Taking Pictures of Strangers in Downtown LA

Photographers Jessica Kobeissi, Rachel Gulotta, and Daniel Inskeep decided to approach strangers in downtown Los Angeles and offer free portraits. The 11-minute video above shows what happened.

The group held up “Free Portraits” signs to attract prospective subjects, but it’s difficult to get people to stop with signs — halfway through, the group decided to ditch their signs and simply approach people directly.

For people who were interested in stopping and having their photos taken, some were turned off when they were presented with a model release to sign.

In the end, the three photographers managed to find a decent number of portrait subjects who were willing to offer some time and sign releases. Here’s a selection of the photos that were made:

Jessica Kobeissi

Rachel Gulotta

Daniel Inskeep