There's an element of documentary in a large amount of my work but there's a lot more to it than that for me. I do want to make pictures that are artful, that's for sure, but I'm also interested in the way that memory works. I use photos to express something in the same way I might use a drawing or painting to express something
Usually, with images hung on a wall, people move to look at images that interest them, they can skip images, or move out of the order the artist intends. With a book, beyond just controlling that viewing experience, you can go beyond just the sense of sight and incorporate touch, sound, text, and other means of telling your story more carefully as well.
I love to tell stories the way I see them as oppose to translating another person's vision, which is what
you often have to do when on assignment. I have my own unique way of seeing a situation / the world and to me it really is story telling and
I'm the author.
I do like the idea of preserving a community and a time. It seems a lot of photography is, at one level or another, about fighting back against the relentless tide of time erasing everything.
I like to travel light, usually one camera with one lens. I like to hang out. I like to go back to the same place over and over again. I like to watch for the little changes.