Interview with Peter Eavis

Tell me about yourself. Where you are from, background, work, etc…

I moved from London to New York in 1996. I have mostly been a reporter since 1993, and now work for The Wall Street Journal, where I help write the Heard on the Street column. The longest break in my reporting career was from 2004-2006, when I pastored a church in Manhattan.

How did photography begin for you? How long have you been shooting?

I bought a Canon Rebel digital camera, with a classic kit lens, about six years ago and it gave me a strong initial taste of the things photography can do to a person. It has to be one of the most user-friendly cameras made.

What thing or things have inspired or influenced and helped you the most in your photography?

It feels like New York was created to be photographed. Nonphotographers “photograph” it every day as they mentally snap its visual intrigues and treasures. With a camera, you try and capture some of them on film or on a chip.

After a while, you come across work by people who’ve successfully encapsulated elements of New York in their photographs — including Meyerowitz, Winogrand, Gilden, Davidson and Erwitt – and it drives you back onto the streets.

Light has been an incredible element in a number of your street photos. Any tips you can share here?

Thanks. Until you photograph, you have no real understanding of how great a gift light is. The light in New York is exquisite in all seasons. One tip is to walk around and look for the perfect stage — a place where the drama of the street can unfold, and be lit directly or by reflection, or both.

As a street photographer whats been your strategy for not being obvious such that you catch the moments that you do? Or are you just obvious? You certainly have some photos where it’s obvious that you and your target are eye to eye. 

 I’ve been following the advice Jim O’Connell posted on the HCSP group and that has a big help for me. However, I also get paranoid I’m going to get tackled.

Jim’s Post

http://www.flickr.com/groups/onthestreet/discuss/72157603551870243/page2/

Jim’s advice there is excellent — not much to add to it. It’s important, as he says, never to hide what you’re doing. Now , I feel a little dirty if I resort to a hip-shot — guilty I didn’t have the guts to bring the camera up to my face. Always be disarming if confronted.

Did you transition from digital to film or do choose a different tool depending on what your planning on doing? I noticed most of your photos are film yet early ones digital.

Yes, I transitioned to film. It just seemed to me that all that 90% of the work on Flickr that I liked — and the work in books that hit me — was done in film. There’s a really nice guy on Flickr called Th@Fred who was very persuasive in getting me to try developing B&W at home, and I’ve been hooked to that since. Flickr is a wonderful community.

How often do you shoot?

Every day. I get about 20-30 minutes on the way to work. At weekends, I might negotiate an hour out on my own to shoot. Sometimes, I go out late when the kids are in bed, but works has been so intense, I have been too tired to do that lately.

How would you describe the photos you tend to appreciate?

They hit you immediately — and then stay with you, asking questions. Like Erwitt’s photo of a young Russian boy standing on the running board of truck, staring into space. I think about that photo maybe 3-4 times a week. I can’t find it online, sadly.

Is there any type of project that you are currently working on or contemplating? Or are you primarily focused on each photo and moment?

I have two main projects: The impact of the stockmarket crash on people working in the financial district of New York, and the rebuilding of Ground Zero. And, of course, my kids. I get most happiness from photographs of them.

There are a number of your photos that reflect on the state of the economy (your set, meltdown)? How has the economy affected your photography?

Yes, meltdown would be it.

Have you ever contemplated working on a photo project or narrative?

Not really, but would if I had more time.

What caused you to choose placing your photos under a Creative Commons license.

It seems like the best fit for me. I don’t make my living from this, so I don’t need to lock up content — and I do like it being available.

Do you ever run into a lull or time where you feel challenged or less motivated than usual? How do you get past this?

Yes, usually when I get some rolls back. I assiduously try and work out what caused me to take the bad photos in each roll. I need to be more patient and let more things happen in my photos. Failure to do that is what hurts my work.

One of my favorite photos is the man standing in the subway perfectly still in his square as if locked in.  
Can you tell a bit more about how you were able to capture this? How long was he there? It’s one of those questions that creates so many questions.

Thanks. I see this man now and again at that subway station, which is where I catch my train home. I have sympathy for him. I had a medium-format camera with me that day loaded with 200 asa E6 slide film, which never looks good under subway-train light. But I snapped about 4-5 shots at 15th of a second and f/4. I walked around him shooting, looking for the best composition — I have one from the closing doors of a train, for instance, which didn’t look great.

The credit crisis is oppressive — one bad days it feels like it pins you down. This man’s self-confinement in the sqaure and his downward gaze suggest that hemmed-in sensation.

If you had to recommend a photographer or body of work to look at what would it be?

The Americans by Robert Frank has everything — and it was done 50-plus years ago. Everyone’s in debt to that work in some way, whether they know it or not.

I thank Peter for taking the time for allowing me to interview him.   Please visit Peter’s Flickr page for more photos and updates.   Most of Peter’s photos on Flickr are also tagged with the camera, lens and film that he used.  Good stuff.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/eavis/