Flux Archive 012 — Finding Your Voice Through Daily Photography
What’s poppin’, people? It’s Dante.
Welcome to Flux Archive 012, where we look at some of the photographs I’ve made throughout my black and white photography journey.
These photographs span October through November of 2023.
Each Flux issue is generated directly from my website. If you’d like to make your own zine, click the link in the description, upload 36 photographs, and you can submit them directly to me. If I enjoy the work, I’ll review it here on the YouTube channel.
Every photograph is chronologically sequenced and timestamped with the exact date and time it was made, alongside the photographer’s name.
Put Yourself in the Frame
The very first photograph is a self-portrait.
On the opposite page, City Hall appears through reflections.
Both photographs are really about light, shadow, and reflection. I’m using myself as the subject just as much as I’m photographing the architecture.
I think this is something we often overlook as street photographers.
We’re constantly photographing other people.
We’re witnesses.
Observers.
Bystanders.
But we rarely include ourselves.
Over the last few years, I’ve intentionally started putting myself into my photographs, and I’m extremely grateful that I did.
I think it’s important to document yourself.
Photography allows us to express how we feel internally by creating something externally.
These images are a direct reflection of who I am.
Your Photographs Reveal Who You Are
When you spend enough time making photographs, patterns begin to emerge.
I notice myself drawn toward minimalist compositions.
Single figures walking into the distance.
Moments of tension.
Moments of isolation.
When I study my own work, I realize these photographs reflect parts of my own life.
The conflicts.
The solitude.
The curiosity.
If you study your photographs deeply enough, you’ll begin recognizing patterns that reveal who you are internally.
All the World’s a Stage
One photograph features a sculpture displaying the Shakespeare quote:
“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.”
It’s a quote that has always stayed with me.
As photographers, we’re constantly observing people, gestures, stories, and small interactions unfolding around us.
Everyone carries their own perspective.
Their own history.
Their own interpretation of life.
And that’s true for photographers too.
Every photograph you make comes from your unique way of seeing.
I genuinely believe that’s the purpose of art.
To share your perspective.
To show people how you experience the world.
Photography simply becomes the tool that allows us to do that.
A Camera That’s Always With You
These photographs came from carrying my camera with me throughout everyday life.
Looking at rain in the morning.
A quiet landscape in Miami while spending time with my mother.
Artificial light inside a parking garage.
Simple moments.
Minimal scenes.
Many of these photographs are almost entirely black, with only small pockets of light.
I’ve always been drawn toward darker imagery.
High-contrast black and white photography feels closest to my instincts.
But more importantly, having a small compact camera with all of the processing happening inside the camera removes friction.
It allows me to respond instinctively instead of overthinking composition, timing, or technical settings.
Photography simply becomes part of everyday life.
Cultivating Your Instinct
One photograph shows my mother doing her makeup.
Another shows my feet beside hers while we waited for the sunrise.
These aren’t extraordinary moments.
They’re simply my life.
And that’s exactly why they matter.
When photography becomes effortless, you stop thinking so much.
You stop forcing pictures.
You simply respond.
That instinct is where your voice begins to develop.
Your style isn’t something you invent.
It’s something that naturally emerges through consistency.
By always carrying the camera.
By giving yourself permission to fail.
By showing up every day.
Photography as a Way of Being
I don’t separate being Dante from being a photographer.
I don’t become a photographer only on certain days.
The camera is always with me.
Photography has become a way of being.
It’s become the compass that guides me through life.
Every interaction.
Every walk.
Every ordinary moment becomes an opportunity to share my perspective.
And I think that’s one of the greatest gifts photography offers us.
It gives each of us a voice.
The artist’s responsibility isn’t to imitate someone else’s vision. It’s to honestly share their own.
Don’t be afraid to use photography as a way to interpret the world subjectively.
Your perspective is the work.
Closing
If you’d like to submit your own work, use the Flux Generator linked below. Upload 36 photographs and I’ll review selected submissions here on the YouTube channel.
If you’d like to join the Flux Discord community, click the Join button here on YouTube to receive an invite.
Thank you for watching.
Peace.