Comments on: Ways of Working #1 (Get over it)

By: Kelly Williams

Kelly Williams — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 02:48:33 +0000

Thanks so much for posting this; these are great lessons for all photographers.

By: sean

sean — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 14:20:17 +0000

hi
your article is really helping me out a lot. I try to read over and over again. Is it okay to post these “Ways of Working” to my blog?

thanks

By: Graphicghreg

Graphicghreg — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 02:51:10 +0000

Points well made, especially paragraph #4. Diane Arbus was not a street photographer, she was a portraitist. Once the photographer has influenced the event,it is no longer street photography other than the fact that it may have been recorded “on the street” or other public place. That does not mean that the subjects cannot be aware of the camera as in Cartier-Bresson’s image from Spain
http://www.afterimagegallery.com/bressonalicante.htm

By: David

David — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 22:14:15 +0000

A comment about asking permission. Do it after you’ve captured that moment, that look, that interaction when your brain stopped you and said, “Oh.. take a picture of that!” because as soon as that moment is gone you can’t get it back. People will let you know if they are offended either by words or gestures, and if they are stop immediatly, apologize, and move on. When someone notices that you’ve taken their picture and doesn’t mind it’s best to approach them and explain what you’re doing, even if you don’t have a reason, and at least say thank you. If you’re lucky you’ll make a friend and if not it’ll be ackward and you’ll move one step toward being more comfortable taking pictures of strangers. By doing this you can get the back story of what or why a person was doing whatever you photographed and possibly get access to a small part of their time/life that may give you an intimate image - the kind of picture that goes beyond candid photography, when people let you in you can see it in the images you come away with.
Anyway, I’ve digressed from my point…. short story; a long time ago I went hiking in california with some friends, my friends continued and I reclined on a rock to read. A girl came along and asked to take my picture. I stopped reading, sat up a bit, and smilled. She took the picture, we talked briefly and she went on. In retrospect I wish she would’ve taken a picture first, because the image she walked away with is much less than what she saw in her mind that made her stop and ask permission. So if you come across someone and feel that it’s worth taking a picture, just do it. If they don’t notice, take several. Chances are they’ll be flattered you even bothered to.

By: Justin Bonaparte

Justin Bonaparte — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 04:55:45 +0000

Nice article, looking forward to reading the rest of it.

By: KeithT

KeithT — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 14:08:35 +0000

Great tips to be had here. However, I think walking around with a hand-held lightmeter a bit excessive…lol. Candid is supposed to be spontaneous, so I like to use all that the camera offers to get the shot and move on quickly. Some times I set the distance to 10 feet using manual focus and shoot at the lens’s optimum of f4 through f8. That way the camer becomes a point and shoot. But each to his own of course. Just enjoy taking images that’s my motto.

By: Becki Dickinson

Becki Dickinson — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 01:58:22 +0000

What a great resource for me as I am about to embark on a street photography course taught at the Duke Center for Documentary Studies. I’ve always suffered with my own internal struggles when approaching strangers so I will imprint rule #1 into my brain.

By: myla

myla — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 13:50:09 +0000

M, just wanted to let you know we’re featuring you and WOW in the discussion group at ESP today.

By: ndiginiz

ndiginiz — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 18:50:41 +0000

Tena koe ehoa
Straight to the point, very good.
Yes drop your labels and inhibitions and just get on with it? Well perhaps.

Learning to relax in a street environment (public arena) is half the battle. For some people there is the quintessential and habitual fear of people (public interaction) in any public arena. So if you’re considering being a photographer and a street photographer at that you’re pushing, “you know what up hill with a shovel”, from the get go.

Common courtesy or “smiling” as you suggests goes along way to bringing down the walls of inhibitions from both sides of the camera as does conversation. I have often found that people are capable and willing to have their photograph taken candidly or otherwise if you are willing to converse with them if only for a moment.

Perhaps something else to consider also is the aspect of cultural idiosyncrasy where some cultures have a definite dislike to “having their soul captured” as in the case of some cultures of the south pacific. That is not to say the entire cultural population is of that “antiquated or spiritual” mindset but, it pays to bear in mind that some members of a particular culture may have such a cultural idiosyncrasy and you could be on the end of a severe “I’ll take that camera and shove it up your”…. if youâ€™re not careful, learned and observant.
Yes I would say drop your labels and inhibitions and just get on with it but understand the cultural idiosyncrasies and diversity that exists in all street environments and learn to decipher them as a means of courtesy to those you capture and your self.
After all, what we want is to maintain is a sense of photographic integrity to the subjects as well, yes?

I think you’ll find that then creates “an even stronger indelible connection to the moment” as a result and for my humble thoughts “street photography is about moments” and how we see, relate/interact and document those moments.

By: admin

admin — Tue, 17 Oct 2006 04:49:54 +0000

One thing I’ve been discovering is that a big, wide, honest smile is worth its weight in silver. (Shoulda been gold, coulda been gold.) And straight-up honesty, as in, “I love how your shirt matches this wall” or whatever. Honesty, rather than gulped-back guiltiness has been helping me, lately.

Then again, fudging the facts works, too.

Then again, some people have such inflated senses of themselves, that they wake-up wondering if today will be the day where they can smack a camera just like it-person-of-the-hollywood-moment and stomp away.

Then again, cameras ARE annoying!