Life Through A Bus Window
by Cameron Scott
One dark winter’s morning a few years ago I happened to be standing on a street corner in Glasgow city centre, as usual nothing much happening, when a bus stopped in front of me, presenting a wonderful colour scene the intensity of which I had not been aware of before. Blues, yellows and greens all blended in a manner reminiscent of an old master canvas, randomly punctuated by coloured specular highlights and reflections, and framed in black like an unmounted Kodachrome slide. Behind a veil of condensation, one could make out the form of a few passengers, granted backlit anonymity and lost in their own world of thoughts.
Click! I was hooked and wanted more.
Over the course of that winter and into the next I continued to seek out such images. The success rate was very low – conditions had to be just right, cold and damp to allow the condensation to build up, plenty of varied backlight from sources such as shop windows and other vehicles, and always a passenger or two. As we know buses always come along in groups of two or more, so to help in my quest the button on the pedestrian crossing became my new go-to photography accessory, much to the annoyance of the bus drivers.
A small collection of such images soon expanded into a dedicated project. Then, just as the lighter mornings were appearing with the first signs of Spring, the world went into lockdown and over two years would pass before the project could start again.
Fast forward to Autumn 2021, and as the world emerges from successive restrictions the project can resume. Or so I had thought! As suitable conditions began to present themselves it became apparent that most of the buses had been upgraded at some point since my last attempt at these shots. New, more efficient models with better heating systems now presented themselves before me. No veil of condensation, no exciting colour palates, nor a clear view of the occupants. The magic had gone.
It had been fun while it lasted and I’m glad that I managed to make the images that are now contained herein.
I am an award winning and published photographer based in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. My photography journey started at school in the 1970s and ever since then I have had a keen interest in candid and documentary photography. After dabbling in various genres over the years I now specialise in candid street photography in various styles from traditional documentary through to creative and abstract. I have been featured in Eye-Photo magazine, F-Stop magazine, Inspired Eye magazine (Issue 80), Street Photography magazine (Nov 2021) and a few more online publications.
