Doorway at Norbulingka, Lhasa, Tibet. The Norbulingka was traditionally the summer residence of the Dalai Lamas until the Chinese takeover in the 1950s.

Photographers of all styles and genres seem to have a fascination with doors and, to a lesser extent, windows. From the street photographer positioning himself opposite an interesting doorway and waiting for people to walk past to the travel photographer documenting a culture’s designs, doors can provide a great photographic subject for image makers everywhere.

Personally, I am attracted to doors as an opening into the human stories contained within. These stories may be both real and imagined, literal or metaphoric. Does the crumbling paint of a lighthouse door tell a similar tale as the dust-covered door on the Tibetan plateau? In many ways yes, for both for Tibetan farmer and the lighthouse keeper lead hard lives highly dependent on the weather, elements and passing seasons, often in particularly remote locations. The door can represent some shared humanity and a commonality that defines human life.

Doors are sometimes elaborately decorated with murals and bright paint. They can just as easily be dull and drab. Doors can be welcoming such as that of a cozy Irish pub on a Friday night, or forbidding such as that of a prison cell.

Take a walk around your local area and pay attention to different doors. Are there patterns or common designs you can use in your photography? Do they tell a story, or is the seeming lack of story a story in itself?

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