Genuine skatewear in Santa Luzia

Caps, beanies, headbands holding hairs… torn sleeves, wrist bands, tattoos stating their love to the sport and the usual footwear. On those fifteen minutes I’ve been there, I realised that skatewear is even more street than streetwear itself.

My precedent

What I do is simple. I approach people telling them that I have a blog where I publish photos of people that I find interesting. There have been some cases where I took the pictures first and only then I went and talked to the person. This would be one of those. She passed right before me, I took her picture and took off my headphones to talk to her. And I would have done it, if a friend to whom we used to call Conan on our teens didn’t show up. I never enjoyed saying no to him, and when Conan wants to give me a hug, I wouldn’t dare saying no. I know it’s not much of an excuse, and my good judgment reminds me that I shouldn’t publish images of people that don’t even dream they have been photographed.
Summing up, this is my clumsy way of apologizing to this lady and, at the same time, thanking her for being here. I liked the coat/poncho/écharpe (it seemed like a mix of those three), the headphones and the whole suit. I can only hope that someday she can meet this blog and also enjoy it.

All that I couldn’t wear

People absolutely different from me are the ones that I most enjoy taking pictures of. People that, when I talk about my blog, raise their eyebrows saying “do you really like the way I dress?” Then I say “yes, it would be delighted to take you a picture and post it on my blog”. And I’m not being ironic.

If I wanted more of the same (…) I would just publish catalogues from Timberland (don’t get me wrong, I even have a pair of boots) or Tommy Hilfiger (don’t get me wrong, the models are almost as good looking as the ones that show on Ermenegildo Zegna’s windows; if on the first case I recycle the catalogue even before my girlfriend has a chance to touch it, on the second case I always make something up to get me to the other side of the street, so that she doesn’t even know that those guys exist).

Long story short, I never wore a Rasta, at the age of fourteen my father “convinced me” not to pierce my ears and, strangely, I don’t wear sunglasses. All I have is chest hairs, and I enjoy admiring what’s different from me. Why don’t you try it…

sms on Rua da Assunção

The girl with the hat

I’ve been noticing her for two years. I always knew where to find her and what time. I just needed a good excuse… Not anymore.

Moment of elegance

I never wore black and straight hair always seemed to me one of the biggest blessings of nature. That’s exactly why I have so much fun publishing these pictures… I simply don’t care if black is in or out on March 2009. There are images that deserve to be looked at without hurries, and I just keep them.

It’s true that you don’t need to be a Scouter for an agency to see that this kid is a model. But this blog is not just about good physical looks. It’s about another type of good looks… the one that comes with the sensitivity of each one of us… (but because excessive good looks doesn’t bother me that much…) And now… for those that suggested that Lisbon didn’t justify a full-time Taylor, I ask:
- Do you really think so?

Baleal Island (at a wedding)

Because I thought that each one of them deserved their own individual highlight, I took two frames of one single picture.


Vintage Ray-Ban, thin fantasy tie and Polaroid (do you still remember Polaroids?)


Audrey Hepburn sunglasses, red belt and pink handkerchief.

Erasmus pink

As the number of students that choose Lisbon to spend a few months in their life keeps rising (and I’m glad they do), sooner or later I would come across with one of them.

Several years ahead

Walking by Rossio, with a tan, without much patience to shave and with a camera on my hands, people are more likely to think that I’m trying to sell it, instead of taking pictures of anyone. Long story short… Martin here only calmed down when he heard, between smiles, that I wasn’t trying to sell anything. Misunderstandings aside, he let himself be photographed with the simplicity of a guy that seems to be… several years ahead.

London mates (waiting for the tram 28)

Saturday morning on the avenue (back to Lisbon)

If only I knew how to take photos

Handling the focus of your own camera sounds like an indispensable minimum requisite if you want to photograph those that come across you on the street. These people are not to blame, and even out of focus, they deserve to be here.

Tourists

The Russian couple

The (South) Korean couple

Mr. Gray

Pull-on hat and jacket (on the bike)

Sweet 70’s

And I’ll end it with these seventies. And precisely because of her age I had a special kind of satisfaction seeing this lady taking off one glove (and leading the other on her chest) to let me know how flattered she was.

