Documenting change through window reflections

Beyond capturing the present moment, shooting window reflections can become a way of preserving the past.

I’ve been photographing window reflections for as long as I can remember, but I used to see them as a bit of a one-trick pony. Using a large glass shop window to create a mirroring image, such as the one below, is a simple yet effective way of providing your photos with an extra dimension.

‘Old meets new.’ (Prague, 2022)

It becomes slightly more interesting when you use the shop window as the foreground while incorporating passersby as subjects. Shooting through a window is one of my favourite ways to create a multi-layered image, one that often looks like a multiple exposure.

But the visual aspects aside, a capture like the one below also documents an important aspect of the city’s past: in this case, one of the popular ‘brown bars’, as they’re called in Dutch, a beloved institution that is in the process of acquiring a protected status as an important part of the national cultural heritage. As the number of these traditional pubs has been plummeting steadily in the recent years, you never know which one will be shut down next time you stroll by.

Café de Zon (Amsterdam, 2023)

Documenting change

Looking through the numerous window reflection shots I took over the years, I realised why shop windows play such an important role in the documentary aspect of street photography: they constantly change, allowing us to document the passage of time.

Whether it’s simply the objects on display, the seasonal decor, or the text on windows, luring customers in, they hardly ever stay the same over the years. Sometimes the shop itself changes owners, or ceases to exist altogether, leaving an empty shell of a building behind.

One such example is the shop window below, which I’ve captured many times over the years. What I found fascinating about it is that it housed a shop selling designer Italian hats. Clearly, there was a market for designer Italian hats in our small town at some point. Sadly, they went out of business during the pandemic, making space for some nondescript pop-up store.

‘Everything is temporary.’ (Maastricht, 2023)

Another personal favourite is this particular shop window in Maastricht, which is a high-end fashion store, but for some reason, they have the Taschen edition of Helmut Newton’s SUMO displayed behind the window. That is not particularly newsworthy in itself, but what I love about this window is that one of the shopkeepers actually turns the pages regularly. Needless to say, I always stop by to appreciate both Newton’s mastery and the nude of the day.

Helmut Newton’s SUMO (Taschen, 20th anniversary edition). Maastricht 2023

Sign of the times

Sometimes it’s not about the window itself, but about the subject caught in the reflection. Unintentionally, I captured the zeitgeist in the photo below - a simple phone shot I took during the pandemic now represents the traumatic past we’ve collectively lived through on the left, and the infinitely brighter present on the right.

‘Mindfuck’ (Maastricht, 2021)

Overall, I think window reflections are a great entryway into street photography, as aiming your camera at the shop window allows you to remain relatively unnoticed. In fact, mirrored images are so easy to create that I often use them at the beginning of a photowalk to get my creative juices flowing.

Next time you feel like playing around, let the inner child come out and experiment a bit. The results don’t need to be perfect, but while simply having fun, you might unexpectedly capture a fleeting glimpse of the past, too.

The beauty of street photography is that once you have a camera, it’s basically free.

A cup of coffee is an essential part of my photowalks, though. For as little as 3 euros, you can help me fuel up & take a well-deserved break. I truly appreciate your support!