Musical accompaniment: Done Somebody Wrong by Elmore James

I recently came across the work of the American photographer Paul Strand (1890‑1976). He was 29 years old in this picture taken by Alfred Stieglitz. You’ll notice Paul Strand loved to smoke. He’s holding a cigarette here, but he was usually a pipe smoker.

Wikimedia

Strand loved what was then called straight photography. This style of photography highlights sharp, clear focus and geometric details, like his 1915 picture, Wall Street:

When people are the subjects, there’s no deliberate obscuring of details. This 1917 picture is calledPortrait, Washington Square Park. You see how sharp the detail is in this picture.

Alfred Stieglitz and Lewis Hine were Strand’s mentors in his early years. Like Hine, Strand liked to take a social and political approach. This became more apparent later in his career after he traveled to Mexico, Russia, France, Scotland, and Italy.

What I notice about Strand is his genius for finding interesting faces, or his ability to identify just the right time to capture that person’s essence, as he does in this 1916 picture called Portrait New York City.

I’d hold on to my pocketbook if I saw this fellow in my vicinity.

Check out Paul Strand’s street photography!