Photos as History

The next couple of days have seen me in Las Vegas, or realistically Las Fake-Us. One of the biggest lessons I learned from my studies is to watch the world. Observe what is around you before you even begin to pick up the camera. A walk of the streets of Las Vegas and just watching what happens really brought into focus (no pun intended) the image and the reality of this crazy city.

The image: A place where your debts can be wiped out with the roll of the dice, opulence and excess, plastic fantastic.

The reality: A city that exists with so many people on the fringe. The hustlers selling last minute tickets and tours, costumed performers working for minimum wage and the hidden struggle, just a street or two away from the strip.

And what does photography have to do with this?

Quite a lot. As a city that destroys and rebuilds as opposed to renovate and refresh, Vegas is a mecca for photographers, as it gives you the ability to capture moments and places that can soon be gone. Photography has a role to capture not just the dramatic, but also what is seen as mundane in an hyper-realistic world.

We are archivists, responsible for capturing slices of time before they are demolished. So when you pick up a camera, think about what you are photographing, as one day your work may be looked on with nostalgia and intrigue as a particular shot will jolt a memory of a place consigned to history and demolition.

With that in mind, I leave you with my shot, a fake skyline in a city full of them.