Business Trip & Photography

I had a long business trip this week and at the last moment I threw in my Leica ME camera with the Zeiss Planar 50mm F/2. My business trips are very busy without any time to run around shooting pictures but I figured I could grab a few at the airport and so I did.  Most of the time the camera stayed in my bag, but the few times I pulled it out I certainly enjoyed it.  

This would be the perfect, travel light, photography set up.  A single camera, lens and battery combination. No card reader, charger or anything. I figured that once the battery was out I would be long finished.  Same with the memory card.

I had to take the train into town and then head back to the airport to fly out of town. This made the images I captured a bit of a story as it was capped on both ends of the trip with shots of the transport I was using. 

Watching people when at the airport, or at a train station is very entertaining. Everyone is in their own world and rarely interact with one another. This is especially true on London's rail system where a train can be crowded with hundreds of people, yet you could hear a pin drop in its silent.  

The picture above was taken at a train stop when the doors opened and I saw this young lady standing in such a fascinating way that I had to pull the camera up and steal a shot.

The shot below was taken at a station near London. I loved the shadows and the fact that all the people seem to bunch up on the left and right of the frame. But out of nowhere there is a gap, enough light showing through to highlight the woman waiting. Just enough light reflecting off her face.

Below I took a shot I call "Fred Perry" of a man heading towards the city, lost in thought as he reads his phone, keeping up with the daily news or chatting with a love interest. I was attracted to his concentration to a devise so small.  

While returning to home on the train, I saw this young woman's reflection on the glass. She seemed to stare out, deep in thought and oblivious to everything around her. Her expression, as I could see it, was as if she was a million miles away, frozen in thought. The while the train speed her along to her home.

In the photo below I was drawn to the amazing blue seen in the sky at 38,000 feet. The powerful engine seems to anchor the image in place, while the texture of the clouds give the scene some life. When I look at this picture I can still hear the hum of the engines.