3. Andi

Perseverance. If there were only one lesson to be learned from today - there are in fact many - it would be not to give up. Admittedly that may be a trite and unoriginal notion; but after several hours of dealing with rejection after rejection, the thought of giving up had acquired a warm and fuzzy quality. What had gone wrong? Whereas I had previously approached potential subjects with my camera in hand, today I had it stored in my small camera bag; partly to protect my hands from the cold, but also because the area around Kreuzplatz has no features that could stand for themselves in landscape photography. It took me quite a while to realize that without the camera clearly visible, there was - from the point of view of a potential subject - nothing that could distinguish me from the various peddlers of salvation that people are used to being approached by.

Having failed spectacularly both during my lunch break and after work, I decided to try again after dinner. Two hours later I met Andi at the river, where he was waiting for his tram home. My pitch seemed to pique his curiosity, and he agreed to participate after asking a few well-chosen questions. On our way to a local pub I took 11 pictures in difficult lighting conditions, 4 of which made it into the final selection. The very last one best portrays Andi's openness as well as his gentle and friendly enthusiasm.

As we talked over dark beer, there appeared to be three stages of a developing relationship. Initially, we were sharing data points - profession, age, leisure activities - and Andi was unafraid to discuss closely personal matters; but soon enough we started discussing interpersonal relations and the roles of society and culture - we were sharing and comparing opinions, which I believe reflects that our mutual trust had deepened. Finally, after a most enjoyable hour of chat and discussion, we had got to know each other well enough for our conversation to develop into friendly banter.

Things to try out:
Try to approach groups rather than single individuals - which may give potential subjects additional security.

Andi: thanks very much for your time, your trust and your interest. You have single-handedly saved my day!