Dwayne (after and before)

Making new friends can be intimidating at times. Dwayne was in Union Square with a bunch of his friends the other night while I was roaming around. I wasn't even holding my camera up when I got the look on the left. Fortunately, I am fairly quick on my feet and said "Hold it. That's perfect." At which point he immediately broke into the grin seen on the right. At which point I lowered my camera and said "what'd you go and smile for. You ruined it." His friends started giving him all sorts of shit to which he said "No, gimme another chance, man." which resulted in the shot on the left. He was putty in my hands after that. BTW: do not try this unless you are in a very crowded area with lots of daylight and a clearly planned escape route. Being incredibly charming helps, too.