Rally Bikers is an ongoing portrait documentary about motorcycle culture and individual lifestyles as displayed at biker rallies.
I attend motorcycle rallies and create portraits of riders ranging from 7-year-old kids on 90cc hill climbers to middle age firemen on 1200cc road bikes to sun burnt grandparents on 1800cc luxury touring marvels. The style is unrelenting black and white images that reveal texture and detail beyond the casual glance.
Meeting bikers as we pass on the street, in a parking lot or at a car wash, I photograph them in a portable studio to capture that moment just after we meet, that point of simple truth while the shared humanity is still in our eyes. The studio serves to remove visual distractions and allows pause for a more intimate portrait, a brief moment to reveal the truth and the fa?ade of identity.
Through portraits of Rally Bikers I am looking for the significance of the individual in the community that defines them. Biker clich?s do little to describe ordinary people who live for the freedom of open roads, camaraderie and the love of bikes. The leather, Kevlar and tattoos are trappings of a lifestyle that riders have chosen as a release from the everyday obligations of a 9 to 5 weekday existence.
It is my journey to create a portfolio of images that represent the diversity of biker rallies through the people who keep the spirit and legacy of the community alive. The goal is to bring greater attention and understanding to the lifestyle of individuals and their surrogate communities through organizing exhibitions and publishing books.
