ways of seeing: I C D ABC N NYC

For me, photography is about seeing things in a particular way, discovering them with fresh eyes (or lenses), finding in them qualities that I have never seen before or interpreting and redefining them in a completely new way.

Due in part to my frustrations with repeatedly photographing flowers, trees, and other remnants of nature in this stifling city, and to my intolerance and general inability for seeing the beauty in city photography, I found myself craving a new project. Inspiration came from two sources:

1) William Steig's C D B, a book full of sentences formed by using letters of the alphabets as words (e.g., C D B = see the bee), and

2) ABC NYC: A Book About Seeing NYC, a children's book depicting letters of the alphabet through photography.

With my current project, I embark on a 26-day adventure, finding the alphabet in places one might not think to look. This is not about photographing signs and billboards. Rather, this is about seeing letters as part of things. A sub-part of this project is to see whether or not I can find all 26 letters on bicycles.

Whereas I originally thought that I might limit myself to photographing just one letter each day, I have decided that building up a bank may not be such a bad thing. It turns out that I often discover letters when I am not looking for them. It would be a shame not to take advantage of such serendipitous occasions. For example, I found a 'Q' today that I am incredibly excited to share. Unfortunately, that will have to wait until day 17. Photographing ahead, though, should not, will not, deter me from continuing to seek out letters.

Beginning today, and running for the next 25 days, I will begin with 'A' and reveal subsequent letters of the alphabet until I reach 'Z'. Letters may be uppercase or lowercase, and I will aim for at least two or three representations of each letter. So, without further ado, I present to you the letter 'A'.