MAKE ANOTHER HOV
I love Charleston.
My friends know I love Charleston. When they hear I’m going, they get excited for me. They hype me up, they root for me.
And when you love something, or somebody, you don’t want to let them down.
So, when I made an overnight visit a few weekends ago, I felt the pressure - and excitement - of a tall task. See, I had made mention of the trip - and my goal for it - to multiple loved ones. The goal? To complete a ‘part two’ to my Fitting In/Standing Out series. The original was completed and shared with the world last year and I was flattered by the response. The Charleston Daily Instagram account commented that I really ‘captured the spirit’ of Charleston. That almost brought a tear to my eye (I wrote extensively about how that’s EXACTLY what I was trying to do here.) But I also got the feeling that people thought I got lucky with some of the shots. That, of course, is likely a ‘perceived slight’, but I need those ( and I wrote about that here.)
I wanted to prove that I could do it again, that it wasn’t a fluke, even if it’s just to myself.
“OK I heard motherfuckers saying they made Hov / Made Hov say ‘OK, so, make another Hov’”
Although the dynamics are shifted, this timeless Jay lyric embodies that idea exactly. He’s telling anyone that claims to have helped ‘make him’, OK so, do it again then. Make another Jay-Z, if that’s something you can do. Asking for a second miracle as proof of the first, so to speak. And of course, there is no second Jay-Z. It’s one of the great opening rap lyrics, ever.
In my case, I’m asking it of myself. I’m the accused and the accuser. No one is telling me to do it again, nor doubting me in any way (to my knowledge at least) except me. As the doubter, I had to be the imaginary bad guy, the choir of skeptics in my head singing anything but my praise. And as the doubtee, I had a statement to make.
I can make another Hov.
So with that in mind, I got up and moving pretty early - “you can’t shoot Charlie all day if you don’t start in the morning.” My first stop before getting to the peninsula was at Northbridge park, a tiny area disguised as an underpass rest stop where I caught this guy as he caught something else. ‘Determination Pt. 5’ Or is it pt. 6 now? It’s been so long I lost count.
My routine for downtown is the same each time and it revolves around one thing - free parking. I have a go-to spot off King that I use as a starting point - and halftime break spot - that I have relied on since my first trip in 2020. I generally set 25,000 steps as a goal for a full Chucktown Sunday, and getting to and from that spot accounts for a good 3-4k. But it’s free parking.
Historic houses, centuries-old tombstones and powerlines on top of powerlines. All staples of the peninsula.
One of the countless, beautiful, historic and extremely haunted parks around the peninsula.
Bet your favorite street doesn’t have ambassadors
Searching for a outfit-match can be a lot of things: exhilarating, exhausting, rewarding, frustrating. Near misses can be agonizing. Sometimes it’s out of your control, other times it’s up to you to make it happen. If that couple takes a left at that corner there, you have the photo of a lifetime. But they went right. It’s part of the game. Shake it off and look for the next one.
Not getting things to go your way is one thing, but not being ready is another. So you have to be constantly scanning, calculating, predicting, framing - all while staying out of people’s way and trying not to look like a weirdo. Honestly, that last part can sometimes be the toughest.
A search that intense can also give you tunnel vision. This is a stunning place after all, and I am here to take pictures. You can easily miss out on some great street photography if you’re only looking for one thing. So I tried to stay aware of that. I do have some other ideas for Charleston photo series in mind, but they have been tough to get off the ground so far. Honestly I think I just needed to get this one out of the way to allow my eyes to re-adjust to a new task.
After missing back-to-back opportunities early on in the day (momentum goes both ways) I was finally able to catch a few. Remember the rules: the outfit has to match the surroundings AND it has to look like Charleston. So there were plenty of times where I would spot a lady in beige standing in front of a beige building. Who gives a shit. That can happen anywhere. The series is meant to capture the character, and characters, of the town. The flare, the boldness, the style - of both the architecture and the people - married together.
Now that is a Charleston-ass hat. Not to be confused with a Charleston Ass-hat, of which there are also plenty of on Meeting St.
After a long day of hunting, the three you see above were all that I really came up with. Don’t get me wrong, I really like them. But they don’t blow me away. They are great role players on a solid roster, but I see no starters here. I was still short of a fully-formed sequel to my series. It would have to wait until next time.
One shot I really did like from the day was the one above, from inside a Turkish glass shop. I met and chatted with the owner for a while and learned about the shop. Everything is handmade and flown in from overseas. Beautiful stuff. He showed me some rugs in the back that he had repurposed from old quilts. I told him I too had been on the hunt for old quilts to repurpose [Editors note: That blog is coming!]
This pic in particular was shot off the counter glass, giving the bottom half a whole new dimension of its own.
Last shot of the day. I didn’t have a bad day by any means, but I didn’t meet my own expectations. That can be tough.
