‘The plane I was supposed to be on passed above me’: Nima Bank’s best phone picture

Losing track of time at the airport made the Iranian-born photographer reflect on how we deal with setbacks

Nima Bank was meant to be on the plane soaring overhead in this image. Unfortunately, he had been daydreaming in Istanbul airport, enjoying a coffee, and lost track of time. Once he realised his error, and that he would be stranded in the airport for the rest of the day, he says, “I found myself contemplating how a single missed connection could alter a life’s entire trajectory. What new possibilities had this delay set in motion? Was it a loss, or a redirection toward something else?”

The film-maker and photographer, originally from Iran, now living in Turkey, adds, “When the very plane I should have been on passed above me, it felt symbolic; like a reminder that movement, pause and change are all part of the journey.”