I wrote before about photographers being collectors, creating sets of pictures on a theme. These collections can range from loosely related sets waiting for a theme to develop, to one day projects relating to a city that we might be visiting, through to long-term or even life-long projects. Some will stall along the way, but the fact that we’ve got out and taken the pictures is usually valuable and can lead to other experiences.

For example, while visiting my wife’s family in Poland last month, I traveled to nearby Wrocław to ‘gather’ more of often building-sized, street-art that I’d discovered on previous visits (and via the excellent map here).I spent a couple of days walking many miles and saw some amazing sites, parts of the city that I’m sure no Englishman had ever visited previously. I shot each mural on either the Leica or Yashica (or both) and tried to add a little context as it seems that these wonderful works of art can become invisible to the residents.

The results are nothing special, but the exploration and shooting experience was something I won’t forget and it contributed to my photographic learning as well as helping me know the city a little better…