Edo Zollo is far from the only street photographer in London. The bustling city is packed full of them. But while 99% of these photographers spend their DAYS photographing London, Edo spends that time sleeping. He shoots the city not during the day but in the wee hours of the night, capturing a different side of London entirely.
Every day, around 8pm, Edo is looking over his map of London deciding what neighborhood he will spend this night exploring. By 9pm he’s on the tube. By 11 he’s walking the streets, hunting for crips lines, interesting light, sharp shadow, and elusive moments of symmetry.
Scroll down to spend a night in Edo’s shoes, exploring London with both his dog and camera in tow.
A Day Night in the Life of a London Street Photographer
6 A.M. I just got home. I’m now really tired and ready for bed. I am watching the first group of people going to work, it kind of feels nice to go home while the rest of the city wakes up.
7 A.M. I go straight to my computer and start downloading my photos from the night before. It’s a painfully long process of delete, delete, and delete some more. Sometimes I can be my own worst critic, I always think I can take a better shot…
8 A.M. I am still awake, all the cheap coffee I drank isn’t helping me feel sleepy, so I watch the news as I eat breakfast.
9 A.M. I am finally ready for bed. One last check on my emails, and one more round of replies to the comments left from my followers on social media. I am always amazed by the positive feedback I get; in all honesty, I can’t see what they can see in my photos, and yet their comments keep me going and motivated to take better shots.
10 A.M. Goodnight (or is it goodmorning?)! It has been a long night and I hope to get a couple hours of sleep. Sleeping in the morning is not an easy task: it’s bright, noisy, and my body clock is a bit messed up. But I have to try.
11-4 P.M. Sleep.
5 P.M. I am fully awake, re-checking and editing photos and getting ready to take my dog for a nice long walk in the park. I am feeling much more positive than I did this morning at 7. I think I actually have some good material here, it just need some editing and then it’ll be ready to go online.
6 P.M. I’m in high spirits! Photos have been selected and edited. I like to let my work sit for a day and look at the photos with a fresh mind the following day.
7 P.M. I am getting excited to go out again. This evening is going to be a mild night, and I am taking my dog with me; I like to walk around London with my dog, a great companion.
8 P.M. I am sitting in my living room looking at a London map, contemplating which zone I am going to explore this evening. I have been living here for the past 15 years, but there are still areas that I haven’t been to before! I have decided on a location, so I start packing my stuff: camera, lens, laptop, dog’s coat, leash, and food for the both of us.
9 P.M. We are on the tube heading out… I feel nervous and excited. London at night is a very different place from what people are used to during the daytime. It’s much calmer, more spacious; there are less people, and yet the people you see at night are not necessary the people you would wish to spend time with. Hence why I am always careful where I go…
10 P.M. I have arrived at my chosen location. Before I get the camera out, I like to walk around the area: it helps me to connect with the surroundings, check the lights, shadows, buildings, and people. Wandering around helps me to tune-in with the environment, then I will take my camera out.
Usually my camera is pre-set. This helps me to catch the moments I am looking for without hesitation. I always shoot on Manual (M) mode, with a 50mm lens set to around f/1.8 or 2.
11 P.M. I am addicted to shadows and lines. I can’t explain why, but I really love lines and symmetry, so my eyes are constantly looking for it. Once found, I’ll wait for the right light and subject to come through my chosen scene.
12 A.M. I am hungry and so is my dog, so we are searching for a 24/7 coffee shop, and let me tell you what great spaces these are. The crowd is normally made up of night workers (mostly blokes), some homeless searching for a place to rest, and several “mysterious” people (rich looking men and young woman wearing tight short clothes…).
I tend to spend an hour or two drinking coffee and chatting with others. The good thing about having a dog is that it helps people approach you; this is not necessary always a good thing, but I am never left without someone to talk to.
1 A.M. I am still at the café downloading some of this evening’s photos on my laptop, doing some quick editing, and pushing some out. It feels great to share my photos right then and there with other night owls.
2 A.M. I have left the café and am exploring the area a bit more. I feel more confident and connected with the surroundings by now, so my camera feels like an extension of my hand… I am just shooting.
3 A.M. My energy level is starting to drop. It’s not easy to be awake a night, and as much as I enjoy doing this, there are times that I wish I could be normal like others: have a 9-5pm job, eat a meal at 6pm, watch telly until 10pm, then off to bed. I miss that lifestyle sometimes.
4 A.M. It is coffee break time again. It’s getting colder and I need to warm up, plus I want to download some photos to my laptop and start getting ready to go home.
5 A.M. I am headed back home after spending most of the night wandering the streets of London and sitting in 24/7 coffee shops drinking cheap coffee. Rinse and repeat…
A big thanks to Edo for sharing his experience of London at night. It’s got to be one of the more interesting Day in the Life posts we’ve published!
If you love Edo’s work, we’re excited to share with you that his nighttime London photography is appearing for the first time ever in photo book form in just two days time! The book is called In the Dark of Night, and you can preorder it now by clicking here.
And if you want to follow Edo as he creates more work, follow him on 500px, visit his website, or show him some love on Instagram.
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