Day 104: Art Market

2026-05-21

Hello!

I went to this fairgrounds event where they have artists come and show their tile arts for sale. I even bought a few! Thank you Coleen Magasic :-).

It was warm, and I spent a lot of time outside. I wish I had the cash to buy more items, but even the smallest trinkets costed quite a bit of money, and there were three whole tents worth of artists and their booths to choose from. Massive sculptures worth hundreds to little pocket tiles for a couple of bucks.

I bought a few tiny trinkets and gifted them to friends the next day. I also listed myself for a few raffles and giveaways, but I haven't heard back yet. Slim chance.

I like taking this photo because it reminded me of the two opposite methods that people would probably employ to take photos like this.

You could impulsively take images that spontaneously happen in front of you. Without planning, this method relies on you being familiar with your camera and trusting it to work with a flick of the wrist. This is the method I ended up using, as I was walking between booths and tents across the fairground searching for purchases of my own to make.

You could instead wait somewhere with loads of patience, waiting for the right subject to walk in front and provide something interesting to look at. Set the frame up, and then wait for the subject to appear soon after. Even for busy events like this, it would work (and in fact, I used this method in a future photo from this event) but I generally don't have the patience for it.

Local conventions and gatherings like this have such a different feel compared to, say, a shopping mall. Even the biggest shopping malls in the US feel a bit empty and meant for luxury experiences rather than simple browsing and community experience. Rather than a row of food trucks, there's an overpriced food court with integrated trash cans.

If you bring some friends along with you to the mall, it can feel less lonely, sure. But otherwise, I'd much rather be at the local market. I should go photograph a public square farmer's market... hmm.

Cheers,
David