My goal as a photographer is to reveal the extraordinary hidden among the ordinary and show viewers familiar scenes in a new light.
Literally, in the case of this project, because I'm photographing the F.Q. Story neighborhood late at night instead of during the day and familiar scenes often look very different after everyone has turned-in for the night.
(For the record, the photos shown here were taken weeknights between 1:00 and 5:00 a.m. and not on weekends, because the neighborhood is surprisingly active then.)
I began photographing Phoenix's historical industrial areas and residential neighborhoods at night in 2008, because it was the only time I had available due to the long hours I was working at my day job in the legal field.
Prior to this, I had been photographing Phoenix's industrial areas / urban decay at sunrise and throughout the day going back to the late 1980s. (A surprisingly large number of the structures I photographed back then have since been renovated, re-gentrified, re-purposed, razed or otherwise destroyed, turning my photos of them into historical documents as well.)
I always photograph on foot -- no "drive-by shooting" for me, thank you! -- and I find the experience of exploring older neighborhoods at night with my camera (and sometimes with my dog as well) almost meditative. (I often joke that I could leave my camera home and still enjoy myself, but it's true!)
