taking street photography photos w/ 35mm lens makes subjects mad

[limr]

I think shooting street with a 70-200 2.8 and trying to be discrete defeats the purpose lol.

Defeats what purpose? There is no single purpose in street photography, and no where does it say that you have to be right in the action, in someone's face. Andre Kertesz, for example, shot some beautiful street photography and he often used a longer focal length.

 

[bert0324]

I think shooting street with a 70-200 2.8 and trying to be discrete defeats the purpose lol.

Defeats what purpose? There is no single purpose in street photography, and no where does it say that you have to be right in the action, in someone's face. Andre Kertesz, for example, shot some beautiful street photography and he often used a longer focal length.

I think he simply meant that such a lens is not "discrete", not that he was referring to any purpose of street photography.

 

[nerwin]

Yes, I meant the lens not being discrete.

You can shoot street with any focal length but you may get some rather interesting looks walking around taking pictures of people with a huge tele!

I find using a discrete setup has a lower chance of being noticed but then again, I'm not someone who would shove a camera in someones face like Eric Kim.

 

[limr]

One doesn't have to be walking on the street in order to shoot "street."

Methods, techniques, gear - all this relies on exactly what one wants to accomplish. Close up, far away, discreet, non-discreet...there are many ways to accomplish these objectives.

To use Kertesz as an example again, his shot were often from above, featuring people in a wider context. Looking at his street photographs as a whole, it seemed to highlight the private moment in a public space, or isolation amidst a crowded city. He wasn't mingling, he was watching.

So maybe the lens isn't discreet, but how and where one uses the lens can be. And if someone wants to be out on the street, mingling, but still be discreet using a long focal length lens, then they don't have to use a huge dslr lens. There are smaller options available.

 

[The_Traveler]

There are many physical ways to be discreet besides using a small lens-camera body or being far away.
Stay with the movement of the crowd so that you're not visible as a boulder in the flow.
Move smoothly not erratically. Don't continually look through the lens at the world. Frame the image in your mind, make adjustments on the camera body before it's raised, then raise the body, take the image and smoothly lower the body again.

Don't stare at people, don't fixate on your target, keep your eyes moving.
Back when I was shooting demonstrations, I would circle through the crowd, shooting and once people got used to me being there, they ignored me.
Yesterday I sat in a coffee shop, read book, poked at a tablet, drank coffee, looked at pictures on my camera and eventually took some, no one noticed.
Have the idea and manner that nothing big or important happening here, just move along.

 

[Fred von den Berg]

I suppose it boils down to whether you get better results being discreet or discrete, which aren't quite the same thing. I personally like to be in close but still remain discreet, just minding my own business with a small camera; but in so far as I try not to affect the scene this means, hopefully, that I'm also discrete. When I really am discrete, at a distance with a zoom lens, I feel more awkward about things.

 

[The_Traveler]

How nice to see a discreet use of both discrete and discreet, each with its own discrete place.

 

[oldcamera]

I always use a 35mm on my Leica or Nikon. Here's an example from Oaxaca Mexico. http://borderzine.com/wp-content/gallery/david-smith-soto-street-photography/lovers-2009.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using ThePhotoForum.com mobile app

 

[The_Traveler]

I always use a 35mm on my Leica or Nikon. Here's an example from Oaxaca Mexico. http://borderzine.com/wp-content/gallery/david-smith-soto-street-photography/lovers-2009.jpg

Super picture.
Almost makes me want to shoot film to get this look constantly.

 

[jcdeboever]

I have had fun using my Instax Printer (fits in cargo pants pocket) when on the street. Most people are simply amazed by it and brings a great deal of happiness. To me, it's about having fun and hopefully make some people smile.

 

[table1349]

I'm just going to add this. It is part of an article I read quite a while back that I think not only provides some good in site but some food for thought.

"The Code:


Shoot with Respect.


Life is a two-way street. Shoot how you would want to be captured if you were on the other end of the camera. To me shooting from the hip is sneaky. Sneaky is disrespectful. I tried shooting from the hip. When I was finished I wanted to take a shower. Other photogs are fine with shooting from the hip, they call it stealth … and that’s okay, I don’t give a rat’s what others do. Shooting from the hip just isn’t me. Remember that you are on your subject’s street. That is where they work and play. It is their front yard and their backyard … treat it with respect.

Shoot in the Open


I prefer shooting everything with two cameras. One camera setup with for long and the other camera setup for wide, I don’t change my preferred shooting methodology for Street. I shoot with the EVF. I shoot with a camera bag hanging off a shoulder. I shoot in plain sight. That is part of the Challenge of Street for me, to capture the exceptional photograph according to my code.

I do not believe in stealth as a ‘real’ and effective camouflage for Street photography. I just don’t think it works well, if at all. I’ve seen photogs go to great lengths to hide the camera … to hide what they’re doing. They’ll tape the camera; hide the camera in a bag, et al. No matter what you do, it is still a camera. To me the only difference between a 1D with a 70-200 and an X100s is that the subject can see the 1D from a mile away and the X100s from half a mile. I find that ‘blending’ in works best for me. My stealth is to integrate into the Street, to hide in plain sight. I try to be as much a part of the street scene as a mailbox or street lamp. This is a mental thing. Similar to highly trained elite forces willing themselves to be a rock, or bush or tree. Blending in has served me well shooting news and shooting Street.

