Given the chance, Bored Panda reached out to the photographer with some questions! When asked what drew her to street and documentary photography, Mary explained, "I think what first drew me to street and documentary photography was their accessibility. Namely, in order to photograph in a studio, you need a studio; in order to photograph nature, you need to travel to somewhere outside the city. However, as I live in a city, in order to photograph the street, all I need to do is walk out my door. Another thing that drew me to street photography is the fact that you can only control where you stand and your camera settings, everything else is completely out of your control. This can obviously be both an advantage and disadvantage, but I feel that the fact that nothing is predictable in street photography always gets my creative juices going."
Mary’s black-and-white photographs are striking in their ability to tell vivid stories. On how she decides what moments to capture, she shared, "I am so happy you think so. I was recently asked by a photographer colleague what I considered to be the elements that make up a good photo, and I answered that for me it was that the photo tells a story and sparks an emotion. Of course, it’s an added bonus if the photo is technically well executed with a solid composition, great light, is well exposed, is sharp, etc., but without a story and if it doesn’t spark an emotional response, to me it’s just another nice photo. In terms of deciding which moments to capture and finding the perfect shot, in my case, it is simply a matter of doing a lot of walking, keeping my eyes and heart open, and then simply pressing the shutter."
Her journey along the Camino de Santiago deeply influenced her photography, reigniting her love for the art form. "The Camino de Santiago reopened a world of photography I had forgotten. Walking the streets of Portugal and Spain, in particular Porto and Santiago de Compostela, I once again felt the energy and the lure of the street, and I still feel it every time I step out my door. I think the Camino de Santiago influenced the themes of my work in that it drew me to more, one could say, ‘nostalgic’ subjects such as traditional elderly people, as most of the Camino Portugues is walked in rural areas and seaside towns that are mostly inhabited by an older population."
Robert Doisneau’s influence is evident in Mary’s work, but she also prioritizes maintaining her own unique style. She explained, "Robert Doisneau is without a doubt my favourite photographer and greatest inspiration, from the fact that he photographed in black and white, that he had a great sense of humour and liked to juxtapose unlikely subjects together, that his photos always had great storytelling elements and sparked emotions, and that one feels that he truly loved his subjects even though, in most cases, he didn’t know them personally. However, he isn’t the only influence on my work. I think that in general, even if one is influenced by a photographer, artist, writer, or musician, it is important to maintain your own unique style."
When asked what she hopes people take away from her photographs, Mary answered thoughtfully, "I hope that they will learn to see that ordinary, everyday moments can be magical and worth paying attention to, that there is beauty in the mundane, that everything is photographable, and that everyone is interesting and has a story to tell." Mary’s photographs remind us to pause and appreciate the beauty in the simple, fleeting moments of life.
