Page 207 - Castro to Christopher Street

It wasn’t, however, until I returned from a 15-month photography trip to India and Europe that I began spending more time photographing in the gay neighborhoods. I had decided to apply to graduate school and put together a few portfolios, one of which was a series of “romantically themed photographs” of couples, many taken in Paris. It soon became very obvious that there were no pictures of gay couples, a staggering omission in a place like San Francisco.
At first I was simply interested in photographing for that portfolio, but the more time I spent in gay neighborhoods the more interesting they became. Of course there was the obvious Mardi Gras type of atmosphere, perhaps an expression of some new found freedom, but there were quiet moments, and the mingling of new and established cultures were an interesting comparison. Mirror dressing was big. It was unpredictable and full of surprises.
There were often groups of people hanging out and watching, watching life go on about them, similar to the way I was, just without a camera. Eventually I realized part of what they were observing was me. It was a scene that I became a part of. Never once did a person object to being photographed.
In the early 1982 I made contact with the national gay magazine the Advocate and the French magazine Gay Hebdo Pai. Both of who published portfolios of my work. Additionally editors at the local Bay Area Reporter decided to publish a weekly photograph of mine. This ran for about 8 months in 1983.
I also started frequenting the scene on Christopher Street in New York City. New York was my hometown and I was often there visiting family. The Christopher Street pier was a fantastic place to photograph, especially in the late afternoon light, looking out over the Hudson River with a derelict freighter by its side. I also visited Fire Island, and Provincetown, Massachusetts.
Photographing had become a meditation of sorts for me, a kind of Zen practice where if done correctly I would barely think and with a quiet mind just observe. The Gay neighborhoods were just one area of many where I spent time.
Sadly this was also when the aids epidemic hit, taking with it scores of people including my good friend and mentor Larry Bair.
In 1985 I left San Francisco. I landed a job photographing and traveling with a film team
covering the famine in Ethiopia. As I worked more I had less time for my personally photography.
Now, however, when I look back at these images they remain full of life and light, a small slice of a
time that was so vibrant. 207