I am sitting on the doorsteps in the heart of Chelsea waiting for my clients. I am a photographer and thanks to my trade I move a lot around the city in search of new beautiful locations.
I am holding a large Starbucks latte in one hand and a raspberry muffin in another. I am wearing flat soled ballerina shoes and a blue dotty scarf. This is a common londoner’s looks: ballerina shoes all year round and a scarf for when it gets colder.
Places where we live change us, ever so slightly. London prompts me to stand in queue even when I am alone on a bus stop. And to wear scarf and mittens instead of coat in autumn – they are easier to hide in my bag when sun appears unexpected. And to grab a coffee whenever I locate a coffee shop. And to consider the tube the best city transport ever – no one in London goes to work by other means. London taught me to smile to strangers, and to say “sorry” when someone accidentally steps on my ballerina-clad foot, to gaze about, to look around, to be a careful observer – you never know what you will see around the corner. That is why I feel uneasy when I do not have a camera, or at least an iPhone with me – how else can I catch my impressions.