Appropriate Dress


When I shoot Street I dress as I would when shooting news. I wear closed-toed shoes, (no sandals), long pant (jeans or khakis), short or long sleeved shirt (no T’s or tank tops, no messages whatsoever), … I try to look ‘professional’ … as in I am working … as in I am not here for entertainment … as in this Street is not the Zoo.


Shoot and Walk


This is the shooting methodology I suggest for the neophyte. Shoot and walk, shoot and walk, shoot and walk. If someone gives you the evil eye or shouts at you just keep walking. Don’t stalk an interesting subject … if the shot is there grab it … if not don’t linger there will be another shot in another half block. As you develop a Street Sense you’ll get the vibe of the Street of the people around you and you’ll have a better sense of when to linger when to stalk and when to get the hell out. But until then, just shoot and walk. If someone starts a friendly conversation … participate of course. Speaking to a subject prior to releasing the shutter, asking for permission to take their photo, more often than not, will completely alter the image from what you first saw and desired to capture. So usually I don’t converse prior to shutter release. I tend to like some eye contact between subject and camera. I try to release the shutter at the very moment the subject recognizes the camera and before the mood I sought to capture is changed.

Be Aware


Always be aware of your surroundings and the people around you. When I’m not snapping away I’m moving … looking here … looking there … looking forward … looking back … looking at everybody. I’ve only been accosted once by non-security personal in all my decades of photography all over the world. That was in Los Angeles, my hometown. It was by this huge guy who I think had a mental problem. After taking his snap, he attempted to grab my camera. So I went back to basic, shoot and walk, and starting walking. He started following … well more like chasing as I weaved in and out of the pedestrians crowding the sidewalk. Finally I said to myself enough is enough and I ducked into a restaurant and the giant didn’t follow. Time for a break and I order a bite. I don’t eat/drink while ‘on-assignment’ shooting Street which is distracting and ties up one’s hands. I think my vigilance has reduced the odds of robbery and maleficence. Thieves, I presume, look for an easy target, a tourist with a coffee in one hand, bumbling around the street without any real direction, unaware of their surroundings, makes a much easier target than an alert professional with street smarts. Awareness may save your neck, your gear and will increase your keeper rate.



Identification


I always have a handful of business cards with me for those who are interested. The cards have my name, cell phone and website. Often I will carry a printout of “The Photographer’s Rights”. I’ve never had the need to pass that information out. The cards are a very good tool for lowering of tensions or in some cases complete disarmament and a cessation of hostilities. People respect, (remember that respect thing), if you’re working much more so than if they suspect you’re on holiday out for a stroll at the zoo.


Know Your Rights


Take the time to know what you can and cannot legally shoot. This has nothing to do with Respect or Challenge … just common sense. Do some research on the internet to familiarize yourself with your rights. Print out a few copies of “The Photographer’s Rights” and always take a few with you. The Constitution protects and ensures the Street photographer to work the streets. But there are a few catches like private property and an individual’s expectation of privacy. As an example, say a pedestrian has a wardrobe malfunction and disappears into an alley to correct the malfunction. There is an expectation of privacy created by the person diving into the alley and the Supreme Court states that expectation of privacy supersedes the fact that the person is in a public street. “So don’t go chasing that person into the alley, give them their space and respect.”


Remember that just because you have the legal right to capture an image, does not mean that you should.

Street Ethics


I tend to shoot everything … even kids. Yes, children. Children have no greater right to privacy than an adult. A mother bear type has never accosted me, frothing at the mouth, telling me about her children’s civil rights and of laws that don’t exist.


(Then again I’m not sneaky about how I shoot … which may or may not have any bearing.) Just because you legally can do something, does not make it ethically right. I no longer shoot the homeless. As a former journalist, I recognize that there are at least two sides for every story. I also recognized that my homeless photos were only telling my side of the homeless story. I knew what I had to do to shoot homeless with a fair and equitable presentation. So until I sit with them and spend some time with them and learn and capture their story … my images were exploitive at best. So I no longer shoot the homeless. For me, I don’t see a real challenge in shooting homeless. Unfortunately the homeless are plentiful and they usually are sedentary. What challenge is there in shooting something you see everyday that doesn’t move?


Think about what you are shooting. Think about how you would feel if you were the subject and the subject had the camera. Think about it when you take the shot and think about it later when the shot is processed. Often, shooting with Gestalt, can make an image whose principal value is shock into a meaningful sublime image. Shock can be great … but often shock is so overpowering that it becomes the only message.


Shoot by listening to what drives you … listen to your gut and heart."

Full Article:

This guy had a good career at street photography/news
photography and his wisdom about the matter might be something to think about.

 

[Gary A.]

Smart Guy.

 

[table1349]

Smart Guy.

No, that would be you.

 

[bribrius]

Haven't really had a problem but i dont do this much? Only if i see a "gotta have " shot i guess or i think i see something worth shooting? I have had police called on me 1 time. They looked through my camera photos and said i was in my "legal right" and left again. I was confronted once but eased the tension down. Most people just ask why or look confused. I usually have just said "it's something i do" and introduce myself pleasantly. The last one that got upset at me was actually ANOTHER photographer which apparently submits photos for a newspaper here and has a website but doesnt like his photo taken.. Odd eh? I hardly ever shoot street though unless i see something and happen to be there. And have little experience.

 

[bribrius]

Well i guess the lady running for city council was upset when i took a photo of her smoking a cigarette. So maybe their been a "few". Generally i dont bother people or do a lot of that stuff though. Well i guess the bank too. They said it was illegal to take photos in a bank. But they had me on video right? Certain people (you know if they look like they doing a drug deal or carry a weapon) you might be better off avoiding....