We recently connected with William Karstens and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, William thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Street photography was something I was interested in before I knew that street photography had history. In my well traveled, yet myopic view of the world, the only thing that existed was the post card like images of grand cityscapes, terrific horizon shots and a neon nightlife. What was missing, to me, was the rush and the push of every day life. The look of an empty street early morning when nearly no one is around. Alley ways leading no where. Every day people fighting to make it home, to work, to the store or just.. to make it. Mundane sounds negative, but it’s actually just normal existence. Skirmish are the outlying fights, not combat, not historical, but that everyday struggle.

Looking back, it must have been my way of showing what life is like outside of postcards and glamour or war and conflict. But more than that, it wasn’t to make a statement, but to make people think, remember and reflect.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is William Karstens. I grew up in California, but have lived quite a few places. I’ve been a street photographer for a long time, but more seriously since 2015.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

If anything, I had access to some great minds, and I didn’t ask many questions early on. There are, invariably, a ton of experts around you who WANT to help you be the best version of you possible. I wish I had asked, listened and looked a lot more early on.

Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

I’m very wary. Some very smart, forward leaning people I know have dove in, and there’s security, and the money’s there. But, a few things hold me back.

First, none of this about money. NFT’s remind me a little of the high point of stock photo work. Some people were making a killing, while others floundered.

Second, NFT’s focus a little more on viral popularity. A great photo is a great photo is a great photo. But it needs to be known in order to become memorable. However, there’s a cross over point with photos when popularity and algorithms exceed the actual impact of the photo. And it seems to be a lot of the popular photos are viral, driven by a lot of ground work of developing a brand. History shows, on a faster scale, that viral fades, fades fast and pretty hard to all except a very small few.

But, I think the option and ability to put digital ownership on an image will ultimately stop intellectual theft of our work, and help preserve each person’s intent.

Contact Info:

• Website: mundaneskirmish.com
• Instagram: @mundaneskirmish
• Other: [email protected]