Flux Archive 011 — The Power of Repetition in Street Photography

What’s poppin’, people? It’s Dante.

Welcome to Flux Archive 011, where we look at some of the photographs I’ve made throughout my black and white photography journey.

These photographs are from October 2023.

Flux is a system I developed that chronologically publishes your photography automatically. If you’d like to make a zine like this yourself, there’s a link in the description where you can generate one.

Each photograph includes the date, time, photographer name, and is sequenced chronologically through space and time.

I genuinely believe that making photographs is a way to relive your life.

When I look back through these images in chronological order, I feel much more connected to the work. The sequencing of photographs inside a book or zine completely changes how you experience the story.

Rather than carefully arranging every spread, I like relinquishing control.

Sometimes the photograph on the left has nothing to do with the one on the right. Other times they unexpectedly create something stronger than I could have intentionally designed.

I like the idea of relinquishing control and simply seeing the way I stumbled through life.

That feels honest.

Photography—especially street photography—is already built on unpredictability, spontaneity, and serendipity. Letting the sequencing happen naturally embraces those same qualities.

Photographing Your Own Life

I’ve always enjoyed including my own feet or my own hand in photographs.

When I revisit these images, I’m reminded of returning to church, photographing a rosary, looking down beneath my feet, and simply being curious about everything around me.

Photography continues opening me up to the world in ways I’m incredibly grateful for.

Whether I’m riding my bike down one of my favorite trails or walking through the city, I’m constantly surprised by the way light and shadow create dramatic scenes.

Ultimately I’m looking at texture.

I’m looking at light.

I’m looking at landscapes.

But more than anything, I’m waiting for something within the scene to reveal itself.

Going Beyond Reality

High-contrast black and white photography has this incredible ability to transform ordinary places.

A simple riverbank becomes another world.

Dropping low to photograph leaves, grass, and small details beneath your feet completely changes your perspective.

Macro mode reveals textures and qualities of light you may never have noticed while standing there.

Photography lets me go beyond reality.

It allows me to see things more closely than I experienced them in the moment.

That’s why I photograph everything.

Humanity.

Strangers.

Geometry.

Light.

Shadow.

Shape.

Form.

I don’t only want to make traditional street photography.

Everything around me is a possibility.

And I think that abundant mindset naturally makes you more prolific.

The Power of Repetition

One of my favorite photographs in this issue is the bird flying beside Philadelphia City Hall.

At first glance, it looks like luck.

But it wasn’t.

I walked this exact stretch of JFK Boulevard every single day for weeks.

Every morning I’d watch the pigeons.

I studied how they flew.

Where they landed.

The patterns they repeated.

Eventually I realized they regularly crossed in front of William Penn atop City Hall.

So I kept coming back.

Again.

And again.

And eventually everything aligned.

The bird.

The tower.

The light.

The starburst.

The timing.

It finally happened.

I got lucky because I consistently repeated the same walk.

There’s real power in repetition.

The more consistent you become, the more deeply you notice patterns.

Patterns in light.

Patterns in birds.

Patterns in human behavior.

Eventually you stop reacting intellectually.

You begin responding instinctively.

Everything Is Photographable

A photograph of a mouth biting a flower.

A poster.

The geometry between buildings.

Light reflecting through the streets.

Looking upward.

Looking downward.

The street is an endless canvas.

There is always something worth photographing if you’re paying attention.

Photograph for Yourself

One of these photographs was made along Forbidden Drive in Wissahickon Park, where I grew up.

When I see that image, I’m transported right back into that autumn afternoon.

Whether someone else connects with the photograph isn’t really my concern.

I’m making pictures that bring me back to memories that matter to me.

Pictures that give me personal joy.

I genuinely believe that when you photograph for yourself first, the work becomes a much more authentic reflection of who you are.

And I think that’s ultimately what we’re all trying to achieve.

So my advice is simple:

Photograph for yourself first. Don’t worry about the audience.

That’s how I approach my work.

Closing

The final photographs take us through Reading Terminal Market before ending with the contact sheets on the back of the zine.

Every Flux issue includes a manifest document associated with each image, QR codes linking to the digital archive, and downloadable PDFs available on my website.

If you’d like to make your own Flux zine, upload 36 photographs using the Flux Generator linked below.

If I enjoy your work, I’ll feature it here on the YouTube channel.

Otherwise, join the Flux Discord community through the Join button here on YouTube.

Thanks for watching.

Peace.