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Many people consider they have to drop their day time jobs to really start creating pictures that make the difference. Chris is the living proof that it is possible to succeed in both worlds while you develop a solid photography business. He manages to balance a successful career in a huge financial company, the life of a family man with wife and three kids and dedicates much of his spare time around Bronx toughest neighborhoods photographing and documenting the lives of prostitutes, homeless people and drug addicts.
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| Chris Arnade |
Chris Arnade can be considered an example to be followed. Is he shooting million-dollar productions or did he develop some new and revolutionary technic? Nope. The major reason to bring to you his story is the fact that he is able to live the life many aspiring photographers dream of. He manages to balance the different and challenging roles of a father, extra busy day job employee (and a successful one!) and photographer.
The very start to his Facesof Addiction project was in 2010, when he volunteered at the Hunts Point Alliance for Children. In his words, “I am not a journalist, I don’t verify, just listen. It’s very easy to simply run with your crowd, to not explore the amazing diversity and perspectives that are offered. It’s also very easy to ignore others. By not looking, by not talking to them, we can often fall into constructing our own narrative that affirms our limited world view. What I am hoping to do, by allowing my subjects to share their dreams and burdens with the viewer and by photographing them with respect, is to show that everyone, regardless of their station in life, is as valid as anyone else.”
Throughout the various incursions he has seen and heard many amazing life stories, I strongly recommend you to stop by his Flickr account to see and read more about his work. Also take a quick look at this video from NYTimes showing Arnade’s project. Your photography business story could be just like his. And the stories he portrays on the streets could be the same with any of us.
Chris has agreed to say some words in an interview, hopefully on a near future and certainly going to be on the Podcast soon after. All images are from Chris Arnade and were shown with the artist`s permission.
