Urbanity and Photography

As much as I dream about escaping city life, I’m pretty sure I could never permanently live in the countryside or any remote rural setting? Visit? For an extended period? Yes, of course. Take up residency there and live out my days? Absolutely not. Nope. Not going to happen.

I would not, by any means, call myself a city-slicker, but I am, in my core, both metropolitan and cosmopolitan.

When I see shots of New York City or any thriving metropolis, my heart literally explodes and I begin to yearn for the concrete jungle.

Of course, truth be told, my urbanity is tied directly to photography. In a big city, there is always something to shoot, somewhere to go, some new neighborhood to photographically explore, some new street portrait to capture.

Don’t get me wrong, I love the vibe of rurality.

Without rurality, there is no urbanity.

I love the quiet and hush of the countryside. I love the peace and placidity of just being out of reach and away from it all.

Don’t bother me. Leave me alone. Save it for tomorrow. Sounds good… for a while.

But, photographically speaking, I cannot venture too far from glass, angle, concrete, light, pictorial congestion, crosswalks, buzz, noise, humanity, variety, suavity, traffic, sidewalk cafes, alleyways, graffiti, explosions of color, design, light.

Today, after my customary and routine bike ride around the lake, I found myself high among the high-risers. The urbanity in me won out.

This is exactly why I love living in Austin. I’m never more than an arm’s length aways from photographic urbanity, diversity, modernity

To those who call the countryside home… I love you, I get you, I honor your choices.

But give me the city, any day of the week!

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Jack