What were your immediate impressions of Harlem the first time you went?

The first time visiting Harlem was very challenging for me, because I was living on the Upper West Side at the time where security was not a primary concern. I remember getting chills in my back just being in the street surrounded by abandoned buildings. But at the same time, I felt some kind of comfort because of the bigger views of the sky since the buildings were not as tall as other areas in the city. I tried to act as normal as possible—not looking around like a tourist and walking as if I was living there… at least I tried to. A camera was in my backpack all the time. I didn't like the movement of taking a camera out and putting back in after taking a picture, but I managed to snap a few rolls with my 35mm camera. Something really grabbed me about Harlem, so I wanted to live there just to take pictures. I felt like without living there I couldn't take pictures of it. Just being a visitor is not fair to the people I'm asking to take pictures of. So I knew I would live in Harlem one day after my first visit.