In a recent interview with Wired, freelance journalist and photographer Jake Warga explained his most recent investigation into American culture, one that involves attending a lot of unusual conventions. Warga says that people are defined by their hobbies, not by their jobs, and believes that the best way to learn about these hobbies is to seek out niche conventions. While he generally avoids big cons (think San Diego ComicCon), Warga has been to Renaissance Faires, Steampunk cons, SeXXXpo, cat shows, Hemp Fest, and Furry conventions, and photographs individuals and their hobbies outside of the hectic convention environment.

So far, Warga says that he's learned many valuable lessons, like "furries are the nicest people by far," "make-up used on zombies and corpses [at conventions] is the best I've seen even after a career working on Miramax horror sequels" and that "at conventions you can be who you really are." For more on Warga's ongoing project, take a look at Wired's profile at the source link below — and to see the rest of the amazing photography series, head on to Warga's website.