5 Tips for Better Street Photography


This is especially evident in the 1st photo, the lady upper body look completely darkened by shadow.
Sorry to dig this up but does anyone else feels the same?
Or isit me dunno how to appreciate this kind of photos.
I have no ill intend just a curiousity to find out and know more.
TS, hope you understand. Thanks:cheers:

Trying to help a little, so how about this...... What do u see in the picture? ( besides the darken lady)?

If you list them down, it'll be a helpful exercise for all... :)
 

I also see a man next to the lady with a semi darken face. Assuming that the subject is the smaller boy in the centre then I feel that the two darken adults are totally distracting and the composition of the photo can be improved.
 

This is especially evident in the 1st photo, the lady upper body look completely darkened by shadow.
Sorry to dig this up but does anyone else feels the same?
Or isit me dunno how to appreciate this kind of photos.
I have no ill intend just a curiousity to find out and know more.
TS, hope you understand. Thanks:cheers:

I understand and this was intentional. The young boy, my son Ian, was the focus of the image. Had I used fill-in flash (or dodged the faces in PS), attention would have been split from him, especially since he is relatively small in the frame.

It was an artistic choice rather then a technical one.

I also see a man next to the lady with a semi darken face. Assuming that the subject is the smaller boy in the centre then I feel that the two darken adults are totally distracting and the composition of the photo can be improved.
This uses the same visual principal as vignetting...darkened outside area to focus attention on a brighter center. How is it distracting?
 

Vignetting will be a good method to apply if the background is less busy and the the two dark adults more out of focus.
However in this case the 2 dark adults look like mountains( made worst by the patch of shadow that is the ladies face, distracting the views attention from the boy.
A tighter shot with the boy appear bigger in proportion to the frame will make the shot more precise and understandable.
I am no expert just sharing how I view the shot.
 

I think its pretty alright, light coming down from on his son as the main point of the picture & high darken contrast on the rest of the picture.

I think this is more of an artist pov than technical pov for me.


For me I like street pictures with multiple subjects in picture or as HCB would say, the decisive moment.

Unfortunately a lot of photographers these days just think that street is shooting people walking in the crowd, crossing traffic lights with the super tight crop? With a tele lens sniping in the corner.....

I feel that when shooting street, one has to be up close & study your subject, blend in, see a moment & go for it. Such pictures usually have a good mood etc.

Just my 2 cents.....

Can check out magnum photos:
http://www.magnumphotos.com/Archive/C.aspx?VP=XSpecific_MAG.AgencyHome_VPage&pid=2K7O3R1VX08V
Slightly more to photojournalism but its a good place to check out.
 

For me I like street pictures with multiple subjects in picture or as HCB would say, the decisive moment.

Unfortunately a lot of photographers these days just think that street is shooting people walking in the crowd, crossing traffic lights with the super tight crop? With a tele lens sniping in the corner.....

I feel that when shooting street, one has to be up close & study your subject, blend in, see a moment & go for it. Such pictures usually have a good mood etc.

Just my 2 cents.....
The core of street photography is the capturing candid interactions between subjects within the context of their environment. If you use a tele, you separate the subject from their environment...it's more like "street portraiture". I did an 18 month stint as the street gallery director at deviantArt.com and had to deal with this sort of thing all the time. Basically, it boils down to people being uncomfortable with photographing strangers, so instead of trying to overcome their discomfort, they try and get away with fudging the definition of the genre.

http://bqw.deviantart.com/gallery is where the majority of my street photos are housed.
 

Last edited:
The core of street photography is the capturing candid interactions between subjects within the context of their environment. If you use a tele, you separate the subject from their environment...it's more like "street portraiture". I did an 18 month stint as the street gallery director at deviantArt.com and had to deal with this sort of thing all the time. Basically, it boils down to people being uncomfortable with photographing strangers, so instead of trying to overcome their discomfort, they try and get away with fudging the definition of the genre.

http://bqw.deviantart.com/gallery is where the majority of my street photos are housed.

Interesting shots!

I shoot mainly on film, no money go digital :bsmilie:

& I do mostly B&W film because I got everything from bulk loading to processing all at home. & I dont really enjoy waiting for the lab to process my color C41 films, so yea, sort of permanent B&W shooter.

Yep, I do agree on shooting in the scene itself as the photographer "interacts" with the subjects. My choice is usually 35mm or 50mm, nothing more or less.
 

Interesting shots!

I shoot mainly on film, no money go digital :bsmilie:

& I do mostly B&W film because I got everything from bulk loading to processing all at home. & I dont really enjoy waiting for the lab to process my color C41 films, so yea, sort of permanent B&W shooter.

Yep, I do agree on shooting in the scene itself as the photographer "interacts" with the subjects. My choice is usually 35mm or 50mm, nothing more or less.
I guess you can say I'm in the process of "migrating". I still have my tanks (1x5 roll tank, 3x2 roll, & 2x1roll) a couple of bulk loaders, and chems. In fact, one of the bulk loaders still has some tri-x in it.

I also still have a pinhole camera (shots) and 4x5, too ;)
 

I guess you can say I'm in the process of "migrating". I still have my tanks (1x5 roll tank, 3x2 roll, & 2x1roll) a couple of bulk loaders, and chems. In fact, one of the bulk loaders still has some tri-x in it.

I also still have a pinhole camera (shots) and 4x5, too ;)

Lelong some over to me when you are done with them!
 

I find the first picture to be evenly exposed on the surroundings, but under exposed on the faces of the people, which is the main focus in the shot.
 

I find the first picture to be evenly exposed on the surroundings, but under exposed on the faces of the people, which is the main focus in the shot.
The main focus of the photo is the boy, who is central to the frame and brighter then anything else in the composition. ;)
 

The main focus of the photo is the boy, who is central to the frame and brighter then anything else in the composition. ;)

Ah, didn't really notice him there, he's too small in the pic and blends in with everything else.
Maybe you should zoom in more on him - oh wait, you only had a prime lens! :bsmilie:
 

Ah, didn't really notice him there, he's too small in the pic and blends in with everything else.
Maybe you should zoom in more on him - oh wait, you only had a prime lens! :bsmilie:
Sharpness, quickness, and less distortion over convinience always ;)
 

Sharpness, quickness, and less distortion over convinience always ;)

Zoom lens are sharp, and you don't have to fully extend the zoom to the point that there's distortion. I don't really see sharpness as the top factor in B&W shots.
 

Zoom lens are sharp, and you don't have to fully extend the zoom to the point that there's distortion. I don't really see sharpness as the top factor in B&W shots.
I know they are, and it's always relative to the medium, too. Sharpness is equally important for b&w and color. In terms of lenses, b&w shooters value tonality over contrast and vice versa for color shooters (i.e. higher contrast = better color separation).

Zooms distort at both ends...so you can use one so long as you stay in the middle ;)

Yes, I have a zoom, too. And since I've started shooting more digital I've used it about half the time.

The other thing I like about primes is their size. I like being able to throw a good camera & lens into my normal day messenger bag. This is especially important for something like street photography. Want a zoom that's as fast as a prime? Forget putting it in a briefcase or messenger bag. You'll need a dedicated backpack.