Homeless In Vancouver

[James Lemon]

 

[James Lemon]

He is 58 years old, does not do drugs and is near the end of a very busing day considering it's around 9:00 PM and the cart is loaded with gigantic amounts of recyclable goods; i.e. pop cans, beer cans, bottles, etc. (approximately $100.00 worth). He collects about the same amount every day and yes, he does live outside and has done so for a number of years. So, I guess that would qualify as being homeless. No black eye; just shadow. The drink was on the house of a local shopkeeper just around the corner of the back alley we were in.

 

[Jerome Marot]

Good portrait, I like the body language. Maybe you could correct the shadow under the eye, it can indeed be misread as a black eye.

 

[Asher Kelman]

James,

I like this fellow and have been waiting to see what reactions there would be.

The photograph is interesting, not the usual bum that one would want to pass by as fast as possible without engaging. I bet he has a lot of good stories and is worth hearing out. There's a certain breed of folk who like the freedom of collecting and recycling but not having to deal with the rest of the burdens of society. They hunt for paper, cans and other materials and so do everyone good.

He seems to be amongst the more civilized and interesting of such hardy folk who managed to survive in this lifestyle.

Asher

 

[Paul Abbott]

He is very well kept and clean shaven...but most bums have access to cleaning facilities, alongside they're soup kitchens I guess. This guy seems to be getting along pretty well though.
I would have gone for a more wider shot and presented a little better context as to his ways and means of getting by...

I have seen bums on the streets of London looking so much worse than this guy and yet we have more of a safety net over here.

 

[James Lemon]

Good portrait, I like the body language. Maybe you could correct the shadow under the eye, it can indeed be misread as a black eye.

Thank you Jerome I am glad you like it.

 

[James Lemon]

James,

I like this fellow and have been waiting to see what reactions there would be.

The photograph is interesting, not the usual bum that one would want to pass by as fast as possible without engaging. I bet he has a lot of good stories and is worth hearing out. There's a certain breed of folk who like the freedom of collecting and recycling but not having to deal with the rest of the burdens of society. They hunt for paper, cans and other materials and so do everyone good.

He seems to be amongst the more civilized and interesting of such hardy folk who managed to survive in this lifestyle.

Asher

He is very well kept and clean shaven...but most bums have access to cleaning facilities, alongside they're soup kitchens I guess. This guy seems to be getting along pretty well though.
I would have gone for a more wider shot and presented a little better context as to his ways and means of getting by...

I have seen bums on the streets of London looking so much worse than this guy and yet we have more of a safety net over here.

Thank you gentlemen !

You can't judge a book by it's cover as the saying goes. Without the title and the context that I have provided, the image is very ambiguous. Leonard Freed was once quoted as saying "The more ambiguous the photograph is, the better it is..." Showing more content about his ways and means of getting by would have produced an entirely different image. Although, personally, I don't consider someone who looks after themselves by selling something, be it a skill or pop cans a Bum.