Street Photography - CC

SwissJ · May 5, 2010

So I'm trying to enter the realm of documentary style street photography. Still have a long way to go with my comfort level with people, so i thought the best way to ease into it would be to camp out at a corner and just start shooting. Here's one of the shots I took yesterday that I thought had some interest.

Post processed with green and blue filters of various opacities.

Please C&C, even if you think it sucks.

#1

Goontz · May 5, 2010

You can get some inspiration here: http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/photo-themes/169495-capture-stranger-street-style.html

Stormchase · May 5, 2010

i have been wanting to do more like this. i like the two males. there is attitude there.may i ask what focal length you used? i have a hard time getting up close with strangers. i cant get over all the odd looks.:}
9.00 for newports dang!

SwissJ · May 5, 2010

Goontz said:
You can get some inspiration here: http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/photo-themes/169495-capture-stranger-street-style.html

very cool thread. Thanks for posting.

Stormchase said:
i have been wanting to do more like this. i like the two males. there is attitude there.may i ask what focal length you used? i have a hard time getting up close with strangers. i cant get over all the odd looks.:}
9.00 for newports dang!

55mm... which is my longest reach. Definitely not long enough to get up close without getting punched out.

yeah $9 newports... can't even afford to smoke anymore without a job.

kows · May 5, 2010

hah! i love the different expression here

. grumpy man in the middle, awesome

c.cloudwalker · May 5, 2010

SwissJ said:
55mm... which is my longest reach. Definitely not long enough to get up close without getting punched out

If you're afraid of people don't shoot street. Most will not even notice that you are shooting. Of those that do, most will be flattered.

50mm on a crop body is too long in my book. I shot street with a 35mm on a film body. Get right in their face and shoot. Some people will get pissed but I've never been punched. I swear.

With a long lens you just don't get the feeling of intimacy that you would with a short one.

bigtwinky · May 5, 2010

If you get a wide angle lens, you can often stand there and nicely compose people on the side of your frame and the lens won't be pointing directly at them, so they won't think you are shooting them.

I've done some street stuff with a 10-22 and it worked fairly fine. You still have to watch for distortion and all due to it being such a wide field of view.

SwissJ · May 5, 2010

I see what you guys are saying. The longer focal lengths make people appear too much of a safe distance away. Using a wider length will force me to get closer to my subjects too.

Tomorrow I'll keep the lens locked at it's widest (18mm) and see what happens.

Thanks for the comments.

c.cloudwalker · May 5, 2010

Another advantage of using a wider lens is the ability to shoot blind. It takes a bit of practice but it not that hard.

You decide what distance your subjects are going to be when you shoot and you set that for your focus. Then you work with the depth of field. The deeper it is, the more likely you will get a sharp subject even if not at your exact pre-set focusing distance. And the wider angle of view will get your subject in the frame when pointing basically in his/her direction.

I used a 35mm (film camera) a lot in this manner because this technique works fine with it and it is not so wide that you have to worry about much distortion.

SwissJ · May 6, 2010

Once again. This time blind at the hip and with a wider angle.
Let me know what you think.

#2

#3

#4

#5

c.cloudwalker · May 6, 2010

#2 is not bad.

#3 I don't know why you even put it here. You have to remember where your focus is set for.

#4 wouldn't be bad if it wasn't so tilted.

#5 ? Did you miss your aim?

The idea of shooting blind is not to hide the fact you are shooting so much as allowing you to do it faster. It is also a way to shoot over the heads of people in front of you in a crowd. If you keep shooting from the hip, you are always going to be looking up people's noses. Not that appealing.

I mention this technique to photogs who seem uncomfortable shooting on the street. It is a way to start feeling more comfortable and to get more candid shots since, with the camera not stuck to your eye, most people don't realize what you are doing until it is too late. But raise your camera. As I said earlier, you can't shoot street if you are afraid of people. And frankly, the more you are comfortable you get, the more comfortable people will be with you doing it.

Look at Javier's thread in the themes section. Some people don't look too happy about being photographed but I don't believe he mentions getting beat up.

SwissJ · May 6, 2010

c.cloudwalker said:
#3 I don't know why you even put it here. You have to remember where your focus is set for.

I actually thought it looked pretty cool. I like how the composition came out, but yeah, I completely forgot where my focus was. Too bad.

#5 ? Did you miss your aim?

Sure did.

But raise your camera. As I said earlier, you can't shoot street if you are afraid of people. And frankly, the more you are comfortable you get, the more comfortable people will be with you doing it.

I know I'll get there. Tomorrow's a brand new day.

Thanks again

c.cloudwalker · May 6, 2010

Yes, keep at it. That's the only way things ever happen.

bigtwinky · May 6, 2010

If you want to get some inspiration to use a wide angle lens, watch War Photographer by James Nachtwey. He is an awesome photojournalist, probably one of the best alive IMO, and tends to use wide lenses... He uses two cameras and has (I believe) a 24mm and a 35mm, one on each.

He is really up close and personal, which is what lends so much emotion to his photos.

Look him up, might inspire you