People send me links to articles about cycling, the way my mom used to cut things out of the paper for me. Because I am a terrible person, I usually fail to reply. Either the article in question tells a story I already know, or it covers some aspect of our little hobby in which I am uninterested. It’s the thought (theirs), that counts.
But last week or the week before, I forget now, I got a link from a friend, and I resolved to click through and respond courteously like a real human person would. What I found on the other side of that URL though, was actually breathtaking, inspiring, and simply beautiful.
Roff Smith is a travel photographer who lives in the South of England. Covid-19 grounded him, so he turned his camera to subjects more local and familiar. He’s a cyclist, and confined to this own, seldom-visited corner of Britain, he captured a series of magical moments with himself as star model.
And so.
If you have a New York Times subscription (or haven’t used the complementary allotment of articles they offer), then see the images as they have them laid out. They are luminous. It’s worth it.
If you don’t have a subscription, you can find some of the photos on his website. I am loathe to step on another outlet’s story, or compromise another artist’s copyright, so instead of emailing you a link you’d ignore, which is a sane and reasonable thing to do, this seemed like the best way to promote the artist and respect the work.
I hope you love it as much as I did.
Oh, I caught the NYT story when it came out. Just amazing shots, plus a cool story ongetting those shots.