038

BODY38 : QUICKDRAW BENCH

A favorite and almost impossible moment that nearly cost me my life.

I stood at the corner on the opposite side of the street, waiting for my light to turn green. The situation had already caught my eye.

As I prepared to walk towards him, he was turned to his right, away from Denzel's Gun, deeply lost in thought. I was confident I had time to line up the composition until an oncoming bus startled him.

The moment he jumped, I ran into the street knowing I'd have but a flash to get off a shot. The bus would at the very least kill the moment if not possibly me.

I shoot with a single fixed wide. I'm not a sniper. I have to get close.

A swiftly closing window, I centered myself in front of the bench just long enough to fire the shutter while simultaneously jumping out of the bus' path. An angry driver peered at me through his window as the bus came to a stop just a couple feet to my left.

I walked away fearing I hadn't gotten it... but I had.

Elated at the realization I'd captured the moment, it took me a beat to realize the hand in his pocket looked as if he'd been attempting to draw his own pistol.

I will never not hear the howl of the bus horn when I look at this shot.

I don't even know if he ever realized I'd shot him, myself.

Creator

IMAGHOSTXO

imaghostxo.eth

I’m a Street Photographer from DTLA who believes that capturing truth requires the absence of me.

I’ve slept, worked, and lived in the streets of DTLA all my life.

Most recently, I lived in the center of the city, at 7th and Spring, and shot every single day for 8 years.

I shoot with at 23mm fixed lens, so I have to get close to my subjects. I’m not a sniper. I believe that if I can’t get close enough to catch the shot, I don’t deserve it.

My work is candid. My shots are unposed. My goal is to simply be present and distinctly attentive to the moments swirling around me with the single intention to capture any of an unfathomable amount of impossible alignments that go unseen every day.

To pull from my Genesis: We are stars. Expelled & dying flashes of light. Some named, held in awe. Some ignored, most unseen. An eternal cycle of peerless moments; the ephemeral beauty of simply being, burning, and dying before each other’s eyes.

Many of us go through life questioning our value. I hope that my work captures the fact that you are immense, powerful, and perfect every moment you are alive.

Thank you for being here.

Properties

Rights

Extended Editorial

Site

DTLA

Status

No Longer There

Spectrum

B/W

Artist

IMAGHOSTXO

Edition

1/1

Dimensions

4956x2820

Filetype

JPG

License

Extended Editorial

Can be used to display privately, or in commercial and non-commercial settings, or in groups with an unlimited number of participants. The license includes unlimited use and display in virtual or physical galleries, documentaries, and essays by the NFT holder. Provides no rights to create commercial merchandise, commercial distribution, or derivative works.

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