By Francesca Merwin, staff writer

Maybe you know him as “Mr. Picture Man.” Maybe you know him as your college English professor. Maybe he’s just the man you see at the gym every morning at 8am, and you wonder what his story is and what stories he’s hiding. No matter which hat he has on, he’s still Bob Gates, a photographer looking to capture an important place in Syracuse that many take for granted – a place that won’t be around too much longer.

The corner of South Salina and Fayette Streets is a seemingly unimportant, regular corner. There’s a Dunkin Donuts, a few benches and some worn out storefronts. But it’s also Syracuse’s main bus transfer station. It’s a corner where hundreds of individuals of all shapes and sizes gather together during their day and intermingle for just a few seconds, before bussing back to their very separate lives.

This fall, the corner will lose this identity when Centro moves the transfer hub to a new facility at Adams and Salina Streets. With a grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Centro will construct the new “Common Center” transfer station, featuring bus bays, an enclosed waiting area, a fare vending machine, and other upgrades. These are sure to enhance the quality of travel, but may take away from the current cultural hub that the transfer station has become.

“It’s one corner, in one small city, in one country, and you get this amazing variety of people,” says Gates of the current station. “People that are homeless, people that are lawyers, junkies, students, nurses. Some photographers need to travel the world to take pictures of people – I don’t need to do that. They’re all on one corner for me.”

Mr. Picture Man decided that he needed to document the identity of this corner before it was too late. He has been photographing the many colorful individuals of the transfer station in a series entitled “Last Transfer: Soul of Syracuse.” “I’m trying to show the people down there in a very direct, intimate and forceful way,” Gates explains. “I want to show them in a way that people can see and relate to without preconceived notions.”

His project has been immensely popular and has resonated with the individuals whom he visits and photographs every week. Gates, who admits that he used to be nervous and intimidated when he started taking pictures at the station, is now a regular and greeted with requests of, “Hey Mr. Picture Man! Take my picture!” Requests which he easily obliges.

Gates stumbled upon photography during the pursuit of his graduate degree in English. Many years later, during a successful career as an English professor at Syracuse University, he decided to pick up the camera again and hasn’t put it down. Gates’ photos are special because they openly display the gritty parts of Syracuse that some people casually walk by or pretend to ignore. He puts this starkness on display and reminds us that even seemingly ugly parts of a place can document something real and beautiful, if you just take the time to look.

Currently, Gates is working on a project to get a running slideshow in a storefront near the transfer station as a reminder of the importance of this location. “I won’t take pictures at the new station,” Gates comments. “This [station] has a particular energy about it. It’s the community center. This is where people go, hang out, meet their friends, do their business – legal or illegal. I see people who just spend their day there. It’s fascinating to me.”

And his photos will continue to fascinate us. Gates’ photographs will be featured in a gallery exhibit this fall as part of the Syracuse Symposium series, from October 14 to November 14, at the Schine Student Center, Panasci Lounge, at Syracuse University. They may also be found online here.