Best of 2008

The best of 2008 was very easy to pick. It's not one photo, but a project. Back in late February I joined the 100 Strangers Project an idea made possible by Teppo. In November I finished. It's been a big challenge and great fun. I met many people that I normally never would have had the opportunity to talk to. Every meeting was unique and rewarding. Sadly one of my strangers have passed away since our meeting. Quite a few of the people I met, I have met again, which has been great fun. Some meetings made great stories of coincidences. The father and daughter story is on my personal top five list. As is the meeting with the Princess that turned out to be almost a relative of mine! Obviously a few photos stand out from the rest but I couldn't rank them even if I had to. This mosaic shows the 12 most popular photos as of today and take into count views, comments and faves that they have received via flickr.

1. Johanna & Katrin, 2. Barbie, 3. Stina, 4. Gisela, 5. Madde & Sandra, 6. Erika, 7. Ego, 8. The Horror Nipples, 9. The Princess, 10. Annika Johanson, 11. Christine, 12. Meet The Carpenters

If you are one of the many wonderful people that made this happen, I'd like to say a big thank you as this has been the most exciting photo project I have ever taken part in. See you again next year!


This is Theme Day. The theme is Best of 2008. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Stranger #100

In Handen yesterday I had just met Kenny Lex and as we were discussing what to do, I noticed a sharply dressed guy nearby. I walked over and asked him if I could take his portrait. He happily agreed and thus became my 100th and final stranger! This is Fredrik. Originally from Tungelsta he now lives here in Handen. He is an IT consultant, one of those guys you call when your computer is acting up. He recently took up golf, but has yet to join a club. Another big hobby is Role playing and Fredrik told me that he often attends conventions like LinCon. I didn't ask but he is probably a member of the Swedish Role Playing and Conflict Gaming Federation. After getting these facts I took a few photos and as we then shook hands I realised that I had just finished the 100 Strangers Project! A few hours later as I was back home browsing flickr, I saw that Kenny had taken a photo of me and Fredrik when I was asking my questions, which I think is a cool ending to the project.

This was my 100th and last photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Stranger #99

This is Joppe. He is from Stockholm. I met him at the Eskil's Park in Handen today. We had time to talk about a few things. Among them photography. Joppe enjoys shooting graffiti. I told him to create a flickr account and show off his photos, but he said he was planning to set up his own web site. He used to work at a web agency, so I'm sure his site will be a well designed one. Twenty years ago Joppe played in a Swedish Death Metal band, called Crematory. It's weird he told me. We have a cult following now. Back then no one cared about our music. Now there's a Myspace fan club with many members, and I recently noticed that you could buy our CD on eBay for 1500 SEK! It would have been great with all this attention back then when we were still playing he continued. I would have to agree with Joppe on that one. As we were talking about Death Metal I had to mention this fun story. After some more talk about photography and computer viruses I took a couple of shots and that was that. As I came home I Googled the band and found this interview with one of the band members in case you want to know more about Crematory.
This is my 99th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

The Harley Man

Meet Andreas. He was out on a ride on his Harley Davidson Fat Boy on Saturday when the drive belt broke. His friends were long gone when I met him on the side of the road near Skutan in Handen. Andreas was waiting for the tow truck to arrive so we had time for a chat. Together with his friends he had been to Café Rosenhill a place very popular among bikers. When I explained the 100 Strangers Project Andreas asked if I could send him the photos. Andreas is married and has two kids. He is a salesman in the IT business, but is currently looking for a new job. When he's not driving his Harley he coaches a local ice hockey team in Tyresö where he lives. He had asked his wife and daughter to take some photos of his bike but as that hadn't yet happened he was going to surprise them with my photos, and I hope that worked out for the best!

This is my 98th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

The Architect and the Ethologist

This is Andreas and Adde from Brandbergen. I met them at Skutan in Handen on Saturday. They were planning to go for a walk along the nature path. They have known each other for twenty years and met at Secondary school. Andreas is an architect. He has designed a few buildings on the island of Gotland and one house at Alby here in Haninge. Today he lectures at KTH, the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. On his free time he enjoys the Japanese Martial Art Aikido ,which he also teaches at a local club in Brandbergen. Adde is an ethologist who has worked as a researcher at the zoological institution at the Stockholm University. He is a keen nature photographer hence the camera (as is Andreas btw), and he also enjoys bird watching. When I was ready to take their portrait my Canon died (Error 99). Luckily I had my point&shoot with me and took my photos with that camera. And guess what. As the guys headed off into the forest I walked back to the bird tower and obviously the Canon then came back to life again!

