Invisible in plain sight

[RBSinTo]

This was taken earlier this summer just outside the Toronto Eaton Center a very large and upscale mall in the heart of the city.
I was walking under a construction hoarding when I noticed a person sitting and begging for change from passersby.
As is so often the case in these situations, the approaching pedestrians carefully veered to the opposite side of the walkway and developed the thousand-yard stare as the came abreast of the street person. I deliberately closed down the lens to get a longer shutter speed and blur the pedestrians for dramatic effect, and got this shot.

motorized Nikon FA
Nikkor 24 f2 AIS manual focus
100 ISO colour slide
f11 @ 1/30th
image converted to black and white in photoshop

[Shadowman]

Nicely captured, I like the progression of stares; first to the homeless person and then to you.

[RBSinTo]

John,
Thanks for the kind words.
Robert

[JBW]

good shot but to give the pedestrians fair change... by the looks of things if they had continued straight on they would have walked on the beggar.

[RBSinTo]

good shot but to give the pedestrians fair change... by the looks of things if they had continued straight on they would have walked on the beggar.

Next time you're in the neighbourhood, look me up and I'll go out on the streets with you and show you how homeless people are treated by the average citizen.
Many homeless people have permanent spots on the street where they reside, and have all their possessions piled there.
When they leave to go off for whatever reason, those possessions are as safe as if they were in a bank vault.
And that's because they're invisible just like their owners, and so not really there.

[DEAN01]

Vey well captured, Robert. I like the line of passers-by. Would it have been possible to shot from a lower angle?

[RBSinTo]

Vey well captured, Robert. I like the line of passers-by. Would it have been possible to shot from a lower angle?

Dean,
Thanks for the kind words.
You of course are correct.
I should have gotten down lower to show the street person's point of view, which would have given the image more intimacy. However, I didn't want to disturb her, so I shot standing up and with the 24, and still got everything I wanted (and more I didn't want) in the original shot, except of course the lower point of view.
Bad form on my part and a mistake I don't often make. I appreciate the criticism.
Robert

[just me]

Nice one........I like it that you shoot the image in B/W .........the image sort of speaks to me......

Griddi.......

[Jimr1961]

Although I use my city, it is true, I think, in all big cities. "L.A. is a place where you can die of loneliness in front of millions of witnesses."

[JBW]

Next time you're in the neighbourhood, look me up and I'll go out on the streets with you and show you how homeless people are treated by the average citizen.
Many homeless people have permanent spots on the street where they reside, and have all their possessions piled there.
When they leave to go off for whatever reason, those possessions are as safe as if they were in a bank vault.
And that's because they're invisible just like their owners, and so not really there.

been there done that. Now we live in the Philippines where homeless, poverty and street beggars are very real and on an entirely different level. i would challenge your belief that the street people of TO or their possessions are safe because they are homeless and invisible. But that is a discussion for another day.

[Rider in the Sky]

Yes, she does seem "invisible " . Great technique.

[ after shooting some "invisible people", I avoided it. I felt like I was "invading " their privacy. but that's just me ]

[IzzieK]

This shot breaks my heart...and your title makes it so much dramatic. Despite of what I had before in another thread, I don't want to judge people because of their flight.

[Dave A]

I think you well captured the mood of the scene. Nicely captured.

Dave