East Hampton, New York 1981

Elliott Erwitt's photograph, taken in East Hampton, New York, captures a candid moment, where the gradations of grey articulate the scene. I love how Erwitt uses light and shadow, not just as a means of representation, but as a way to evoke feeling. The texture of the print itself, grainy and slightly blurred, adds to the intimacy of the shot. Note the way the light catches the edge of the table, creating a stark contrast with the shadowed background, and how this draws your eye to the children’s faces. The soft focus on the cake and the sharp focus on the children create a focal point. Erwitt reminds me a little of Garry Winogrand, in the way that he is able to capture life's little ironies with an understated humour. It's this embrace of ambiguity, this understanding that a single image can contain a multitude of stories, that really resonates with me.