The Escalator at Victoria
London, 1993
Candid photography can be a shifty, guilty business,
never more than when you're dealing with the disadvantaged or
the vulnerable. I spotted this homeless lady on Victoria Station
one day, with her shuffling walk and fantastically curved spine.
But what would it do to her if I took a photo? God knows what
her life was like, without me singling her out, making her feel
like a freak.
In the end, I gave in to temptation and sneaked a single
shot, hardly looking through the viewfinder. It was only when
I looked at the contacts that I saw the man on the escalator behind
her, apparently standing on her shoulders. There's probably a
metaphor in there, somewhere.
BACK