Melissa O’Shaughnessy

I am a New York based photographer who discovered the pleasures of street photography relatively late in life after studying journalism and art history and working as a book editor and president of a small investment firm. After quitting work to spend more time with my three children, I spent years learning the craft of darkroom-based black and white photography.
Gradually, black and white gave way to color and the street became the primary focus of my photography. I’ve learned that I can only see and make interesting pictures on days when I have a clear head and an open heart, which I find to be a deeply satisfying way to exist in the world, whether I have a camera with me or not.
I am a member of UP, an international collective of 26 photographers. My first book, Perfect Strangers: New York City Street Photographs, will be published by Aperture in the fall of 2020.