Dear friends,

This week I’m handing over most of the talking to the pictures. I went through my archive and pulled ten photos of people and places where something felt off. Not dramatically wrong. Just... not quite as it should be. The kind of scenes that made me stop and look twice.

I loved sequencing these. I hope they make you look twice, too.

I’ve been thinking about the kinds of photos that stick with me longest. They’re rarely the ones that explain themselves. They’re the ones that raise a question I can’t fully answer.

A good photograph doesn’t need to resolve anything. Sometimes the best thing it can do is make you feel like you walked into the middle of a conversation and can’t quite figure out what everyone’s talking about.

These ten pictures come from Mexico City, Amsterdam, Berlin, San Francisco, Buenos Aires, Paris, Brooklyn, Rome, Vancouver, and Rotterdam. Different years, different cameras, different light. What they share is that small friction. Something in the frame that doesn’t sit easy.

I think we’re trained to look for clarity in photographs. Clean compositions, obvious subjects, tidy stories. And there’s nothing wrong with that. But there’s another kind of looking that I find more interesting: the kind where you’re not sure what you’re seeing, and you stay with it because of that uncertainty.

When I was sequencing these, I noticed something. The photos I kept coming back to weren’t the strangest ones. They were the quietest ones. The ones where the question was barely a whisper.

If you want to try this yourself, here’s a starting point: go through your archive and look for photos you almost deleted. The ones that felt like mistakes or misfires. Look at them again with fresh eyes and ask yourself what question they’re asking. You might be surprised by what you find.

That’s it for this week.

Next week: My experience taking portraits of an Oscar winner for the first time, and one who has greatly inspired me years before this all came together.

Let’s keep shooting, learning, and sharing.

Warmly,

Wesley

Workshop + Zine Launch Event

• Voice & Vision Workshop, London — May 23 & 24 — Shane Taylor (Framelines) and I are co-hosting a day-long workshop I am very excited about. Two dates available, 15 spots each. For photographers who care about their work and want clarity on what they’re saying and where it’s going. Morning sessions, communal lunch, afternoon street shooting. €275/£250. Book at developworkshops.com

• New Zine Launch Event — On April 1st, I'm presenting Vliegwiel at Pakhuis De Zwijger in Amsterdam. The project: 102 portraits of Dutch startup founders, each interviewed by my collaborator Robert Gaal about building a company in the Netherlands. We'll present the findings and the portrait zine to the newly elected Minister of Economic Affairs. Closed event, but email me if you'd like to join. BTS video from the studio sessions here.

  

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Your Turn — Giveaway

Leave a comment and share with us: do you have a photo that asks a question instead of giving an answer? It can be something that felt like a mistake at first, a scene that still puzzles you, or a frame where the mood is hard to pin down. I'll randomly pick one person to receive a mystery goodie bag from my studio with a photo book, some rolls of rare film, test prints, or whatever I pull from the drawer that week.

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This Week’s Camera + Tools

Camera: Canon 5D Mark IV, Fuji X100F, and Canon EOS R5 and the Canon RF 24-70 mm f/2.8 L IS USM.

Process is supported by Squarespace, which I’ve used to host my portfolio for over a decade. It has made it easy for me as someone without web design experience to present my work professionally to show my work, attract client, and have an online shop to sell my photo books, prints, and ebooks.

If you’re looking for a home for your work, especially if you shoot in series, it’s worth checking out. I can recommend it, based on my personal experience. Use code WESLEY for 10% off any Squarespace subscription.

Lab: All my film is developed with love by Carmencita Film Lab. Use code “PROCESS“ for a free upgrade.

A Few Ways To Support This Work

If Process adds something to your week, here's how to help keep it going: grab a copy of my photo book NOTICE Journal Volume One or the Process Workbook series. Every physical order includes a limited edition Creatives In/AMS preview zine, a surprise, and stickers.

Process Photo Club members get 40% off NOTICE and 100% off all four Workbooks. Not a member yet? Join here.