True Crime Stories

But there is a certain guilty look that supports the title.  Well caught (pun intended)... Mike

There surely are two or three stories going on simultaneously here, Jack.  This is a very dramatic and dynamic photo.  Everyone is moving--and nervous, too, I think. 

  The woman wants to get out of there.  I wonder what she has done.

--Lannie

I do like the lady looking from the side of her eyes, fast moving nice capture Jack

Yes, she seems to be alert to the guy strolling boldly into the frame from the left.  Then there are the cops, who seem to have bungled into something they do not even understand--something really big.

Start from here and construct your own narrative. . . .

--Lannie

Jack, I have alluded to this photo in a forum thread that I started.

In my opinion, this photo absolutely must be viewed "large" for full impact.  I know that that is often true, but it is especially important here, given the expressions on the faces.

--Lannie

She's fiddling with what could be a phone--or something else--and the guy strolling in is carrying a bag.  Jack, could you yourself have stumbled onto a live "drop"?

--Lannie

I like the narrow imaginary long cross that the protagonists form. It seems to bind the stories together.

The lady's look could be guilt but in my version of the story it's a despered look for help, you see that guy on the other corner looks like he is following her...

I guess we will have to wait to see  how this scene will evolve.

Crossing paths of different people!

Cheers to that, Jack!

PDE

They have arrived too late as usual, the evidence is in the bag that she's hurrying away with, the guy to the left knows it and is following her from a distance! 

Great story telling photo! 

Best Regards 

Alf 

Tell us how this developed, Jack.

--Lannie

Thanks for your generous comments on this photo. This picture is evidence of how a title can put a definite slant on an otherwise innocent scene. First let me say that I never go out with an agenda in mind but how I see is definitely influenced by the many photographers who interest me, both well known and obscure, through their published photos and books and by the work of members I have chosen to follow on pn. It's all grist for the mill. I try not to have anything in mind when I shoot, just look for things that catch my attention as I walk down the street. We are what we are and in some strange way that is made plain by the pictures we take. I have a rather ironic, psychological view of things that sometimes takes me down the rabbit hole and through twisting passages where it's easy to get lost but where I can occasionally catch brief glimpses of myself in the shadowy light ahead. I'm interested in how I see and how I interpret what I see - 'why' is another matter. How you see is who you are. My photography is a little game I have chosen to play; it drives me, delights me, informs me and sometimes frightens me. My photos are a mirror of my imagination and a projection of my psyche from basement to attic. They are personal observations only and I have no illusions about their worth in the larger world of photography. And that's enough about THAT!

As for the picture itself, I built my story around the rather exotic-looking lady and her sidelong glance. Along with her bag she holds a wallet in her hand., what Hitchcock would call "the McGuffin", the object (secret plan, diamonds, stolen wallet - it really doesn't matter) that catalyzes the action. This scenario wouldn't work without the fortuitous presence of the two policeman of course, (nicely labeled in case you thought they might be mere bus drivers or security guards) and the guy following, who might be the pick-pocketed victim in the caper. It is, as you see, all a charade, a simple case of mental post-processing.