time of day is your favourite? When do you find your best images?
I shoot 5 a.m. till about 10 a.m. The people then have more purpose and are less bothered by the camera. They have places to go and people to see.

Your new book contains only a few colour images; the majority are black and white...
Yes, it’s just a small selection of color, and I’m still far more drawn to black and white; but I do appreciate that a lot of people wanted to see my colour work as well.

What do you appreciate most about black and white photography?
It’s raw, honest and timeless! It will always be my go-to for photography.

When were the photos taken, and what role did the Leica Akademie workshops play in this?
The images span the time from around 2004, beginning with my trips to Kashmir and India, up to the present day. I’m also very fortunate that my instructor work for the Leica Akademie has taken me all over the globe, from Switzerland to Australia. I’ve been teaching for Leica since 2015. On days when not teaching, I try to get up around 5 a.m., hit the streets, and capture as many images for myself as possible.

The foreword to the new photo book mentions your special relationship with Naples. What do you miss in New York that you’ve found in other cities?
I have a great love for New York City, but I also have a huge love for both Tokyo and Naples. Tokyo for its energy and how people wear whatever they want there. The style they have is incredible. You can also be in one area where everything is calm and tranquil, and then just down the road you are flowing with thousands of people through the subway system and crossing the Shibuya Scramble. I love Naples for its raw, honest, no-BS attitude. The people of Naples love their city, and I can see why. There are layers and layers of history all over the walls, which suits my style of capturing the raw grit of a city.

And what makes New York so unique for you?
There will always be just one NYC! Love it or hate it, it’s definitely unique. It has a pulse, and you can tell when things are bad and when people are upbeat. New Yorkers, however, wrongfully get a bad rap. Trust me, if you fall on the ground, ten people will come running over to help you up. If you stop to ask a person for directions, they will go out of their way to make sure you’re headed in the right direction. I’ve been a New Yorker for 25 years now and am not going anywhere.

What has perhaps changed the most in New York recently, and have these changes also influenced your photography?
For me, it’s the people – and not necessarily in a good way. Before, people came to NYC because they wanted to join the melting pot; now, people come here to try and make it like where they came from. The average time someone lives in New York is 2 years. Either the city chews them up and spits them out because it’s too expensive, or the level of competition is too much.

I’ve watched the city change many times over, so I’m not worried. From a photography standpoint, I have documented events ranging from the September 11th World Trade Center attacks in 2001 and the aftermath of watching the city bounce back, to the COVID 19 Pandemic that plagued us all around the world. One thing is for certain: no matter what you throw at New York, it always bounces back bigger and better than before.