Single Shot Stories No. 004 – Peter Toshe

• Photographer : Peter Toshe
• Camera : Minolta Hi-Matic 7SII [our review here]
• Lens : Minolta Rokkor 40mm/1.7 (fixed lens)
• Film : Ektar 100 process by Rewind Photo Lab
• Location : Paris, Trocadéro

I had a conference at the “AccordHotels Arena in Paris, or Bercy,” the hotel with a view of the Eiffel Tower allowed me to go to the Trocadéro. On these trips all over the world for conferences, I try to escape the hotel for an hour or two, when the security services allow me for my own safety. This year, I took the Minolta Hi-Matic 7SII because it is light and its optics are excellent. Normally I take the Leica M3. There, it was too much. I escaped for an hour. There were so many Chinese weddings. I was looking for something original, not too touristy, not too academic. What I saw was the contrast! This man who is resting with his sandwich placed on his shoes… perhaps to give it a touch of the flavor of cheese… He is calm. He is not influenced by all this cinema around him. I’m not sure if the bride didn’t recognize me despite my maverick style. The fact that she is looking at me constitutes the contrast between the impassive man and the photographer.

The story of this photo is the exceptional tranquility of this man in this city of light and seven million people, even when beautiful brides strut around him. It’s very Zen. It shows that peace can be everywhere, in fact it depends only on us! Peace is not dependent on others, but on ourselves. I like the thick blue socks in the sun that contrast with the white dress and the light stone used to build the Trocadero. It is a place where fashion influencers come to take a lot of photos, and weddings, and tourists, the “bobos” of Paris. The reclining man is like a hero of modern times. I took only one cartridge of film during that time. Kodak Ektar was perfect for this very sunny day. I had to be at f/8 and 250 seconds. I do a single exposure measurement, usually the distance is set at 5 meters. Everything is in focus. I don’t care about anything anymore.

By the way, I like news pictures. Henri-Cartier Bresson with Magnum was the king of photo-journalism. In this world we need free journalists and very good journalists. Image is a great chance for news. Actually I am impressed by some great journalists, I would like to share some links to journalists and articles which I respect-

https://twitter.com/sharrimarkson

https://www.skynews.com.au/details/_6257585104001

https://www.skynews.com.au/details/_6206163602001

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210527-montenegro-learns-true-cost-of-china-backed-1-bn-road-to-nowhere

In this world, freedom is a gem, but a gem in danger. Journalists and photographers with freedom to speak and show are important. I like this website because it helps film photography a lot, and all reviews and articles are wonderful. Thank you James, and also to others like Bellamy with Japan Camera Hunter.

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1. Along with the image sent to us via email, include in the same email the camera, lens and film (if applicable) which were used to take the photo, and location where the photo was made.
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3. The photo should be 2,000 pixels on the long end. 

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