Getting Unstuck in a Hurry


I've struggled to "see" photos I'm interested in taking in Vancouver for years - which is why most of my street photography has been done in Europe. The problem was that I use photography to fill up my happiness bucket, so it was important that I find a way to get inspired at home. When I learned about the 24 Hour Project, which raises money for a worthy cause each year, I signed up as a way to commit to figuring this out.


So, from midnight at the end of September 8 until midnight on September 9th, I was out with my camera, trying to take, edit, and post a photo every hour. I napped for a couple of hours before heading out into the Downtown West Side, a buzzing area with lots of nightlife. If you want to photograph people, go where the people are! Plus, I had a little hub there at my parents' place to rest when I needed it and charge my gadgets.


And there it was, the start of a little spark - funky lighting, people doing interesting things, moments I was excited to capture. I wandered for a while, and then sat in a cafe to connect my camera to my phone and do some editing using the mobile version of Adobe Lightroom. By the time I got my first post up, I'd been seeing images from photographers in other parts of the world as they made their way through their day in time zones ahead of us - it felt satisfying to join them, like finally joining the community. We were all working to raise money for Cameras for Girls, doing photography to support girls in Uganda who also want to be photographers, so that was added incentive.


Things started to feel a bit unsafe around 4am, so I had a quick rest back at base and then headed out again for the day. I had a general idea of areas that might work, and my parents joined me for a few hours for company and to keep me fed and watered. Wander, snap, snap, snap, find a place to sit, download, edit, post, tag, add to story, add to highlights. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.


By the end of the day, I'd walked almost 25,000 steps, and shot 591 photos. I missed two hours for quick naps. Posting to Instagram felt good, I was proud of most of the shots and didn't end up posting anything that I disliked. So, it turns out I can find inspiration at home! I slept a very satisfied sleep for about 13 hours when it was all done, and look forward to more photo treasure hunting soon.


If any of these photos catch your eye, you can purchase them in lots of different formats through my shop: https://awoolesphotography.pixieset.com/printsforsale/24hourproject2023/

1am. Arms and legs of two people sitting on the sidewalk outside of a bar. Heavy black boots with pink LED lights.
Looking into a dark nightclub, with three people drinking beer and laughing under purple and blue mirror balls
A sober, disinterested Goth standing in front of a sign with a happy man holding up a beer for "cheers"
Black and white photo of two women talking to a male bartender, with an Indiana Jones movie playing behind the bar
A man yawning in a cafe with bright pink walls and a retro ceiling light above him
A backlit black and white photo of a man sitting in a circular opening in a wall, posing like a pinup girl
A red BDSM paddle with yellow lettering saying "Hot Ass", in a sex shop window
An abstract photo of a warped mirrored ceiling of a cafe, showing a man drinking coffee and reading the paper
A father lifting his toddler up to a statue of a laughing man. The child has his hand in the statue's mouth.
A young girl trying to climb a statue of a laughing man by holding his belt buckle. He looks like it tickles.
A barber faces the camera, his client is in profile. There is a yellow ring around it, from the "O" of the "Open" sign.
A man crouches down to fit through a child-sized door, labelled "Kids Entrance"
A child claps his hands behind a wooden fence, so you can only see horizontal stripes of him and keeps him private.
A small child in a crowd holds their father's hand so tightly that the tops of their fingers are white.
A girl runs up a curved yellow slide, and her shadow looks like a gremlin beside her.
A black and white photo of people standing ankle-deep in the ocean on a beach, cooling off on a hot day.
A man sleeps on a wooden bench that is part of a row of benches, so the photo is full of horizontal lines
The back of a father who is holding his daughter in his arms, with her tired legs hanging over towards her toys.
Silhouettes of two people sitting together in front of ocean, mountains, and an orange sunset.
A father holding his laughing daughter up to sightseeing binoculars.
The silhouette of a woman standing on a wooden pier under a purple light.
A dark photo of women sitting on a restaurant patio with a firepit in front of them