Shibuya

Shibuya

By Gavin Kellett

Canon 5D Mark lll; Tamron SP 24-70 f/2.8 lens; 35mm; 0.3s; f/2.8; ISO 125

Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo is one of the busiest places on the planet where activity never stops. Caitlin stayed wonderfully still to show the movement of life going on around her.

Don’s response

The earliest known photograph of a person is thought to be a Paris street scene captured in 1838 by Louis Daguerre in which the figure of a man having his shoes polished can be discerned.

Unlike Gavin Kellett’s 0.3s exposure, Daguerre’s picture needed 7-minutes to record an image. And that is why the very still gentleman in question was the only person on that busy street to have had his existence captured for posterity.

Gavin’s photograph is a reminder of how vividly this early photographic technique can convey the swirl and effervescence of life itself.

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