I seen you photographasizing
The Long Con as The Cure
“I seen you photographasizing in town before — at the market,” says a man to me about eight minutes before the new year. He is wearing khaki pants and a black fleece. He is horribly intoxicated. And like all of these conversations last night, it appears out of nowhere. But this is New Year’s Eve, a flood stage stream of absurd contact with our own species. The most amateur of amateur hours.
I form escape plans as he tells me about the time he watched me photographing someone who had dropped their ice cream — and that he has a beautiful daughter — but he abruptly disappears back into the crowd with five minutes to spare. It feels like I lost hours and I chastise myself for not escaping on my own.
Like 2019, there are 1440 minutes in each day in 2020. Have your escape plan ready.
Photos and words by Sean Rayford at New Brookland Tavern in West Columbia, SC during the annual New Year’s Eve Cover show - December 31, 2019
Flower Shopping as Blondie
Cicala as Bruce Springsteen
The Jabrones as The Ramones.
Flower Shopping as Blondie
Lewis.
Photographs copyright Sean Rayford - 2019
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About the author:
Sean has been photographing South Carolina since 1997 when he joined the Gamecock Newspaper at the University of SC. He came to school to study computer science — but those classes sucked. After receiving a degree in Media Arts, Sean worked as an assistant manager at a record store, and began freelancing with the local daily newspaper. After few years and multiple gun-point hold-ups, Sean found a job tending bar at a small live music venue, balancing the service industry with freelance photography for over a decade. He lost his job after telling his boss off at the bar one night, and took on photography full time in 2015. Since then, Sean has become a regular contributor to Getty Images, The Associated Press, The New York Times and many others. You can see more of his work at www.seanrayford.com.
Book Columbia, SC photographer Sean Rayford for senior portrait sessions at the University of South Carolina