Develop your street photography skills with these practical tips. Learn about the camera settings and lenses that you need to use in this style of photography.
You might know how to operate your camera gear well, and may have done great macros, table-tops, architecture-shots and even portraits, but could still struggle with Street Photography. And that’s because you have to work in a different environment – you have to leave your shell and expose yourself, you have to be among people and love people.
If you’re a beginner photographer (to this style), here’s how you should approach Street Photography.
What is Street Photography?
To those who are new to this style of photography, here are the basics.
Street photography is basically capturing what you see in everyday life around you. And just because the term ‘street’ is used, it doesn’t mean you have to shoot on the streets.
You can shoot at the beach, at the park, at the mall, in the bus or subway, at the airport (if its permissible), or in any other public place.
Street photography is another genre of photography where you capture subjects in candid situations, especially in public places. The ‘Street’ simply refers to a place where human activity can be seen, a place to observe and capture social interaction.
Its Usually ‘Candid’ Photography
Majority if the photographers will tell you that when it comes to street photography, you need to take candid shots (you don’t have to tell the subjects that you’re shooting them).
However, there are a few photographers who ask permission when taking pictures of strangers. They feel just because the subject knows that you’re clicking them won’t make the photograph less desirable; after all street photography is about capturing emotion, humanity, and soul.
The best pictures in this genre are usually candid ones, where photographers capture the current state of the human condition.
There are many who also call these pictures as “street landscapes”.
Need to Capture Emotions
If you’re studying more on this topic, the trouble is, most of the pictures that are shown as street photography hardly capture emotions.
So if you’re starting out, try capturing close images of a man reading a newspaper, or you may capture an old man/woman walking past a building.
If its not possible to capture the face, try capturing the gesture or capture the surrounding of the subject. This way the captured photographs will communicate some story.
A person talking on the phone doesn’t communicate much; you need to capture something “more” so that the viewer can identify with the picture.
Most novice photographers shoot street scenes without trying to convey an “emotion” or trying to tell a story (you learn that through experience though).
When it comes to a storytelling picture, you should get better at “framing”. So get rid of all the distractions that doesn’t convey anything and emphasize the story within.
So “cropping” becomes your most important tool.
Useful Tip: If you want to take your Street photography to a different level, look for storytellers on the street.
Shoot More
Garry Winogrand is one of the most well-known street photographers in the world. Hailing from New York, Garry was known for his portrayal of American life, and its social issues, in the mid-20th century.
Garry exposed three rolls of Kodak TRI-X black and white film (almost 100 pictures) on the streets of New York City every day for his entire adult life.
Winogrand died in 1984 leaving more than 2500 rolls of film exposed but undeveloped, 6500 rolls developed but not proofed, and 3000 rolls proofed but not examined (a total of a third of a million unedited exposures).
Want to achieve greatness? Get ready to shoot more and more.
Street Photography Tips
- Take minimum equipment and travel light
- Keep the Background interesting. Billboards, signs, graffiti and other visual elements can really make a photo stand out.
- Make sure your shutter speed is fast enough to capture the movements and get sharp shots. 1/125 or more with an ISO of 400 is what many recommended to start with. Feel free to experiment with slower shutter speeds – and capture the movements as blur.
- Watch out for street performers, skits, flash mobs, parades and other street entertainment, as they make for great subject matter.
- Zoos, fairs, shows, parks, sporting events, etc are other places worth trying.
- Anticipate moments
- Avoid surprising people or making them conscious. Best is to shoot at places where people expect street photographers around. Be polite and be willing to delete images if someone objects.
- At times, you may find something (person/place/thing) that you really need to capture. In such situations, it becomes difficult to stay away and not make yourself a part of the scene. That is when, depending on your confidence, it may go smoothly or it may not.
If it doesn’t, be open to explain your side; tell them its not personal and you’re learning/practicing.
Best books on Street Photography
- [easyazon_link identifier=”1576875776″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]Vivian Maier: Street Photographer[/easyazon_link]
- [easyazon_link identifier=”1138238937″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]Street Photography: Creative Vision Behind the Lens by Valérie Jardin[/easyazon_link]
- [easyazon_link identifier=”B00AJEAR32″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]The Essentials of Street Photography by James Maher[/easyazon_link]
- [easyazon_link identifier=”0500289077″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]Street Photography Now by Sophie Howarth, Stephen McLaren[/easyazon_link]
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What Camera to Use for Street Photography
Again, though the DSLR is suited for several styles of photography, including street photography, it can also be cumbersome to take around in crowded places.
Most experienced photographers nowadays prefer to use compact cameras for street photography.
Street smartphone photography is hugely popular now, and with phones having the ability to shoot RAW files, the post-processing options are huge. Personally, I feel shooting on the street is easier if your camera is compact and less complicated, just makes it easy to carry it around for hours.
You can continue using the camera you own until you’re sure that you like street photography and want to further explore it.
Irrespective, the more important thing to remember in street photography is to always have your camera with you. The best street photography opportunities will come when you least expect it.
