100 Strangers Project - 47/100 /  by Michael Pung

Andrey comes from Russia from a town near Moscow although has lived in London for 14 years. When I approached him, he was happy to be involved and in fact he said that he was also a photographer so it was no problem. We geeked out a little bit over camera gear such as the Canon 550D he uses with adapters and old manual lenses.

We only had 5 minutes to talk and take the photos, but he has recently finished his studies and is currently a head chef at a restaurant. As we parted ways, he said that he is also a musician who produces music as well as being a DJ for parties.

Thanks for taking part in the project Andrey!

100 Strangers Project - 46/100 /  by Michael Pung

Soon after I met Lloyd, I walked down the road heading towards Dalston Junction. As I was walking along I noticed a man leaning against the wall outside of his hair salon. We greeted each other and then he said "I like your hair." I said thank you and stopped for a chat. 

His name was Andrea and he was the owner of Beats Hair Salon - A small salon which he saved up for and opened on his own. It has now been open for 4 months. Prior to this he worked at a few other hair dressing salons, including one in Bermondsey and in Brick Lane - where he cut hair on the street for 2 years before the bar that the hairdressers was at shut down.

Before he moved to the UK from Venice, he was at a crossroads as to what he wanted to do for his career - to be a dancer or a hairdresser - both were his passions. He eventually chose hairdressing as it was the more secure choice and 4 years ago he moved to the London to further his hairdressing career. 

 "You can change the person," he exclaimed when I asked him about what he enjoyed most about his profession. He called his business Beats Hair Salon because he enjoys music playing while he goes about styling and cutting hair. He demonstrated that although the music doesn't have to be loud to extreme levels, he needs to feel the beat to get into the rhythm of his work. And every morning he starts work, he writes a positive message on an A-frame board which he leaves outside of his salon. It's all about the good vibes!

Thank you for taking part of the project Andrea!

 

100 Strangers Project - 45/100 /  by Michael Pung

Lloyd is a producer for high fashion shows managing the direction for makeup and styling for models. He enjoys his work and has been doing it for 10 years.  Lloyd comes from London and enjoys the city life. If he was to move somewhere else he would choose a big city such as Hong Kong or New York. I noticed when he was posing for my shots that he had a serious face (whereas usually people smile before I shoot). He said that while normally he is a happy guy he is all about the serious when taking photos (though I managed to get one of him smiling!).  We didn't get much time to talk as he was on his way somewhere but I appreciate the time he took to have an impromptu photo shoot.

Thanks for taking part in my project Lloyd!

 

100 Strangers Project - 44/100 /  by Michael Pung

So during the summer I spent some time on Skyros which is an island located north of Athens working on a horse breeding farm. During our off days we made forays into town and one day I noticed Alex sitting with his dog Fedra while they were interacting with a couple of boys who were passing them. After the boys left I decided approach them to take a portrait.  Alex was more than happy after I explained the project to him.

Alex was born and raised on the Greek island Skyros and lived much of his life there. He currently resides in Athens working as an interior designer. He'd been doing it for 13 years and it's something that he enjoys as it gives him a chance to think and to be creative. He loves the fact that he can work from his home and his work allows for him to travel to different places.

I asked him about his dog and he said that Fedra was rescued by him two years ago from a highway. She was an abandoned puppy. He said that she reminded him of his old dog Vincent who was a collie given to him as gift when he was younger. He jokingly said that he likes dogs that remind him of himself as he's got a prominent nose much like his old dog and Fedra.

Alex and Fedra

Like many, he loves to party and enjoys forays into London with friends to have a night out and to wake up to an English breakfast in the morning. I curiously asked him about his favourite Skyrian food and he said he loves Skyrian pie (I wish I had a picture of it as it really is quite delicious).

Thanks for taking part in the project Alex!

100 Strangers Project - 43/100 /  by Michael Pung

Anya

Hey all! I'm currently on holidays for 6 weeks from school and have gone travelling! I was in Berlin a few days ago and managed to see some parts of this wonderful city! I was out in the Friedrichshain district when I noticed Anya sitting by the steps enjoying a cigarette and a bottle of beer. 

She is an occupational therapist born in Berlin. She loves helping people. A fan of polaroids and photography, Anya has a camera that is over 50 years old and when she noticed that I also had an Instax camera she recommended an antique camera shop for me to check out.

Anya also loves cycling and enjoys trips out of Berlin. As much as she loves the city, sometimes she feels the need to get out and re-energise by enjoying nature. She currently has plans to ride to Lichtenberg from Berlin on her bicycle. It will be her first cycling adventure on her own and she will be riding around 500km to get to the city. One day Anya hopes to ride to Sweden and Norway.

Thanks for taking part in the project Anya!

100 Strangers Project - 42/100 /  by Michael Pung

I met Dave after being encouraged by my friend to approach him. He was sitting by himself listening to some music on his phone. He was easy-going and was happy to have his photo taken!

I asked him where he was from and he said that he was born in Fulham and has a life-time membership to visit the football grounds. Despite that, he loves Liverpool Football Club and has been a supporter since he was 7.

We talked for a long time about the current situation surrounding the club, how much atmosphere there is at Anfield and how he was at the Champions League final in 2005 and almost walked out after half-time before a dramatic turnaround where they scored 3 goals in 8 minutes.

Dave also cycles everywhere he goes and every day he cycles 32 miles to get into work. He also completed the John O'Grotes cycling challenge (which is 1000 miles in distance) and raised 145 pounds for Leukemia research and is looking forward to completing another cycling challenge. He has dreams of cycling for the Tour De France.

Thanks for taking part in the project Dave!

100 Strangers Project - 41/100 /  by Michael Pung

Tareq was waiting for his train from London to Hastings when I approached him. He had spent the weekend in Nottinghamshire at a conference representing the Labor Party. He enjoyed meeting people from different parts of Britain and seemed in good spirits to take part in my project. 

He has traveled to places around the world such as Belgium, the United States and Mauritius although wants to do further travels especially around the UK. He wants to see more of Britain and has recently visited Cornwall and Scotland which he says are the extremities and now would like to visit the places in-between.

On his travels to Mauritius: He didn't know what to expect from the small nation but he says that it's a blend of English, French and Asian influences. He enjoyed visiting all the temples there and it was relatively easy to get around because of the language. He observed that people are multi-lingual over there and wished that more people in Britain learned other languages as it would help them connect with others as well as make travel easier.

Thanks for taking part in the project Tareq!

100 Strangers Project - 40/100 /  by Michael Pung

I visited Notting Hill Community Church to watch some of my friends perform with their choir. They put a great energetic show and after the performance I was introduced to Pavel. My friends usually find opportunities for me when introducing me to take photos for my project and so I got to talk with him.

Pavel was a singer on the stage as well along with my friends and was initially inquisitive about what my project was about.  After explaining he was quite happy to take part. So a few things about him: He comes from Bulgaria, enjoys singing in the choir and enjoys technology- the computer is his technology of choice.

It seems that I find quite a few people who are into photography to take part in my project! We got to talking about cameras and the gear that he uses. He used to have over 50 cameras at one stage and enjoys taking photos of landscapes and architecture.

Thanks for taking part in the project Pavel!