Since the dawn of photography people have been making portraits. The popularity of the Daguerreotype in the middle of the nineteenth century was due in large part to the demand for inexpensive portraiture. Studios sprung up in cities around the world, some cranking out over 500 plates a day. The style of these early works reflected the technical challenges associated with 30 second exposure times and the painterly aesthetic of the time. People were generally seated against plain backgrounds and lit with the soft light of an overhead window and whatever else could be reflected with mirrors.

As photogrpahic techniques developed, an intrepid group of photographers took their talents out of the studio and onto battlefields, across oceans and into remote wilderness. William Shew's "Daguerreotype Saloon," Roger Fenton's "Photographic Van" and Mathew Brady's "What-is-it?" wagon set the standards for making photographs in the field. Today, we look on those images with a profound respect for the pioneers who made them.

Streetstudio was born of that early tradition of mobility combined with the focus on the person, undistracted by context. The photos we take are on the streets, so behind our background lies New York City. We're constantly surrounded by a hodgepodge of traffic, parked cars and the hustle and bustle of commerce yet we have chosen to focus on the faces, the gestures, and the fashions of the people. Simply put, what was good 150 years ago is good today.

If we shoot on a busy corner in The Bronx tomorrow, you will see 3 things, people, cars, and stores. While there may be some value in showing that double-parked SUV, we think that the qualities of the people are paramount. Seeing the same deli in dozens of otherwise different portraits is not going to work.

As people walk by, we ask them to stop for a moment, pose, and then carry on. These are not environmental portraits yet we're only successful if the city reflects itself in the people. We had the same idea in mind when we decided not to label the photos with locations. New York is bigger than its neighborhoods and a lot more than gridlock. It is the capital of the world and every single person is amazing. We hope you agree.