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Last fall in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, I began photographing a couple as they set up their stand in a market before dawn. Their silent movements were precise and fluid, an elaborate pas de deux that they had clearly performed many times. Behind and above them, colored tarps and sharp white lights created a set for their actions. After a while, I left them and wandered behind their stand. It was then I saw this image. Seen from “backstage” through the colorful tarps with the dawning sky above, the woman’s practiced dance becomes a study of the power of solitude and habit.

Susan West

susan@susanwestphotography.com