The following week, I slept like shit. Couldn’t get over it. It was like a breakup or something. It stuck with me, it lingered and loitered. I didn’t follow up with anyone I had talked to before the trip, especially not the person whom I told ‘I was gonna kill it’. Didn’t post any pictures anywhere. Just sat and stewed on it.
By the time Saturday rolled around, I knew what I was doing on Sunday. I was going back for vengeance.
I shot up out of bed at 6am, even earlier than an a normal workday, and was on the road by 7. Again, you can’t shoot all day if you don’t start in the morning. I had just done this, so the routine was fresh in my mind, even more dialed in perhaps. I was on a mission. The only thing I didn’t check?
The weather.
I’d had a pleasant morning so far when I noticed the storm clouds rolling in. Pretty nasty ones too. That’s when it occurred to me I’ve never experienced anything but beautiful weather while visiting here. Sure, it’s ranged from ‘perfect’ to ‘I’m looking for a church so I can ask God why it’s so hot’, but never a raincloud in sight. That was, by the look of it, about to change durastically.
I think it gon’ rain.
The storm clouds provided an all-new feel for me. Totally changed the tone and vibe of downtown. While I was out looking for the most dramatic view, I should have been out looking for an umbrella.
I sat in front of these colorful rowhouses for a few minutes but that’s the maximum - there is a shot clock, so to speak. Sitting in one spot waiting for a match is not only not how the game works, it’s just bad strategy. It’s meant to be ever-changing - the scenes, the people, the clothes, the colors. And the peninsula can provide that, through quantity. The more the better. But you have to keep moving. The minute you wait too long in one spot, the whole essence of what is that you’re doing is changed.
Charleston is, by all accounts, a real city, although it often has a smaller, more cozy feel to it. The two photos above look the most like ‘big city life’ to me out of any that I’ve taken. That first one with the Louie store looks like NYC with palm trees!
Some scenes from a sopping wet downtown walk.
I really, really like the mood of this one. Gives a such cozy feel. I stood at this spot, under cover, for probably 20 minutes or so and just soaked it in, pun intended (hadn’t found an umbrella yet at that point so I didn’t have much of a choice.)
Both of these are ‘very Charleston’ photos that I may have missed if I were stuck in my color-match tunnel vision, which I tried to stay aware of and away from all day.
Alright here’s where it gets crazy.
OH YEAH. This one is so unique that I would have been satisfied if it’s all I came away with. Worth the trip alone.
Something finally caught my eye. I saw her coming, pulled my camera out from under my shirt (it was pouring) kneeled in a puddle to get the angle, and took one photo. Thankfully it turned out. The girl was walking very fast and it was raining very hard. Folks, we are on the board.
Then, somehow it ramped up. I was already admiring and shooting this house when the lady came out the front door. “No fucking way” I muttered to myself when I saw her scrubs. I told her the house was beautiful while I snapped this picture - akin to asking a child what their favorite animal is while giving them a shot - and she gave me this unamused look, like I know what you’re doing, it’s literally my job to give kids shots. I was not slick, as you can see on her face, but got the photo nonetheless. She said it’s an Airbnb, for what it’s worth.
I love the tones on this one, both in color and feel. He feels serious, and that’s a serious looking storefront.
The rain actually provided my outfit-match search some much-welcomed new elements: umbrellas, rain jackets, and puddles. All new tools to work with, and expanded pallet to play with. Conversely though, it added an additional challenge, being that I eventually did find my own umbrella, and shooting with it in one hand can be tough. It didn’t help that mine, which I found for 14.95 at the King St. Walgreens, had wind-rating of ‘don’t even look at it’.
Equipment aside I was on a roll, having gotten two or three bangers in a row. I took a right off King and began wandering down an alleyway when I saw this through the window…
OK MAN WTF. If you are shooting a series of photos that aims to capture people dressed like their surroundings…. is this cheating? Too on the nose? Or is it the end-all, be-all absolute crown jewel of the collection? I know which way I lean but I will let the viewer decide.
After the rain was gone (I can see clearly now!) the sun came out and the humidity cranked up to a level that will make you start looking for a church. But now I was playing with house money, moving up King Street with a bounce in my step, sweating through my already wet shirt. I got what I came for, plus some. We are leaving out of here on top. That’s when I saw the window display below and decided, why not? Let’s give it a shot. Honestly I couldn’t even imagine an outfit that would match this in any way. An absolute heat-check of a stop… I waited for a minute or two when… oh my God…
MAN WHAT!? The squares, the colors, the hair. It’s such a unique and specific match that I wouldn’t be surprised if her name was Lauren Candlefish.
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED. I CAN SLEEP AGAIN.
Until next time Chucktown. <3
[Editor’s note: See all of part 2 in one gallery here]