London-based street photographer Alan Schaller started documenting life on the underground in spring this year.
He told BuzzFeed:
“What I find fascinating about the underground, and London in general, is the variety of people from different cultures and parts of the world. It’s the variety that keeps my project interesting.”
“Some people have life etched on to their faces and just have something about them that is different or eye-catching."
"Like this scene: I realised everyone’s face was hidden or obstructed from my view apart from this curious little one’s."
“Sometimes it is obvious and alarm bells go off in my head saying you’ve got take that person’s picture!"
"And sometimes it’s more subtle. I look for scenes that appear to be telling a story between the subject and the environment they are in.”
"My favourite would have to be the one of the woman standing in the tube carriage with the light illuminating her face."
"To me this photo captures a feel of the underground, in terms of the atmosphere and the way people are looking. It's not just the main subject who makes this image; I like the way the other people are positioned and their expressions too."
“Generally, people on the underground don’t mind having their picture taken when it is done discreetly. I’d never get in someone’s face and get all paparazzi on them.”
“You occasionally get some looks of amusement or bemusement, but overall people don’t seem to care, which is not how I thought it would be when I started out."
"I was quite nervous when I began, thinking that people might take offence.”
"But I’ve learned that Londoners are not as scary as they look. It seems to me that commuters do their best impression of a miserable person when on the tube but I fail to believe that everyone on there is as grumpy as they appear.”
"Like this girl, at Notting Hill Gate. She appears not overly impressed with me, but we had chat afterwards and she was very friendly."
"I end up speaking to the people I take pictures of, and almost all of them are instantly cheerful, talkative, and quite different to how they looked before we started talking.”
"Having said that, I think anyone on the underground in the morning rush hour has a genuine claim for being miserable.”
