Through My Lens: Zen And Street Photography

By Bill Wilson

Photos by Jerry Rife

Jerry Rife, undoubtedly the dean of street photographers in San Miguel, has an interesting take on photography. He calls it "Zen and the Art of Street Photography."

Jerry wanted to be a reporter. He worked on the university’s daily newspaper and liked photography. A professor recommended him as a wirephoto operator at the San Diego Union-Tribune. Shortly, he was offered a job as a staff photographer. He thought he would stay for two years - which became 40.

Photographers are jacks-of all trades. They cover everything from crime to fashion to royalty.

“I have photographed the emperor of Japan, the queen of England and more presidents than you can shake a stick at.  I’ve been tear-gassed by cops and threatened by criminals. It has been a helluva adventure,” notes Rife who has been a frequent visitor here since 1985 and fulltime in 2006.

He continues, “Although royalty, world leaders and celebrities passed before the camera, I prefer the common people and the life of the street.”

Rife says there are no better streets than our streets to practice his craft.  “The primordial cobblestones of San Miguel de Allende absorb my attention when I set out to take pictures. Spewed from the earth eons ago, they emit an energy that envelopes our town. I do a walking meditation as I pass over the stones. I try to let myself go, to release ego.”

His guidelines: Letting go of self, the street flows in to fill the vacuum. Life is a river. The river flows around and through me.

Don't look for pictures. They appear of their own volition. 

Don’t manipulate the subject. Just witness.

Don’t engage. Allow reality to unfold without getting involved with it.

He concludes, “There is a paradox here. It seems as if the photographer is distancing themselves from the subject. Yet in this moment one can feel a profound connection, a commonality with existence. The photographer is a connection between subject and viewer. All is one.”

“The language of photography is the language of the hunt, load the camera, we shoot the picture and capture the scene.”