How wonderful to see the effect that a single accessory can have on the whole.

Sweet 50’s

I’ll continue with the fifties… (divided between her look… and his hat)

Sweet 40’s

You normally associate youth with glamour, beauty, athletic men and inflatable women. I’d like to remind you that as far as style or aesthetics are concerned, there are several cases contradicting that so called norm of the juvenile monopoly. I’m starting with the forties…

Passeig de Gràcia - red light

What first came to my attention was the constrast between these two and just later I noticed those pants

A cigarette at the Rambla

Red girl with golden watch and buttons

I loved the coat. But apparently there was no need for me to travel just to take its picture. The owner is from Lisbon.

Sevillian guy with British tendencies

Checker coat (sleeves up), square shirt, plain pullover and scarf, and stamped handkerchief. I’m not sure how this description sounds like, but the result is one of my favourites.

Sevillian boy with Jamaican tendencies

Have you noticed the lilac clothes-peg he’s wearing on his chest? I must admit I’ve only noticed it now.

Barcelona

"It's the sense of touch. In any real city, you walk, you know? You brush past people, people bump into you. In L.A., nobody touches you. We're always behind this metal and glass." (Crash, 2004)

In a list published in NEWSPAPERS42.COM we can see Lisbon as the 126th most populous city in the world and Barcelona as the 80th. The example of Los Angeles is probably an exaggeration (it’s in the top ten) but the truth is that there are several differences between how people interact in each of these cities. Barcelona is bigger than Lisbon, more visited, more cosmopolitan. And that reflects on how people act and dress… There’s more diversity, and there’s also more indifference on how you handle that diversity. In a city like this you’ll always tend to feel less noticed (would it ever cross your minds to see a completely naked guy quietly walking through Lisbon’s downtown?) In Lisbon, there are still those who find it odd about a strange person saying he would like to publish their picture in his personal blog. My theory is that in Barcelona people will see this new hobby of mine in a much more natural and unconcerned way. I’ll be spending a few days over there, we’ll see… (Here’s a small souvenir from my last trip there)

Sunday morning. Gray overcoat and black Labrador

I bet he doesn’t wear it just to take the dog for a walk.

The duffel coat

The duffel coat is a garment that deserves a whole file with different shapes and colours. It shall have its glory in due time. For now, I’ll just be taking samples. This was number 1.

A German in Lisbon

I went to see my friend’s masters degree presentation. During the debate I had enough time to look at every single person in the room with me. I thought this gentleman had something special. When I approached him he just asked me to be careful about what I would write. I assured him I would just make one or two statements about the same reasons why I took photos of people, which would always have to be a flattering comment. He nodded with this smile.

The cardigan

In The Gentlemen, Bernhard Roetzel states the three distinguished advantages of the cardigan compared to the sweater. “It can be opened, thus, regulating the temperature, it can be dressed and undressed without damaging the hairdressing or taking off the glasses, and usually there’s a small pocket for cigarettes, keys and change.” When I was a child I thought this garment was destined only for old people. Today, with less hair to comb, I can understand its versatility. H&M and PG seem to agree. It’s easy to find them in wool or cotton, one colour, stripes or diamonds.

Blue turtleneck

I never wore a turtleneck. But you don’t always hate what you don’t wear. This sweater is a good example.

At the Camarim da Tóbis

There are plenty of berets. Yet the plastron* is not an easy accessory to find. For those who would like to have one but don’t know where to start looking (in Lisbon).
*from French

Atalaia vintage

Blue cloche

1920’s
The hat, an indispensable accessory by those days, was used only at daytime. The most popular model was the “cloche”*, stuffed almost all the way down to the eyes.
*bell, in French

Stripes, chequer, stripes

Vest+handkerchief+tie-pin

Three elements that have gone out of fashion. The same three elements that make this gentlemen so special. For those who think that dressing well is just following trends.

Mr. Stripes

I took this photo even before I wrote the introduction text (of the blog). But when I wrote it, it was this Mr. Stripes that inspired me.

San Giorgio

There are people who work in London and buy their suits here, and there are people who call from Istanbul just to know if the store is open.
At Largo da Graça.

Mr. Charming

The boots were bought in New York, but the rabbit… that’s Portuguese.