Inspired.

The Bicycle Portraits project was initiated by Stan Engelbrecht and Nic Grobler early in 2010. Whenever they can, together or separately, they’re on the lookout for fellow commuters, and people who use bicycles as part of their everyday work, to meet and photograph. They’re finding out who rides bicycles, why they ride bicycles, if and why they love their bicycles, and of course why so few South Africans choose bicycles as a transport option.

"Myself, Stan Engelbrecht and a good friend and fellow bicycle enthusiast, Nic Grobler recently started a project investigating South African bicycle culture, and the lack of cyclist commuters out there on our roads. We are currently raising funds to turn this project into a self-published full-color hard-cover photographic book ( similar to a previous book I've done, African Salad - www.dayonepublications.com ). We are shooting the entire project from our own bicycles while traveling around the country - we are meeting everyday South Africans out there while they use their bicycles."

As you'll see we are not photographing people who ride purely for exercise or recreation, but instead we are focussing on those who use bicycles as an integral tool in their day-to-day existence. We've noticed that in South Africa, especially in the major centers, very few people use bicycles as mode of transport. This is very strange since we have no proper public transport infrastructure, and that which does exist is expensive and unsafe.