Alon Goldsmith's black-and-white photograph "Eye Spy, 2026" — shot on an iPhone 16 Pro Max — shows the Hi-Spy Viewing Machine on Santa Monica Pier looking out over an empty beach. It was taken on day 111 of his year-long daily photo project.
The Johannesburg-born, Los Angeles-based photographer began the "365-day project" on New Year's Day 2026, which involves taking and posting a photo every day for a year. On some days, he says, it's a struggle to find something worthy of inclusion, while on others it's a challenge to make a choice.
A daily ride through Venice and Santa Monica
Goldsmith captured the image during his usual bike ride through Venice and around Santa Monica Pier, areas he describes as a "cornucopia of curiosities". He spends many rides hunting for photos, and says the vantage point allows him to slow down and notice what's around him in a different way: "When I'm not rushing, the world reveals itself more fully."
A cinematic black-and-white conversion
Goldsmith chose to translate the capture into black and white during editing, saying: "I think the change emphasises the graphic and cinematic nature of the composition. The drama of the clouds in black and white adds sculptural weight, and the bird helps to anthropomorphise the machine, turning it into a lonely character gazing out at an empty beach."
He did not tidy up or erase elements such as the swooping seagull or the smudge of heaped sand, explaining: "The ethics of street photography forbid altering an image in that way."
