52frames Portrait of a Stranger

This week’s photo challenge was actually fun, even though I was a bit apprehensive. Out of the seven people I approached, there were five enthusiastic yes responses and two flat out rejections. Since the subject this week was “portrait of a stranger” we thought that we would probably find something on the national mall. We got a great parking spot by the air and space museum, then headed to the Smithsonian gardens. We found a gardener who was watering plants and he graciously posed in front of a lovely display of greens. The next stop was the national gallery of art sculpture garden. The security guard didn’t want to have anything to do with it. As we were walking along constitution avenue we stopped by a street vendor. She didn’t want to have anything to do with it. I was feeling a bit rejected even though I tell everyone that I’m doing it for a photo challenge. Next stop was the national gallery of art where there are always greeters out front - how could they refuse? They didn’t - neither at the front entrance of the east nor west buildings. Then we walked over towards the Capitol and there was a wonderful Vietnamese gentleman with his food truck. He gave us the biggest smile and the background was so colorful and animated. It was perfect! The last stop was at the US Botanical Garden. One of the gardeners was out front talking about bees. She was a lovely subject too. It was very difficult to select the final portrait for the challenge because they all turned out so well! It was a fun and interactive challenge and my portraits represented all walks and colors of life. It was a lovely experience. I posted all of the images on Instagram and got a “like” from Smithsonian gardens. It seems people still like to have their photos taken - and I really enjoy taking them.