One of photography’s most challenging, but also most creative and greatly rewarding genre is street photography. Here the photographer has no pre-conceived notions of what he will be shooting, no idea of what he will find when he sets out on a walk around town. Street requires being comfortable with immersing oneself in the spontaneity of the ever-changing scene ahead; going forth with eager anticipation of starting with an empty slate and then painting a great picture.
It can be a bit intimidating as you engage with people, either by asking permission to shoot a portrait or by surreptitiously snapping a photo of people in motion. Candid exposures can be the most fun, most rewarding of all street work. These shots also demands great timing and serendipitous readiness. A great street photo can spring up in a split second, and disappear just as quickly.
The street portrait is a very simple concept. The photog stops a person who has an interesting look or way about them and asks permission to take their portrait. One must appear confident and relaxed in order to make the stranger feel safe and to inspire eagerness to participate. Once agreed to, the task is pretty simple: ask the person to pose in different and interesting ways, keeping an eye on the background so as to make a great finished portrait.
The candid shots can be taken while standing in one spot and watching all of the action that moves spontaneously around the shooter, or while one moves through the city streets, ever ready to stop and snap an image when something catches the eye; perhaps a child skipping along a sidewalk, or an old couple arduously walking across the street. Or even a still life scene of an interesting bicycle posing next to a front porch.
Street photography is most often processed in black and white. Removing color from the scene allows full focus on the picture’s subject and little on the background. It also creates a mood not found in color images. [See my Blog Post on Monochrome here]