This is my 97th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

The Elk Hunter

It's elk hunting season. I met one of Sweden's 270 000 elk hunters just two days ago. He was standing at his designated spot at Ormsta in Västeraninge. Meet Rolf. Born and raised in Stockholm he moved to Vendelsö in Haninge back in 1974, where he works as a carpenter. His big hobby over the last 15 years has been hunting. Most of the time he hunts for deer and hare, but he has also shot two elks over that period. The first one, not far from where we met. It was a very special feeling he told me. I was told to wait close to where an elk had been spotted earlier, and was very surprised when it came back to that same opening in the forest. The elk is a majestic animal, known here as the King of the forest, so it wasnt easy for Rolf to shoot it. This year his team can shoot one fully-grown adult elk and as many calves as they can find in their hunting area, which is around 500 hectares of open fields and forests. As we talked we could see and hear the hunting dogs coming out of the forest. Here are some facts. Across Sweden there are some 350,000 elks, and every year one third of these will be culled. You can read more about hunting in Sweden here. We talked for about ten minutes or so, I then took my photos and continued down the gravel road towards Österhaninge.


This is my 96th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Karin

Meet Karin Mörling. And one of her dogs, the three year old Border Collie Ned. Karin comes from Hestra, a small village in Småland, but lives in Lida in Haninge today. She is married and has two kids. As you might guess Karin's big hobby is sheep herding. I have seen and photographed her sheep at the Nedersta farm many times before, and today I got a chance to talk to her as she was preparing for a class. She showed me some of the herding calls, using both English and a sheepdog whistle as Ned moved a group of Suffolk sheep around. I've been doing this for ten years now she said. Karin is a member of a local herding dog club, Mälarmården that has around 120 members. Over the weekend she took part in a competition organised by the Swedish herding dog society. She's hoping to make it to the national championships sometime in the future. Karin also works as a dog trainer, and has studied psychology and leadership at the Linköping university. Here is a fun fact. Karin's dad googled his daughter and ended up looking at some of my photos! Perhaps he saw some of my Sheep on the run shots! As we were finishing talking and taking photos, her students started arriving and that was it.

This is my 95th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Gone Fishing

We have had some amazing weather lately. On such a day I decided to head over to Lake Rudan for some autumn photos. And that's were I met Björne. He was fishing from one of the piers. He wasnt expecting to get any fish, but as the weather was so good he didn't really care. Björne comes from Södermalm in Stockholm, but lives in Haninge these days. He was up until four in the morning playing and recording music at home, so he admitted to be a little tired when we met. What type of music do you play I asked. I play visrock he said. I sing and play the guitar. I'm not in a band now, but I did play in a band called Zombie Zoo many years ago, and we actually played here at Rudan at a festival. But we were more into partying and the bass player couldn't really play at all so I asked if there was a decent bass player in the crowd and this Norwegian dude took over. He was the best bass player I have ever played with! We didn't have any lyrics, so I just made them up as the gig went on. In the end we played for three hours and the crowd seemed to like us! After this funny story we talked some more, and then I took my photos at that was it.

This is my 94th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

We Shoot Film

A little out of breath as I had been on a lengthy bike ride, I had to stop at St Eskil's Park in Handen when I spotted three young photographers. I quickly explained the 100 Strangers Project and the trio agreed to have their portrait taken. This is Bella, Oscar and Sofie. All three are third-year students at the nearby Fredrika Bremer Secondary School. I asked them if they were out on a school assignment and they told me that they were. We take a course in photography. We shoot film, and today's assignment handles Depth of Field they told me. I asked if there was any chance of seeing their work online but that wasnt the case. I told them that there are quite a few flickr groups for film lovers, so who knows, maybe they will set up an account. Bella, to the left comes from Dalarö . She's a swimmer and also plays volleyball for Dalarö Sports Club. Oscar comes from Jordbro and his big hobby is longboarding. Sofie lives in Tungelsta and enjoys travelling. When I asked her to pick a favorite place she choose Koh Samui in Thailand. After this short interview I took a few photos and that was it.
This is my 93th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Christine

This is Christine. A friend of Barbie. I met the girls in Västerhaninge last week. Christine lives in Södertälje. She's currently not working. I'm just a pregnant housewife she said with a big smile. And as I took a closer look I could see that she must be expecting a baby some time early next year. So what's with the haircuts and the piercings I asked. Is it some sub culture or music thing? No it's just our style she said. I asked Christine if she had any fun hobbies. Not now in my current situation she answered. But when I was younger I was into horse back riding and gymnastics she continued. After this very brief conversation I took some quick photos of both girls just as their driver drove up next to us (they were on their way to some sort of party). And because I ran out of time I didn't have the opportunity to look through the photos as I normally do, and alas didn't see that the shots of Christine was slightly out of focus.

This is my 92th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Is There Anybody Out There?

