SEE BELOVED PLACES IN DAY TO NIGHT TRANSITIONS NOW

STEPHEN WILKES

Every photograph captures a moment in time -- a tiny fraction of a minute, recorded in a fixed format. But each one of Stephen Wilkes’ photos remarkably captures thousands of moments in beautiful transition.

In his Day to Night series, Wilkes’ photos give us the arc of a story that takes place in a single place. It begins at the crack of dawn one day and ends just before the night gives way to the rising glow of tomorrow.

We see, in one image, weather transitioning as a storm closes in and moves through. We see people who are all there in the scene even though they were not all there simultaneously. We see businesses open and close.

It is as if Wilkes fused all of these moments into one. It adds a time traveller dimension to travel.

Seeing the transitions of a day, and all that moves through it, in one photograph is a bit disorienting. What helps, is that most of the locations very familiar -- they are instantly recognizable.

Wilkes often uses a crane to get at least 50 ft. (15 m) above his subjects. He shoots from a fixed camera angle, continuously, for up to 30 hours capture light and light transitioning over the natural course of real time. 

Typically, he shoots 1,200 to 1,500 photos over the course of a full day. Wilkes never leaves his position. He shoots literally around the clock. No bathroom breaks, and often no food.

Out of all those photos, only 50 are used in each final montage. Each final image takes him a few months to edit and blend.

We love the color transitions from rosy dawn to deep dark violet. We love the blossoming and retreating glows of the sun, cars, buildings, and street lights. We love seeing how life moves on without having to wait for it to do so.

Wilkes became interested in photographic studies of time when he spent 5 years photographing empty rooms on Ellis Island. He was inspired by David Hockney, who often took 250 images of a scene, over time, then pasted them together, in collage.  

There’s no end in sight for Day to Night. Wilkes is continuing to expand the series to new cities around the world. He recently shot Shanghai, Paris and London.

Wilkes award-winning photographs can be found at museums around the world and numerous private collections. He is represented by the Peter Fetterman, Bryce Wolkowitz, Monroe; and Artitled Contemporary galleries.

You can see Wilkes’ editorial work in leading publications such as the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, Time, Fortune, National Geographic, Sports Illustrated, and many others.

Read more about Beautiful Transitions, as it relates to Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact including Embrace Beautiful Transitions Now, Ice Transitions Are Beautiful Now,  Beautiful Transitions From Poison to Ambrosia Now and The Art of Beautiful Transitions Now.

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IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Coney Island Boardwalk. Day to Night Series.
2. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Regata Storica, Venice. Day to Night Series.
3. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. View from The Savoy, London. Day to Night Series.
4. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Pont de la Tournelle, Paris. Day to Night Series.
5. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Eiffel Tower, Paris. Day to Night Series.
6. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Flatiron 9/11, NYC. Day to Night Series.
7. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Day to Night Series.
8. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, NYC. Day to Night Series.
9. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Presidential Inauguration, Washington DC. Day to Night Series.
10. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Shanghai, China. Day to Night Series.
11. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Central Park Snow, NYC. Day to Night Series.
12. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Cherry Blossoms, National Mall and Memorial Parks, Washington, DC. Day to Night Series.
13. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Millennium Park, Chicago. Day to Night Series.
14. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Day to Night Series.
15. Image: by BN App - Download now!
16. Image: by Stephen Wilkes. Tunnel View, Yosemite National Park. Day to Night Series.