Homeless Portrait

The other week I was taking public relations pictures for a hotel in Bath. Their staff were volunteering to help at a local soup kitchen for the homeless, and they wanted shots of the volunteers and organisers preparing to hand out the food. I was told by a volunteer from the local church that was involved, I should avoid taking pictures of any homeless people as it might upset them. I’ll be honest, I felt a little patronized as I think by now I know what to do in delicate situations, but I got on with arranging the shots I needed. It was so dark, it would have been impossible to take pictures without flash so I was only ever going to take pre-arranged photos. The PR photos went well, and I used a small portable lighting system to try to make things look brighter and more inviting, and as I finished I turned around to find a man going by the name Squirrel sitting behind me. He was hoping to have his photo taken too, so I included him in some shots. Then his girlfriend, Hayley, came over. All she wanted was a nice photo of her and Squirrel together, and it was a pleasure to oblige. I did ask if they would mind me blogging the photo and they were fine about it, so here it is. Squirrel and Hayley, eating out together.

“Squirrel” and Hayley, Bath soup kitchen.