I tried "some street"... it didn't go well!

[photoguy99]

I don't do critique so this ain't that. I don't have any answers either, this is your photo to make, not mine. I can tell you how I'd approach it.

First, you're lucky. Those is static, it's not a dynamic environment where you can't think, you only have time to shoot. You can think for months of need be.

Second, what's going on here? We have two sides, deadlocked. Deadlocked so long they're bored to death. And yet there must be an undercurrent of passion to keep them out there, plugging away through the boredom.

Or something like that.

How would you paint that? Big questions: is it a dark and gloomy painting? A bright one? Is it colorful or monochrome?

Now, what's the view? Is it the whole scene? Is it a single face with a fragment of a sign? What captures the feeling you want to get at? Will a claustrophobic or an open feeling support your idea?

More detail. Are the shadows deep or shallow? Is the color, if any, rich or muted? What does snow do?

When you have a painting visualized in rough strokes, at least in terms of what elements should go into it, go out at the right time of day when the weather is right, and shoot for a while.

Look that stuff you shot. Anything you like? Probably not. But maybe, just maybe, you've got the germ of an idea. Maybe you scrub all the ideas you've had and run with the new one. Maybe you see how to refine your first idea.

It's not just about putting the actual detail of the actual scene down. That's journalism. It's about making a beautiful composition that also records the essence, or an essence, of the scene. That's street.

 

[Derrel]

...You up for a photo shoot of me makin' a plate of ham sammiches???

On white or whole-wheat?

Eight-grain, dude, eight grain!!!

 

[DanOstergren]

Regardless of whether the shots work or not, I still love the first one. I would love to talk with her and take an epic portrait of her holding that "I SUPPORT A WOMAN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE" sign.

 

[gsgary]

Robert Capa stated that If the picture isn't good enough then you're not close enough.

If Robert wants to stand in the middle of a very busy street to get the shot, he's welcome to do so! I waited probably five minutes to get these care-free shots.

Robert would have crossed the street.

So would I with a 28mm on my Leica and they probably wouldn't know I took there picture they probably spotted you with your big dslr and 70-200 ?

 

[Vince.1551]

The first pic holds a lot of meaningful content. Personally I'll crop the top a tad to keep a clean horizontal top and brighten the girl so as to make her stand out from the dark background. A little more space on the left will be great as well. Oh and I'll crop away the distraction on bottom right and clone away some effects on the right to enhance focus on subject matter


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[astroNikon]

My first street photography consisted of a street drain cover; a fire hydrant and a lamppost. So you're doing better than me.

 

[Forkie]

Yeah, that's not the most animated rally I've ever seen... Was it lunchtime or something?!

 

[Didereaux]

To the contrary I believe that your 'whole scene' shot is good. It just needs a title...maybe 'Has the passion gone?' As noted there are few people involved, and they all seem bored. So for an issue that used to bring out death threats this is a big change, and you have the story in one shot. Presentation is a big thing in street shooting...starting with the title.

 

[Overread]

I've read a few of the comments talking about how apathetic the people are and how that makes for a bad shot and that you need to find/wait for some action to happen. However that is just really asking to make thing easier.

It's easy to make action or extreme behaviour into a cool shot because the behaviour itself draws easy interest and focus. You can hunt for action or curiosities and that works- but I think if you want to really master this area you've got to learn to find the shot in anything. Even something so calm and peaceful as this. To work so that you can show the apathy through your lens and into the final shot. Life has given you lemons so you gotta learn to take photos of lemons not necessarily go hunting for pineapples.



Also as I recently started shooting a new subject area I can sympathise with the blindness a photographer can have. Learning to shoot a new event or type of scene requires learning how to see that event with new eyes. You've got a whole wealth of little things to pick up on - and big things too. You have to learn what you need to look for so that you know to look for it in the first place. You can learn part of that from others; but the rest is getting out there and spotting it yourself - and taking LOADS of dud shots. Loads of them - because each shot is an experiment and by doing it yourself you get to see the results first hand and have the experience of shooting them. Eventually you'll start to find your voice - you'll find the shots that work for you (or shots that work for others and help guide what you look for -- since for most of us what we come to shoot is a combination of personal and 3rd party input).

 

[Overread]

As a thought - for the first shot I feel its shot too wide. You've brought too many signs into things in my view and that has diluted the shot (at least in so far as emotion is concerned - its a good documentary of the event). I'd have considered portrait aspect and cropping closer - making the bag and woman into the two primary subjects of the shot (small association as she's looking toward the bag and the sign). Almost then making the shot emptier as she's looking toward someone who isn't there perhaps.

 

[sashbar]

Yeah, welcome to the club tirediron! You have great potential

No, seriously, once you "get" it , with your skills and technical prowess you will be shooting great street pictures in not time.

Oh, wait a minute, it takes A LOT of time, whatever the skill.

Street shooting is infectious and exiting, but be prepared for that: if you walk around for 5 hours, take 200 shots and come up with a single decent image, you are in the business (figuratively speaking). If you come home with nothing, you are still in the business as long as you are still hooked.

As one great, I mean GREAT, master of street photography once said, "99,9% of my shots are total failure" .

 

[gsgary]

Next time you go, go with a 28mm or 35mm and get in their faces within 12 feet

 

[JoeW]

Agreed; the idea that I want to get across is the "pros" on one side and the "cons" on the other, but at the same time, they don't really seem to care about it. IF that makes sense to anyone but me...

It makes complete sense to me. So your challenge then would be: how to I compose a shot that focuses on the juxtaposition of passionate positions with bored stiff representatives? Not sure what the answer to that is. Maybe intrude in the situation and ask the two groups to stand/sit together with their respective signs. Or ask the people to leave so we see only signs. Maybe a tighter crop. Maybe that's not composeable (if that's a word) with the elements you've got there without intruding.

And I forgot to say in my initial post...thanks for sharing. We often learn more from the good ideas (and this is a good one) that don't quite manage to work out then we do from the shots we conceptualize that work like magic. Appreciate you taking the time to share this and your thinking about why you took it.

 

[The_Traveler]

It isn't clear from the pictures what you are trying to show.
Sometimes the picture presents itself and sometimes you have to work at it.

 

[sashbar]

Robert Capa stated that If the picture isn't good enough then you're not close enough.

If Robert wants to stand in the middle of a very busy street to get the shot, he's welcome to do so! I waited probably five minutes to get these care-free shots.

Robert would have crossed the street.

Then I would have been too close...

You are never too close in street photography