Everyday lives made extraordinary in picture postcards from New York

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then Humans of New York (HONY) has become an epic tale. What started as a project to photograph 10,000 New Yorkers has evolved into a collection of images and stories about the lives of strangers.

It also spawned a local version, Humans of Australia, as well as a host of other 'Humans of ...' from Rome to Tehran, and is a social media phenomenon boasting more than 13 million Facebook followers, a blog and a bestselling book.

Thanks to the skill of photographer Brandon Stanton who changed the dynamic when he reached out to his subjects and started a conversation, these photographs are part of a complex story about everyday people, people that we can relate to and connect with.

To take good photos you need to be a master of your tools. Knowing how to get the best from your camera, how light changes a shot, and knowing what lens to use can all make a difference.

But taking great photos means getting the best from your subject, and every website devoted to taking better pictures of people puts building a rapport at the top of its list.

A photograph has the power to elevate the everyday to the extraordinary. The collective lives of New Yorkers don't hold a lot of interest for onlookers from around the world but the individual stories of New Yorkers have captured the global imagination.

And that stems from a shared connection, whether it's because we recognise something of our own lives in their tale, or we're given an insight into an interesting life that is very different from ours, or because we are simply glad it's their life and not ours.

These photographs lend a dignity to these tales of everyday lives and the people who live them that would be lost with the accompanying image.

Not only is a picture worth a thousand words, it goes beyond what mere words alone can convey.