Quick Salon Updates
*If you missed it, there is a new guide called The 10 Commandments of Commenting (and Posting). It’s a 5-minute read that I highly recommend.
**Yesterday, I asked the question, “What’s your biggest struggle right now with your photography? Or aspect of it that you want to improve at?” I found the responses to be very interesting, so check out the comments and add your own.
***Challenge results will probably be next week along with a new challenge. We got a lot of entries!
Important Tips for Candid Street Photography
One of the most difficult but rewarding aspects of street photography is becoming comfortable with the candid aspects of it.
It is the early major learning curve, but once you learn to get through this, the sky is the limit.
Eventually, the idea of getting close and comfortable photographing people will start to feel easy and normal (to some extent), but there are some street photography tips and strategies that can get to you this point much quicker.
Overcoming Fear (and What to Say if You Get Caught)
This is a powerful thing to realize – if you can talk to people the right way about what you are doing, you will become much more comfortable with street photography.
The goal of course is to not have everyone stop you. You can get close and shoot in pleasant ways that will generally keep people from asking you what you’re doing, but it still happens, and the key is to be obvious about it.
When someone stops me, I smile and flatter them. I tell them I’m a photographer doing a project on the area and I had to capture the scene with them as they looked great. I smile and act like I didn’t think I was doing anything wrong because I wasn’t.
This goes a long way and usually ends in a pleasant conversation. I sometimes offer to send them the photograph as well.
But in the situations where the person is still uncomfortable, offer to delete the photograph and apologize. Legally you don’t have to of course (in the U.S., U.K., and most of Canada at least), but it’s the nice thing to do.
On a similar note, I also want to highlight that the more comfortable you look and act while photographing, the more people will disregard you.
Over time, you will figure out a way of carrying yourself out there, which will make this type of photography much more comfortable.
People will notice you no matter what, so acting sneaky from afar will get their attention, while smiling, getting in the action, and looking like you’re having a great time photographing will put people’s guards down so that they leave you be.
And finally, the only way to fully get comfortable is to just to get out there consistently and push yourself a bit more each time. With enough of this, it’ll eventually become second nature.
Linger and Let the Action Come to You
One of the reasons I love street photography is because I love to get lost and explore. I love to walk as a way to escape. The camera is just an extension of that.
But stopping yourself in an area with good potential and waiting for good things to happen is one of the most important things you can do.
Waiting gives you time for those special moments to happen, particularly in areas with interesting backgrounds and lighting.
Those magical moments where both the background and subject look incredible – that is very often due to waiting in the right area.
What this also does is allow you to get closer to your subjects in a much easier way. This helps a lot with the fear of street photography. Because you are already there waiting, your subjects will be entering your personal space instead of you entering their space. This changes the dynamic significantly.
It also allows you to notice people earlier on since you will be more perceptive of your surroundings.
Walk Slow and Don’t Take Things for Granted
Taking this technique further, when working with photographers, I often notice that some seem constantly on the move looking for that new place and disregarding what’s around them.
Take it slow and try not to disregard anything. Many of the best photos are hiding in plain sight in the most mundane places.
Some of the most interesting photos are of things that you see every day and might disregard because of that.
So if you notice yourself thinking that you’re in a place where you can’t possibly get a good photograph, use that as a challenge and slow down to see what’s really under your nose.
I think you’ll be surprised.
Acting
David Herman
As a street photographer, you can benefit from a little acting if you are going to try to get close to a subject while being inconspicuous.
And I mean acting subtly. You just want to pretend that you don’t notice the subjects right in from of you.
Avoid pointing your head directly at your subject or making eye contact. There is something evolutionary about eye contact that will make a person immediately notice you.
Instead, try to look through the person, as if you are looking at something behind them and slightly to the side. Act as if you’re focused on something else. This will tend to make you look like you are a little spaced-out or engrossed in something.
Maybe you are engrossed in a building or something happening across the street and the person just happens to be in the way.
You can even aim up at a building first with your eye in the viewfinder, then move the camera to the person to take the shot, and then aim away from them again. This way, it just looks like you are looking around with your camera.
Karen Covey
I like to just look like I am walking around daydreaming, thinking about what I want to photograph, just lost in my surroundings, and looking in a slightly different direction from what I want to photograph.
It’s sneaky but it works incredibly well.
When walking towards a subject, I will consciously ensure that my path intersects with then and then I will stop as if I am gathering myself or as if I see something interesting around them.
This is not how I always shoot, a lot of times I shoot directly but very quickly so that the subjects will barely notice, and then I will quickly move on. This is where a small camera and prime lens can help.
But the acting strategy is very important when needed. Sometimes there is no way around it and you just have to be sneaky to get the right photograph.
Travel Light and with Minimal Gear
Ian Gross
You can do street photography with any camera, from an SLR to a phone. But I highly suggest giving a mirrorless camera or any camera with a prime lens a try.
Lightening your load will give you much more energy to walk around and get in position for the right shot without being noticed. You will be faster with your camera, more intuitive, and more inconspicuous.
It will also allow you to carry your camera around much more often, which is the most important key for this type of photography.
Prime Lenses
There can be a fear of missing out when putting a prime lens on your camera. What if I miss that shot because I don’t have a zoom? Yes, you’re going to miss some shots without a zoom.
But I think this restriction will benefit you and allow you to come back with more great shots in the long run.
You will eventually learn to see how the lens sees. It will become second nature.
If you use a prime constantly, then you will get used to the perspective and it will make you much faster and more spontaneous. Because of the fast-moving nature of street photography, any tool that makes you quicker is a big advantage.
I prefer to use 35mm and 50mm (full-frame equivalent) prime lenses, which allow you to get close and intimate with your scenes.
Camera Settings and Street Portraits
We’ve covered both these topics in previous posts, so you can read them here (Camera Settings for Street Photography | Street Portraits).
It’s important to know your camera settings well so you can almost forget the camera is there so you’ll be able to focus more on the moments in front of you.
And street portraits are not necessary to do to be a street photographer, and they may make you more nervous than candid street photography, but trying street portraits can also be a good gateway into the genre.
Act Like You Belong
Jonathan Snyder
Always walk around with a smile and keep an air of confidence like you belong there and there will be much less of a chance of you being noticed or of people caring if they do see you take their photo.
The more you look and act like you belong there, the less people will notice.
Sometimes, if you stand in the middle of a sidewalk intersection, you will be so obvious there that people will give you no thought. It is usually the time where you try to hide and slink in the background that people will notice you.
And if you get caught, just acknowledge the subject with a friendly smile. If they are curious, complement them and explain what you are doing. Always act friendly and confident and never defensive about what you are doing.
Go With Your Gut
Part of the art of candid street photography is going for it – feeling that a moment is going to happen and then reacting and taking the photo without a thought.
Usually, these photographs won’t pan out or will be terrible, but when they work they will create some of your best work.
Photo Links!
- Gus Powell’s Lunch Hour
- Watch the But Still, It Turns Mack replays. I suggest On Place with RaMell Ross & Curran Hatleberg and On Sequence with Gregory Halpern & Stanley Wolukau-Wanambwa
- The Artist Upending Photography’s Brutal Racial Legacy
- Stephen Shore: Photography Isn’t Very Good at Explaining (about Steel Town)
- New York Streets with Daniel Arnold