I noticed this big antenna on the grassy field at Lake Rudan on a recent visit. Next to the antenna was a big military type tent and a group of people. I had to investigate. And that's how I met Thomas and Carl-Mikael. They are both members of SKØZA. A brand new (June 2008) ham radio club for the greater Stockholm area. The club has around 40 members. Thomas, to the left lives in Vega in Haninge and works at Addici in Stockholm. Carl-Mikael lives at Arlanda, north of Stockholm and works for Securitas. If you are into ham radio here are their calls. Carl-Mikael SAØAZS. And Thomas SMØWQT. Thomas wife Pirjo, SMØYPK is also a member. Today they had a field day and a car boot sale in Handen. Another member Kalle SAØAWX owns a big truck and it was thanks to him they got the antenna in place. The guys told me about the rules for getting a DXCC diploma. Around six million people around the world are involved in ham radio.There are a few flickr groups for the ham radio enthusiasts. If you want to know more about ham radio there's a wikipedia article with lots of facts. Zoom in on the guys.

This is my 90th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Barbie

As I come down the bike path towards the mall in Västerhaninge a few days ago, I could see the back of a teenage girl. She was on the other side of a hedge, but I could tell that she had a very cool hairstyle so I turned that way for a better look. She was waiting with a friend for their ride to show up at the parking lot so I had a few minutes to talk to them. I asked about the roses they had and they said they were on their way to some sort of party. This is Barbie. Obviously that's a nick name her real name is Mikaela. Barbie lives in Västerhaninge and goes to school in Tungelsta. She's a ninth grader. I comment on her football scarf and says something like you must be an old fan of AIK. I'm a huge fan of AIK, but I'm not really that old she says and gives me eye. Point taken. AIK for those of you that don't follow Swedish soccer is one of the top football clubs in the country. How much of a fan are you I ask. I go to all their matches she tells me. That's quite an effort for a fifteen year old girl. Last time I checked the ticket prices starts at 180 SEK per game. Tomorrow I will show you a photo of Barbie's friend.

This is my 91th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Journalist & Photographer

This is Magnus Kristenson. A journalist and photographer that works at Mosebacke Media, a freelance bureau in Stockholm. I saw his camera and asked if he was out taking autumn photos. That wasnt the case. He was in Västerhaninge on assignment. Looking to photograph among other things a cyclist for a magazine, Haninge Today that his company produces. Luckily I was able to help him with that and also answer a few questions. So maybe I will be in the next issue! Magnus who lives in Nacka enjoys sailing and travelling. His favorite part of the world when it comes to photography is Latin America. You can see some of his photos here.

This is my 88th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set

Hassan

Relaxing on a bench in Västerhaninge, this is Hassan (It's not his real name, but it's what everyone calls him, he told me). I noticed him because of his military uniform and figured that he had to be my next stranger. Hassan is a member of the Swedish Home Guard. A volunteer organisation. His battalions job is to guard and protect Swedish infrastructure against sabotage. They operate on land and from boats and work mainly around the Muskö Base here in Haninge. Did those last sentences sound familiar? Well they should. I met Ante on this exact spot the day before I met Hassan, and they are both members of the same local organisation. There you go, another cool coincidence! Back to Hassan, he lives in Huddinge. He is married, and has four kids that do their best to keep him busy. He works at Karolinska Institutet, one of Europe's largest medical universities, at CeFAM, where he teaches graduate students everything they need to know about statistics. And as he must have a few degrees in mathematics, I'm sure Hassan can come up with an equation that will explain all these coincidences that seem to pop up everywhere I go these days!


This is my 87th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Meet Ulla

Say hello to Ulla. I met her on last week in Handen. She was on her lunch break and looking forward to get a bite to eat, but still had time to talk with me for a few minutes. Ulla lives and works here in Handen. I'm employed by the council and work with kids she told me. What do you do for kicks I asked. I enjoy dancing she said. And recommended me to try one of her favorite dances the Lindy Hop. I'm sure seeing me dance would be very funny I replied. She's also tried skydiving. So you are like one of those adrenaline junkies then I asked, and laughingly she said I guess so. As my last question I asked her to recommend a cool place for a holiday and Ulla's suggestion was Brazil. She'd been to Natal once and had a great time.

This is my 86th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Meet Ante

As the sun was shining all the cool kids put on their shades (me included). This is Ante. He lives in Västerhaninge and that's where I met him. He is a carpenter. When he told me that I decided to check the coincidence factor by telling him that I met and photographed two carpenters for the strangers project a few months ago. As I started to describe how they looked Ante stopped me by saying that it sounded like his neighbour Lippen! Some more facts about Ante. His big hobby is sailing. He owns a wooden sail boat, a Neptunkryssare and spends much of his free time on the boat, that he has at a marina on the island of Yxlö in the Stockholm archipelago. Ante is a member of the Swedish Home Guard. A volunteer organisation. His battalions job is to guard and protect Swedish infrastructure against sabotage. They operate on land and from boats and work mainly around the Muskö Base here in Haninge. After this conversation I took a number of photos and then we said goodbye.

