In my thesis I provide an interpretation framework for the analysis of Péter Pettendi Szabó’s series, Háttér – Járt-e már Budapesten (Background – Have you ever been to Budapest?), which portrays rural people who have never been to the capital city. They are portrayed in front of a background showing the Chain Bridge, and in the album there are black & white behind-the-scenes photos that show the setting where the photos were taken. The video material accompanying the series reveals how these people see Budapest and their own environment, and what is really important for them. I reflect on the social issue it raises: the fact that the whole country is centred around the capital, the spatial aspects of the lack of mobility and the criticism of the medium which the photographer expresses through the formal and technical characteristics of the series. I present the circumstances in which the series was created and how it was exhibited after its publication. I list the artists Péter Pettendi Szabó was influenced by and I explore how the series fit in the photography discourse at the time of its publication.