2016 Photography Challenge: Monthly Themes. May = Street Photography

Almost better than the photo itself was the perfect, adventurous day Steve and I had that produced this photo. Living in Los Angeles, there's no shortage of fun and interesting things we can do to explore this wonderful city. And while I'd been to the Original Farmers Market a handful of times before, I'd never gone with the intention of taking photos (of strangers). There were a few different places Steve and I considered going when thinking of the "street photography" theme, but we landed on the Original Farmers Market because we were fueled by food.

While watching I'll Have What Phil's Having (which I highly recommend), we decided we had to go to Loteria Grill to try the chilaquiles. Steve had them before, I had not. So I jumped at the chance to combine trying this delicious food (it was!) with my photography assignment.

Walking around the Original Farmers Market on a Saturday morning is a very fun experience because you get to see everything come to life. When we got there, parking was a breeze and there weren't too many people there. But by the time we left, people were fighting for parking spots and the place had become very busy.

I had so many opportunities to take photos and while it was hard to decide which one to post as my May assignment, I ultimately chose the first one I thought would be perfect as I took it:

I loved capturing this man during a quiet moment away from work with the men in the sign wearing what appears to be the same top as the man sitting down. There was so much bustling and moving and eating and walking and living just a few feet away. And this stranger and I were experiencing this same moment of calm in the same place.

Here are a couple other photos I loved that captured the mood of the morning:

The rest of our day together was really fun too. After coming home and relaxing for a bit, we walked up Montana Avenue and did foot reflexology at a spa we hadn't ever been to before, Cha Spa. It was so relaxing that I feel asleep twice. And Steve loved the surprised, so it was a win-win. While we easily could have gone home and slept, we continued up Montana to try out a new-to-us restaurant, Forma. A family friend, who splits her time between Italy and Santa Monica, recommended it and when we heard this- Forma features pastas served Dalla Forma- a unique preparation method where freshly cooked pasta is then finished in large cheese wheels prior to being served- well...we knew we had to go. This too, did not disappoint!

June's theme is "Travel" and while my goal with this year's photography challenge is to include Steve, this one will be without him as I'm headed back to Ireland (trip #12!) in one week.

Check out Cyrena and Sarah's photos: