Between Streets, Coastlines and Encounters
Intimate and Unstaged
While travelling through Cuba and Panama, Philipp Gladsome turns his lens towards the day-to-day lives of locals, rather than well-known tourist attractions. He observes people on the streets, along the coastline and in public spaces. He has chance encounters, witnesses daily rituals and experiences those brief moments where light, movement and surroundings naturally come together.
His pictures tell a story of sun-bleached façades, deep shadows and warm colours. A traditional car passes a row of houses marked by time and its transformations. Children play basketball between historical buildings. Laundry is blown by the wind in front of the open sea. A man washes his horse while a young local proudly carries a rooster in his arms.
With the Leica M EV1, Philipp captures these scenes deliberately and directly. This is not the stuff of postcards – he is documenting his personal observations of two countries, full of contrasts, traces and human closeness.
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The Rhythm of Everyday Life
Philipp’s background in photography is rooted in music. He has covered artists, concerts and the international music scene for years. The feel he has developed for rhythm and timing shapes his travel photography, too.
On the street, this rhythm takes many different forms: a solitary figure traversing a wide esplanade, teenagers playing on a sports field or a car briefly adding colour and movement to an otherwise tranquil scene. Philipp reacts to these situations without forcing them. He watches, waits and releases the shutter when the individual elements converge into a clear composition.
His images alternate between motion and stillness. People, architecture and landscapes do not stand alone — they are in relationship with each other. This results in imagery where even ordinary everyday scenes are imbued with a very special presence.
The Leica M is the epitome of a classic, yet it has always kept up with advancing technology – you could call it the 911 of photography.
Philipp Gladsome
A Classic That Looks Ahead
The Leica M is closely associated with a feeling of familiarity for Philipp. Regardless of the particular generation, the fundamental attributes that have characterised the M-System for decades are immediately recognisable to him: the minimalist design, straightforward operation and durable M-Bayonet.
This continuity is what makes the M iconic for him. It doesn’t take long to get used to the cameras, which feel familiar in your hands. At the same time, the Leica M EV1 is synonymous with the intentional further development of this principle. Classic design and manual photography meet the possibilities of modern technology, without altering the character of the system.
On his travels, this combination allows him to concentrate fully on his surroundings and wait for just the right moment. The camera is both a tool and a companion: unobtrusive enough for personal encounters, precise enough for clear compositions and familiar enough to react in an instant.
The First M with an Integrated Electronic Viewfinder
Leica M EV1
Like every other M camera, the Leica M EV1 embodies timeless aesthetics and authentic photography, uncompromising craftsmanship, and exceptional image quality. It combines the traditional values of the legendary M system with the advantages of an EVF — opening up new horizons. The Leica M EV1 looks like an M, feels like an M, is an M — now with an integrated EVF.
Whenever I have a new M in my hand, it immediately feels familiar.
Philipp Gladsome
About Philipp
Philipp Gladsome is originally from Chemnitz, Germany, and now lives in Berlin. He began his career in photography around 14 years ago when he became interested in analogue photography, which he combined with his love for music at an early stage.
Since then, he has been following and capturing artists on the German and international music scenes. His work moves between straightforward documentation and deliberately composed portraits. He is always looking for shots that stay close to people while developing their own distinctive visual character.
Alongside his work for the music industry, Philipp has also made a name for himself in advertising photography. His clients include Adidas, Porsche and Volkswagen. His travels to Cuba and Panama show another facet of his work: composed, observational photography, where people, places and everyday situations combine to tell personal stories.
