Taking Your Life in Your Hands
No one ever said street photography was easy. And certainly you can make it easier by looking “down” into a viewfinder and not using flash. (being stealthy) But when you drive a New York City cab taking images in a confined space, with flash,…..in the 70’s and 80’s,…. well, taking “Your Life in Your Hands” is an understatement. This was in the pre law and order days of Giuliani. NYC was pretty much getting close to the murder capital of the world, 42nd St. was pure sleaze, and driving a cab was equivilent to having a “death wish”. But with camera in hand, (or on the dashboard), every passenger became a story. (or possible trip to the ER) Especially on the night shift. He tried the day shift,….but that was no fun.
Ryan Weideman actually came from Oakland, so the trip to NYC was already culture shock. Manhattan was a borough riddled with violence and crime. (as were Queens, Brooklyn, etc.) Armed with just youthful naivete and a Konica C35 EF, (Andy Warhol’s favorite 35mm camera), it was the work of photographers like William Klein, Diane Arbus, Joel Meyerowitz and Robert Frank that made him romanticize New York as the place to be. Little did he know the difference a decade or so could make.
When “Taxi Driver” Wasn’t Just a Movie
His first home was in the heart of Times Square. A palatial 200 sf adobe. It was still the home of transexuals, pushers and prostitutes, sex palaces and porn theatres and hustlers. In fact, “Taxi Driver”, “Panic in Needle Park”, and other contemporary movies were fairly accurate. But,…he loved it! However, photography wasn’t going to pay the rent. Hence, he started working the 5pm to 5am nightshift. (not a popular shift for taxi drivers)
Fortunately, he says,…“I drove a Checker cab, but I usually got the wrecks because I only drove three or four nights a week, [but] I spent the rest of the time in my darkroom, printing and developing film.” Amazingly, going against the norm of most nightshift cabbies, Weideman says, “I was on the edge of my seat most of the time because I was caught up in the rush of the ride.” And although the 12-hour shifts were gruelling, he never drank coffee or took drugs. 😳
He didn’t need the coffee. As he now says, “It was all the adrenalin that flowed from my driving style. I enjoyed the thrill of driving and the sense of competitiveness. Some people really loved it; others were scared …” But that “high” never felt quite enough. So he took his camera and his strobe everywhere he went, photographing people on the ride of their life. At first, he asked permission. Surprisingly, almost everyone said ‘Yes’! For the next almost three decades, he came to start referring to himself as the “Weegee of the morning”. But he always loved anyone who entered his taxi, and made sure to treat them like family. Maybe that was his secret.
Decades to a First Mongraph
In 1993 he released a monograph, ‘In My Taxi: New York After Hours’, which was published by Running Press. It has since become a collector’s item, selling on Ebay and Amazon for $1800+. As he said, “It was all an exciting adventure – and people very rarely said no to being photographed.” After the first few years, he started taking self-portraits with his passengers. Did he inadvertently invent the selfie? I doubt that was the intention. But it’s food for thought. Maybe he was inspired by Warhol doing similar.
One cool thing about driving a cab in Manhattan, (or even living there), is the people you run into. (I was eating at a cafe on Gansvoort and Marisa Tomei sat down next to me and started talking to me, another time I was walking my Westie, and Martin Scorcese stopped me to tell me about his dogs,…lots more stories, but this isn’t about me) Anyway, point is, poet Allen Ginsberg got into his cab and wrote Weideman a poem on a receipt that he retains to this day. Not to mention he got a great photo out of it!
Today, in his 70’s, he’s working on two books. Why he’s not all over YouTube and lecturing extensively is beyond me. I guess he epitomizes the dedicated street artist. But he’ll still excitedly proclaim,…“That’s what photography is all about!”
As a NYC cabbie and consummate photographer, both Artsy and Bruce Silverstein galleries have been selling prints and having shows. But to sum up his existence for the last few decades, his neverending positivity comes through in every story,…like; Weideman drove a passenger uptown to Harlem, and they chatted at length during the ride. It was then that the man in plaid told him, “Hey, I was going to rob you – but you’re a really nice guy.” Whew! Ryan Weideman has had a life of “whews”,….and enjoyed every minute of it. 😁
* Maybe someone could do an English version YouTube video of Ryan Weideman?
ARTSY
Great post!!
Thanks! 😁