The trip to Paris was different. This was not going to be work but a true vacation and I therefore made a conscious effort to go light on the camera gear. Selecting this camera gear proved to be a difficult task as I packed and unpacked camera bodies and lenses, flash units and other "essentials." I finally settled on a Nikon FM2 with 24mm lens, Nikon N90s with a 20-35mm and 80-200mm, light meter, a leatherman, small flashlight and a Sharpie pen. That was it, no flash, no tripod or monopod, no 300mm 2.8 or second N90s. I then stuck 20 rolls of Fujicolor 800 in my suitcase.

   My first day in Paris I found myself carrying all the gear I had brought with me, frequently switching lenses and cameras bodies. It was after that first day, returning to the hotel room with sore feet and shoulders, and frustrated with my photo efforts, that I reminded myself this was a vacation. That first day - with only two exceptions - was the only day my N90s, 20-35 and 80-200 saw the light of day.

   I had made the decision to carry only the FM2 with 24mm lens, a light meter and a vest pocket full of film.

   It was only then that I became a tourist, traveling around Paris just taking in the sites along with all the other tourists. I was no longer a working photographer, but just another visitor occasionally snapping a picture of something that caught my eye. I must admit that I had not used that FM2 in many years and I found myself seeing things in a very different light. It felt small and unobtrusive in my hands allowing me to get closer to subjects and without loads of gear hanging from my body, people hardly noticed me while I shot photo after photo.

   In total I shoot 18 rolls of film during my seven days in and around Paris. When I processed all the film and began to scan I found that I really liked some of the images. I made some initial 8x10 prints and then started playing around in PhotoShop with some of the photos from the Louvre. That's when the idea of making postcards hit me. I think the photographs lend themselves nicely to the small simple format and after all postcards are for tourists to tell of their trip and in Paris I was just another tourist.