Gienna Writes: 100 Strangers Project (Part 1)

A little while before I left for Ireland, I discovered the 100 strangers group on Flickr.

From the group description:

The challenge: Take at least 100 photographs of 100 people you don't know. Approach anyone or a group of people, ask for permission to both take a photo of them and to post it to this group. Get to know your stranger/s. Who are they? What is their life like? Step out of your comfort zone and into a new level of portrait photography.

I was intrigued. And when I say intrigued, I mean terrified.

Listen, I have problems taking photos of people on the street when they don't know I'm taking their picture. I love to people-watch and once I get over my initial shyness I love to talk to people. And I also really love taking people's portraits:

Virginia: Not a stranger.

Noelle: Also not a stranger.

Jesse: Not just not a stranger but also my cousin.

Audrey: Not only not a stranger but also married to my cousin.

But to strike up a conversation with a stranger AND ask to take his or her picture?

That's about a million miles outside of my comfort zone.

Still, I AM going to do it--and I kinda sorta started to do it in Ireland. (More on that in part 2.) In the meantime, I gather inspiration for the project, as usual, from the Flickr community.

One of my favorite Flickr friends, Kevin Day, has been doing the project with lovely results, of which these are just a few of my faves (please, please click to see the full size photos and the stories of each encounter and thanks, once again, to those Flickrites who enable sharing on their photos).