This week, we started exploring different genres of photography, starting with Street Photography. From the assignment:
By definition, street photography is a candid genre which tries to capture the human experience.
1. Does it require a street? No.
2. Does it require a human face? Nope.
3. Do I need a model release? Briefly: No.
4. Do I need permission? Again, no. BUT, you may decide it’s better for you to ask. I know (especially where my own children are concerned), I prefer to be asked before someone takes pictures. This is at your discretion, but you should weigh the pros and cons and decide what’s right for you.Tips:
Travel light. Carrying a lot of gear not only makes you and your objectives immediately recognizable (and, we know people immediately act less candid when they sense a camera), but a ton of gear’s going to get pretty heavy by the end of the day. Don’t rule out your phone camera if you have one.
Choose whether you want to be incognito… or daring.
Practice being quick. People are fast moving targets, and sometimes capturing just the right moment (an expression, a body position) means the difference of a millisecond. This is one of those very rare times that I am going to suggest a shooting mode other than Manual – sometimes AV or TV are your friend – and street photography might be one of those times.
Your own kids can serve as great decoys or additions to the story.
For those of you who cannot bring yourself to photograph a stranger: Don’t forget that there are many opportunities around you that do not require a face, or even human presence in order to be considered street photography.
So this week, between buying a house and everything else we had going on, I went up to Golden for lunch with Renee, Sara, and a NY editor in town visiting family, and got some fun shots of the streets:
Including my favorite, and this week’s winner:
No blog circle this week, but hopefully I’ll get back in the game next week, when we tackle food!
