Sleep Wins

I found them in that fragile hour when night hasn’t fully given up and the day hasn’t quite claimed the streets. Two bodies slumped against a shuttered shopfront, graffiti curling behind them like a silent narrator. They weren’t staged, of course — this was simply where exhaustion decided to settle.

With the Canon EOS-M paired to the EF-M 18–55, I had the flexibility to frame them in a way that gave space for the scene to breathe. The late light worked in my favour, sliding in at an angle that brought warmth to their skin tones while pulling texture from the cold metal behind them. The graffiti, soft enough not to dominate, still acts as a visual anchor.

Technically, the exposure was straightforward but required restraint. I kept the highlights in check — the pale concrete and the reflections off the shutter could easily have gone harsh — while making sure the darker clothing still held detail. The lens, though modest, rendered the lines cleanly; depth of field was just deep enough to keep both figures and the background coherent without flattening the scene.

What I like most is the stillness. The city could have been roaring just metres away, yet here, in this thin strip of pavement, there was nothing but the weight of tired bodies and the slow drift into sleep.