Life Without Rules: Portraits of Rebels in the Lost and Found Project

Photographer Michael Joseph travels across America capturing the faces and stories of young vagabonds, hitchhikers and adventurers. His project Lost and Found is not just a series of photographs, but a profound exploration of freedom, loneliness and self-discovery. In an interview for Dazed, he explains how a chance encounter changed his life and why his subjects are the voice of a generation.

Michael Joseph wasn’t always a travel photographer. He shot commercial projects for a long time, but he felt like his work was limited. That all changed in 2011, when he met a young hitchhiker in New Orleans. The guy with a backpack and shabby clothes was standing on the side of the road with a sign that read “ARIZONA or SOUTH.” Something about his appearance caught Joseph’s eye.

This meeting inspired Joseph to create Lost and Found. The photographer decided to drop everything and hit the road. He looked for people who, like that guy, chose to live outside the system. Thus began a project that became not just a job for Michael, but a way to understand the world and himself.

Joseph's subjects are young people who reject stability for freedom. They are hitchhikers, squatters, musicians, artists, and dreamers. They travel across America, sleeping rough, working odd jobs, or living in communes. They have one thing in common: a desire to live on their own terms.

Joseph meets them on the road, at festivals or in abandoned places. He doesn’t just click the shutter, but spends time with the subjects, delving into their stories. His portraits are not staged, but snapshots of souls full of hopes, fears and dreams.

The photographs in Lost and Found are striking in their honesty. They feature young faces covered in road dust, tattoos, scars, and a look that is a mixture of weariness and a thirst for life. Joseph uses natural light and simple backgrounds to avoid distracting from the subjects’ emotions. Each portrait is a story: about a broken heart, about a dream of becoming a musician, about an attempt to escape the past.

One of the subjects, a girl named Sparrow, told Michael how she dropped out of college to travel with her guitar. Another, Jack, admitted that the road helps him cope with depression. These stories are not just a backdrop for the photos, they are the heart of the project.

For Michael Joseph, travel is not only a way to find heroes, but also a metaphor.

His own journey is full of accidents, from a car breaking down in the desert to spending the night in abandoned buildings. But it is these moments that bring him closer to those he photographs.

The Lost and Found project shows that freedom is not only about romance. It is also about loneliness, risk, and struggle. Joseph’s characters often face the condemnation of society, which sees them as vagabonds. But the photographer believes that their choice is a protest against a world where everything is subject to rules.

Michael Joseph is a master of street portrait photography. His style is spontaneous and intimate. He shoots without preparation, often on the move, to capture the moment. His black and white images emphasize the texture of faces and emotions, removing distracting colors.

His work has been exhibited in galleries such as Daniel Cooney Fine Art in New York City and is in the collection of the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.

Joseph doesn’t just document the lives of vagabonds – he creates a collective portrait of a generation searching for itself. His photographs are a bridge between the viewer and those who are rarely seen.

Lost and Found has received worldwide recognition. The project has been featured on CNN, Vice, and other publications, and in 2016, it was included in the Photolucida Top 50 and was a finalist for the LensCulture Portrait Award. Joseph has lectured at the International Center of Photography in New York and taught at the Light Factory in Charlotte. His work is not only art, but also social commentary that makes us think about freedom and choice.

Michael continues to travel, meeting new heroes. His book Lost and Found became a bestseller, and his exhibitions attract thousands of visitors. But for him, the most important thing is to give a voice to those living on the margins.

In the age of social media, where life seems perfect, Joseph's project reminds us of authenticity. His characters don't filter their stories, don't hide their scars, and aren't afraid to be vulnerable. They show that being "lost" is okay if you're looking for yourself.

Michael continues to travel and photograph. His work has been exhibited in galleries across the US, and his book Lost and Found has become a bestseller. But for him, fame is not the most important thing, but the opportunity to tell stories about people who are rarely noticed.

What inspires you in the stories of people who choose to live outside the system? Share your thoughts in the comments!