Camera Lens Recommendations in Street Photography
When it comes to street photography, lot of experienced photographers opt for prime lenses (lenses that don’t zoom). The main advantages of prime lenses is that they are smaller, lighter, and will teach you to quickly frame street photos.
And even though zoom lenses allow you to get close to the subject (without disturbing them), there’s a saying in street photography: “Creepiness is proportional to focal length.” Therefore the longer your focal length, the creepier you generally look. Zoom lenses also make you lazy. The best street photographers get closer to their subjects, moving around, lying down, and experimenting with different angles.
Recommended prime lenses in street photography: 35mm, 28mm, 50mm
Street Photography Techniques
There are various techniques used, some to take good pictures, whereas others to avoid attracting attention as certain restrictions apply to street photography (in some countries).
Though you may use any kind of portable camera, a commonly used focusing technique is zone focusing, where you set a fixed focal distance and shoot from that distance, as an alternative to auto-focus, particularly using wide angle lenses with their increased depth of field.
Zone focusing also facilitates shooting “from the hip” i.e. without bringing the camera up to the eye. There are other methods used, specifically to avoid attracting attention to the photographer.
Alternatively you may use waist-level finders and the tiltable LCD screens of digital cameras to compose shots or to adjust focus without bringing any sort of attention to you.
Street Photography Settings
One question that most beginners have is what setting to keep on your camera for street photography.
- Most photographers choose the Manual mode in order to take full control of all the settings.
- If you use a wide angle lens (often focal length 24-35mm), you may use the aperture to around f/16 to get as much depth of field as possible.
- To capture the motion of moving objects, use a fast shutter speed (around 1/500s, depending on the light conditions and how quickly the person moves)
- For the right ISO, you may take a sample photo and adjust the ISO til it looks right. If your camera allows Auto-ISO in manual mode, use it and forget about the
- ISO. You may experiment with high ISO as well (remember, you can often reduce the noise in post production.)
Camera settings for street photography at night
- Increase the ISO: A grainy photo is often better than having a blurry photo, and most digital cameras have amazing high-ISO capabilities nowadays (even the latest point-and-shoots look great at ISO 800).
- Use prime lenses, they have aperture of 2.8, 2, 1.8, or 1.4. It allows the camera to collect more light at night, allowing you to get quicker shutter speeds.
- Focus manually: Autofocus is slow and inaccurate, especially while shooting at night. Focus manually and you will be able to focus quicker in general.
Rules
The best thing about this style of photography is that there are no rules to be followed; its the image that counts finally.
The best part about street photography is that you can take pictures of anybody on the street, so long as its from a public place (at least that’s true in most countries). You may even publish the photo for profits. In case you’re shooting someone specifically, its advisable to take his/her permission though.
So avoid having any self imposed rules early on, and feel free to experiment.
Shoot will various kinds of lenses – 24, 35, 50 or 85 mm lens, shoot in color and Black and White, shoot with or without flash, but make sure your photographs capture something expressive about the subject. Street photography also tells a lot about the photographer and his interaction with the subjects.
And though its extremely exciting to be able to shoot so many things, you also need to be cautious of your surroundings. You definitely don’t want your expensive gear to be stolen, when on the crowded streets.
Best books on Street Photography
- [easyazon_link identifier=”1576875776″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]Vivian Maier: Street Photographer[/easyazon_link]
- [easyazon_link identifier=”1138238937″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]Street Photography: Creative Vision Behind the Lens by Valérie Jardin[/easyazon_link]
- [easyazon_link identifier=”B00AJEAR32″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]The Essentials of Street Photography by James Maher[/easyazon_link]
- [easyazon_link identifier=”0500289077″ locale=”US” tag=”studiopsis04-20″ cart=”n”]Street Photography Now by Sophie Howarth, Stephen McLaren[/easyazon_link]
Street Photography FAQ’s
Question: What camera you need for street photography?
Answer: You can use any camera for street photography. And it definitely doesn’t have to be an expensive one. There are some street photographers who take amazing pictures using their smartphones. Checkout this site (collection of all street photography done using smartphones).
Question: Is street photography usually shot in in black and white?
Answer: Not really! It used to be done earlier because most of the photographers only had access to black and white films then. Today, most of the street photography is done in color. Feel free to experiment.
Question: Use Film or digital?
Answer: Again, use whatever suits you best, and feel free to experiment.
Question: Is street photography Legal?
Answer: In most countries it is legal, as long as your subjects are in a public space.
Learn Street Photography Courses
Street Photography can be performed by anyone who owns a camera. It’s available everywhere for everyone. But this does not mean that it is easy. You have to be a complete photographer with the knowledge of the technical skills, but also building up knowledge of human nature. You have to see things before they happen in order to be ready for the decisive moment.
Learn how to get over your fear, how to approach people and how to improve the creativity and quality of your photos.
Target audience: Novice Street Photographer, Advanced Street Photographer
In these courses, you will learn what is important when you are on the street.
– You will learn how to approach people – You will see how the instructor does it in some making of videos – You will learn about the right settings – You will learn what to do in order to increase your social media success
Also Read:
- Know your camera inside out
- Understand the basics of photography (aperture, shutter, ISO)
- Have a basic understanding of how light works
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