This is my 85th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Malin (coolest coincidence ever)

I'm on the bike at the automatic level crossing at Lida, waiting for the commuter train to pass. Malin who was out jogging in the sunshine, makes a comment about how typical it is to arrive just as a train is closing in, and we start talking. I notice that she is pregnant and Malin says that the baby is due in January. Boy or a girl, I ask. Don't know she says with a big smile. Malin who is a big animal lover opened a pet store with a couple of friends a few years back. It's still open but I now work for an insurance company she tells me. Once the baby is born I'm hoping that we can also add a dog to the family. Malin is a sporty girl, having played soccer for many years. As a kid she was into diving. Have you tried anything else I ask. Yes, para gliding she says. Cool, I reply, and start to tell her about one of my previous strangers, Johan Henschen who had an accident while para motoring abroad. She looks at me and laughs, that's my dad! How cool is that! Apparently Johan hasn't told his daughter about being photographed for the 100 Strangers Project, so I tell her the very interesting story that meeting generated. I've been reading a few articles in the media lately about the author Helena Henschen, who has written two very interesting books (one about a famous murder story in the family), and asks Malin if it is the same family. It is she says, Helena is my dads sister. That's enough coincidences for today and as the train has passed by a few minutes ago we say goodbye.
This is my 84th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set

Jarmo

This is Jarmo Alanko. He is in charge of Security, Health and Environment at Drefvikens Värmeverk, part of Vattenfall, (the largest generator of heat in Europe). I met him yesterday during the open house day at the Thermal Power Plant in Jordbro. We sat down at a table and talked for about ten minutes. Jarmo is used to talking to the press and media, and handles some of the company's contacts with the authority's. He has appeared in court on a few occasions for the company, on environmental issues, always on the winning side. He told me a lot about his job and the new power plant that will be built here over the next two years. Jarmo has appeared in a few advertisements for Vattenfall. On a recent TV ad shoot, eight people worked hard for ten hours and I appeared in that ad for about two seconds he told me with a laugh! He is often out talking to students at the University's. Four times every year we rent the Marine World Kolmården and invites some 10 000 clients, so I'm very at ease interacting with a lot of people he said. He also told me this story. Jarmo who originally comes from Eskilstuna is married and has two kids. The family lives in Västerhaninge. On his free time he enjoys working out in the gym. I'm a health freak, and average eight sessions per week he said.
This is my 83th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set

The Vice President

This is Tony. I met him at the cruiser meet in Handen a while back. He is the Vice President of the Southern Streeters, a greaser club from Södertälje. The club has been around since 1994 and has 21 members.Tony drives a 1960 Ford Starline. He bought the car for 50 000 SEK three years ago. I have probably used another 100 000 SEK on the Ford since then he told me. He was at the meet with friends from the club, and with his girlfriend, their new born baby and his mother. In his professional life Tony works as a truck driver. Cars are his big hobby and his latest project is an old Buick. He also told me that the bass player in the band on stage as we spoke was a member of the Southern Streeters. And as it happened Kenny has a great photo of that same Bass Player.


This is my 81th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set

Agnes & Martin

There was a concert with music from the Middle Ages, performed by the duo Agnes & Martin at the Art Gallery in Österhaninge this afternoon. I learned about that from a poster I noticed today, so I decided to check it out. I arrived at the gallery 15 minutes before the show started. The duo was sitting in the garden and I had the chance to talk to Martin before their performance, and after the gig I got a few words with Agnes. They are busy people. Martin has a smithy, shop and a museum (opens in November 2008), in Handen where you can also buy jewellery designed by Agnes. Together they have a son, called Lo, and the family lives next to the museum. As I started to talk to Martin we exchanged cards, and that's when I realised who he was. Funnily enough I had a conversation about Martin and Agnes only a week ago when I met one of my previous strangers, the architect Rikard Lundin. Rikard asked me if I knew about the museum, which I did and we then talked about Martin & Agnes, so it's very typical that I should meet the two of them a week later! Agnes comes from Västerhaninge and she's currently taking a course in Museum Education at the Stockholm University. The two of them often tour the country with a group called Tattarklanen. It's like a medieval and Viking tivoli (a travelling theme park), Martin told me. With performances, music and more. We have also played in some of the restaurants in the Old Town in Stockholm he added.


This is my 82th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set