What's it all about?

This site is a personal project. Each month I assemble 36 of my photographs — a virtual roll of film — drawn from snapshots I've taken while walking the street. My aesthetic is black and white, mostly shot on Tri-X film using Leica cameras, and inspired by great photographers like Louis Stettner, Lee Friedlander, Garry Winogrand and Robert Frank.

The subject matter is the urban environment: the people, places, and things that form part of daily life; the unobserved elements and interactions that mark the presence of people and say something about their lives.

I'm interested in surreal moments; the interchange of light and shade; the confluence of events that pass in a split second, and can be noticed by the observant eye and preserved with the camera.

A quick glance, a twist of the focusing ring, an adjustment of the aperture; the shutter is released for a thousandth of a second. The challenge is to balance timing of the shot with fluid motion. It's a brief dance and a blink of an eye.

Is this a documentary project?

Not really. For it to be documentary, I would have to have a point of view and a purpose in the pictures I make. As it happens, I have neither - I simply wander with my camera and take pictures that look interesting to me.

Sometimes I may be in interesting places, or capture moments that would work in a documentary context, but it's all done without agenda.

Who do you shoot for?

In terms of this project I shoot mainly for myself.

I'm happy if other people like my work, but that's not what drives me. Photography gives me a lot of pleasure, and is a means to exercise my creativity. I didn't actually take it seriously until I was in my 30's so in many ways I'm making up for lost time.

Outside of this project I'm a documentary photographer based out of London.

What do you shoot with?

Mostly old film cameras that are fully manual and mechanical.

The majority of the work in this site was made with a Leica M6 or M7, although I also use a 1981 Canon AE-1 and a 1977 Fujica ST-705 from time to time. My preferred film stock is Tri-X, TMZ or Delta. Much of the work here is shot with Tri-X because I like its latitude and the look of the finished print.

For the most part I've steered away from digital, even though it would be easier in many ways. Instead I develop the film in my kitchen, scan it in my lounge and process it on my laptop. It's a lot of effort, but I like it.

And where?

Basically, wherever I happen to be. The majority of the images here are from London since it's where I live, but I've made street photos in other cities when I've travelled - including Berlin, Hamburg, Paris and Barcelona over the last year or two. I always have a camera wherever I go.

So, who are you?

My name is Neil Ambrose. My email is info@36photos.org. Feel free to drop me a line if you've found this site interesting, or maybe leave some feedback.