Quickly after starting my freshman year of college and not being stimulated by the classes, I noticed I needed a new challenge. Being drawn in by the nostalgic feel that super 8 cameras offered after looking at hours of footage, I began looking at ways to emulate that look.
I was introduced to analog photography shortly after by watching Willem Verbeeck and instantly fell in love. With a roll of Portra 400 and a Canon Ae-1 in my backpack, I started to take photos around the city, photographing what I liked. I looked for inspiration in other people’s work, fascinated by how well Robert Frank captured his time in “The Americans.” I took a passion for street photography and capturing stranger’s most intimate moments in public. I want to show the beauty of the mundane and the small meaningful moments we all pass by.
To me, life is about asking questions and I began to document these questions through my photography. The best gift I can give my audience is a story they can complete themselves through enigmatic subjects or atypical styles and let them ask themselves “What is going on here?”
Love in Times of the Coronavirus
When Covid-19 hit New York I knew I had to document what was happening around me. My first zine “Love in times of the Coronavirus” captures the way that the relationship between strangers developed in the city as we grew fearful of one another. This change is documented through the lengths the city took to distance everyone and the background work put in by healthcare and essential workers. As the city started to open back up again, instances of what used to be started to appear again, a comeback to normality.
To view more of Robinson Germain’s work please visit his website.