How do I achieve this street photography effect?

Ben1989 · Feb 26, 2017

Hi all,

I'm just wondering how an instagram photographer achieves the effects in his images? Is it possible through lightroom or is it PS? What is the effect?

I can only link his instagram page as I'm not sure how to link individual images

Chris (@snackophagus) • Instagram photos and videos

It's the image titled 'Back to hanging out in dark alleyways' and mostly all the images in fact. I love the effect, they're very HDR like but curious as I'd to achieve the same results with some of my images.

Cheers, Ben

weepete · Feb 26, 2017

Looks to me like pushed contrast and saturation while bringing the white and black point close together. Some also have heavy vingettes applied. A few look to have one or two colours picked out and saturated.

Should be able to replicate it in lightroom.

Trever1t · Feb 26, 2017

Yes! First his exposures are purposeful, (think about that) and secondly he's editing.

Derrel · Feb 26, 2017

He's got his style down very well. Plenty of vignetting on some: see the darker corners and skies? Also,some selective overlays that dodge and burn--just like some of the Instagram filters themselves. He MIGHT, and I emphasize MIGHT, be using some of IG's very own filters on pre-edited images: this is a very useful way to create a set type of image--one with moderate or low contrast, on TOPof which you can overlay a preset,or a filter,from multiple different apps, and THEN, enhance it or adjust it, and upload it from the IG app itself,

Ther 3are a lot of ways to create Lightroom presets that "paint on" selective darken and or lightening (dodging) of an image.

There are also OTHER apps that can edit images this way, with overlays, like Pixlr-o-Matic just to nmame one of fifty different available editing apps. There is no one, specific, exact way to edit this way; he's uploading "real camera" photos to his phone, and then to IG, so...the possibilities are limitless.

Ben1989 · Feb 27, 2017

I'd like to achieve these effects as I'm slowly getting more into urban photography!

Demidog · Feb 27, 2017

This is a cool style. I agree with the above assessments, especially with regard to increasing the saturation of one particular color. In addition to vignetting, he seems to be applying a general exposure gradient across his skies from top to bottom. In some photos, it appears like he's using cool shadows and warm highlights. He might also be raising the blacks to give the photos a slightly vintage and more matte appearance.

I'm guessing that he is superimposing some images onto different backgrounds like the building against the starry sky. I'm not experienced enough to tell for sure how he's achieving these effects but cool shadows and warm highlights is a start for getting the look in the photo that you mentioned. I'll bet that he's also playing heavily with changing hues and washing out some colors while emphasizing only one or two.