A Lucky Shot!!

As many of you know, street photography is one of my photography passions. Street life is fascinating to me in that it truly is a "mirror image of society". That according to Wikipanion's definition of street photography.

Having the opportunity to shoot in a vibrant city such as Miami can be great fun and rewarding. Occasionally, I have come across individuals that stand out above the rest. One individual crossed my path several months ago while I was shooting on Lincoln Road in South Beach. Walking the streets shooting photographs at will I came across a rather distinguished individual playing an electric guitar on the side of the road..I initially walked passed because of a crowd that had gathered to listen to this guitar man! Then, realizing that this was a chance to photograph true street culture I turned and strolled back to the group of on lookers. I approached him and threw a few bucks into his guitar case and pointed at my camera indicating that I wanted to take his picture. With a gentle smile and nod from him, I started shooting. A few minutes passed and a crowd began to gather again so I thanked him with a smile and wondered off to capture my next image.

The images of "guitar man" became a favorite of people visiting my website and others! One individual was a friend of mine who manages a local bar/restaurant favored by the young professional set. Being a lover of jazz, he was intrigued by the photo and the soul that was portrayed in the image. Several months have gone by and today while having lunch at this spot Nick, the restaurant manager came to me and said that he had been out on the town several weeks before and came across "guitar man" playing on a local street corner. Nick listened for a few moments before recognizing that this was the same individual in those images from several months back.

I was pleased to hear that "guitar man" is now playing a full time gig at this local spot and drawing larger and larger crowds. I have since learned that this man is a veteran and fought for our freedoms as Americans. You never know when you take a shoot on the street if that will be the "lucky shot..." And, in this instance we all are winners...