A conversation with Philemon Nkadimeng about his street photography
We are so in awe of Philemon Nkadimeng’s street photography that just publishing an article on this work was not enough. We wanted to dive into the process of creating this work hence we had a conversation with him about his work.
Not just anything
The Middelburg (Mpumalanga) based self-taught street photographer expresses that he has been walking the streets with his camera for more than a decade now. What was just a part of his hobbies has become a significant part of his daily routine. In other words, he does not just document the business on the corners or the conversations taking place by the pavement during his free time. In addition, he plans to spend more of his time photographing the streets and passing down his knowledge of this important archival work.
He does not take photographs of just anything in the world because street photography is his gateway to producing unique photographs. He sees street photography as his form of self expression. In other words, when he photographs the streets of Middelburg he is retelling the stories of both his upbringing and adulthood. He spent and continues to spend majority of his days in this town. Therefore, when he takes a picture of his daily life, he is being transparent with us. He is showing us who he is and how he sees his home. In his own words, ‘it is a way of learning more about life through the observation of how others live daily’.
READ OUR ARTICLE THAT LOOKED AT NKADIMENG HERE: http://sacreativenetwork.co.za/2021/03/an-archive-of-our-daily-lives-by-pn-nkadimeng/.
The one element that distinguishes
Nkadimeng believes that an element that distinguishes street photography from other genres of photography is how candid it is. In other words, street photography documents subjects who are unaware that their activity is being documented. In addition, it is spontaneous.
His inspiration
Valerie Jardin inspired Nkadimeng to photograph life on the streets. Everything he took from listening to Jardin’s street photography podcast led him to what has become an extension of himself. In addition, Joel Meyerowitz and Robert Frank are photographers who inspire him too.
The magic word
The magic word to unlocking street photography is SERENDIPITY for Nkadimeng. He thinks this because of his belief that the foundation of beautiful photographs is luck.
His love and passion for his craft
‘I love photography so much that I cannot allow anyone or anything to stop me from doing it’.
His message in every photograph is what he thinks is important
What he wants to relay to you is ‘this is what I saw’. This is exactly what he finds significance in since he thinks street photography is important because ‘it tells it like it is’.
View his work here: https://twitter.com/NkadiPix?s=20.
