Sight Unseen
Street Photographs
Buzz Pioso's book Sight Unseen is informed by the progenitors of street photography—a genre with a focus that documents the everyday lives of people, primarily in a cosmopolitan milieu. The book's images reflect a keen observation of an often unseen and diverse humanity; people of all ages and ethnicities are his primary subjects. Pioso captures simple scenes such as people in conversation, hanging out, walking toward an unknown destination, waiting for or riding the Metro, and engaging with dogs. Some images are playful or humorous, while others are quiet and contemplative. Pioso instinctively understands how form and content combine to create a compelling street image, and the outcome is an homage to humankind that is both respectful and empathic.
Crosswalks
Portfolio
Buzz Pioso’s book Crosswalks focuses on images that prominently include crosswalks. Crosswalks provide benefits beyond their practical purpose. They channel pedestrians, sometimes few and often many, into a tidy zone of moving humanity. The number of pedestrians on the crosswalk can result in two distinct sounds. For images with a large group of pedestrians, the depicted hustle and bustle allow one to almost hear the cars and noise of the city. Images with few pedestrians sound quiet in comparison. A crosswalk's white zebra pattern on black asphalt adds considerable, ready-made character, lines, and contrast to any image.
Crosswalks also serve as a subtle stage for observing urban life, highlighting the interactions and rhythms of people as they move from one side of the street to the other. Their presence in photographs often evokes a sense of movement and transition, capturing fleeting moments of daily routines or unexpected encounters.
Low Ridership
Portfolio
Buzz Pioso’s book Low Ridership focuses on the Washington, DC Metro system during times of low ridership. During those times, metro cars can have entire rows or sections with no one occupying them. The lack of bustling crowds causes an almost eerie stillness, with only the sounds of periodic arrival or departure of trains and public address announcements. The metro station’s facilities, such as escalators and parking lots, are largely unoccupied, and any background sounds such as moving escalators are more noticeable due to the absence of people.
These moments of quietude offer a focused perspective, highlighting the metro system’s architecture and design details that often go unnoticed amid the usual crowds. The interplay of light and shadow becomes more pronounced, casting long reflections across empty platforms and seats. This environment also evokes a sense of solitude and introspection, as the few passengers present navigate through expansive, tranquil spaces. As a result, the images in this series provide considerable focus on the small number of metro customers that are present during times of relative quiet.
Recurring Themes
Second Edition
Street Photographs
Through groupings of common scenes on the street, Buzz Pioso’s urban street photography prominently features people and/or pets as subjects, often up close, but almost always as a primary element in the scene. The moods and gestures of the people drive the character of each image. A range of emotions and expressions are evident in the images—bliss, fatigue, distress, anxiety, concern, anger, boredom, contempt, focus, bemusement, dignity, and more.
Full Stride
Second Edition
Portfolio
This is Buzz Pioso's street photography portfolio, based on study of people walking at full stride. While walking at full stride, people traverse the most ground per step. A full stride, or at least a brisk walking pace, provides an excellent opportunity to capture vigorous people at arguably their most graceful: highly focused, confident in demeanor, and less likely to be distracted by a camera pointed their way. If multiple people are in the image, all subjects’ steps are ideally both at full stride and in unison.
The Orange Line
Second Edition
Metro Moments
Buzz Pioso's images, primarily from the Washington, DC metro system's Orange Line, capture the city’s diverse inhabitants as it transports residents and visitors to all its neighborhoods, forcing people who don't typically share a space to come together in close proximity.
His images capture people within the metro system who are readily found to be seated, standing, lying down, briskly moving to board an arriving train, transferring to a different mode of transportation such as a metro bus, and more.
