Go figure, a feature-length documentary about street photography premiers in Toronto.
Can't wait to see it though. I'm a big fan of Meyerowitz so far.
Last edited:
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
f/8 and be there. A discussion of Street Photography.
- Thread starter soco
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Go figure, a feature-length documentary about street photography premiers in Toronto.
Can't wait to see it though. I'm a big fan of Meyerowitz so far.
Well, I'd like to chip in some personal experiences. I am no way a "pro" and I'm purely a hobbyist. But street photography has always been my favourite kind of photography.
How I view street photography is that we live in such a chaotic world nowadays. In just one day for an average city dweller, on his way to work and back, he would have caught so many glimpses of so many other people's lives - all of them are interesting, but because of the information overload in modern times, we just "see and forget" these precious moments.
Street Photography, to me, is to capture these moments and emotions in pictures so we can appreciate everyone's lives in the world today.
Also, IMO, Street is the hardest kind of photography. Things happen in an instant and disappear the next moment. One must really have the instinct and attention to notice something interesting - a facial expression, a fleeting moment, an emotional event etc. These things really last for <1s. To me, it's really hard to compose, aim, focus and shoot in such a short time.
I've done landscapes and portraits, these are technically not easy, where we have to understand lighting, cloud, time of day etc to get it right. But we can take our time. Street is different - it is fast, at the moment, and most importantly, if not captured, we would probably never see the same moment ever again. That's why I think it is the most challenging.
Just my 2cents. Here's a pic
![]()
Motor-cart ride by charpi123, on Flickr
How I view street photography is that we live in such a chaotic world nowadays. In just one day for an average city dweller, on his way to work and back, he would have caught so many glimpses of so many other people's lives - all of them are interesting, but because of the information overload in modern times, we just "see and forget" these precious moments.
Street Photography, to me, is to capture these moments and emotions in pictures so we can appreciate everyone's lives in the world today.
Also, IMO, Street is the hardest kind of photography. Things happen in an instant and disappear the next moment. One must really have the instinct and attention to notice something interesting - a facial expression, a fleeting moment, an emotional event etc. These things really last for <1s. To me, it's really hard to compose, aim, focus and shoot in such a short time.
I've done landscapes and portraits, these are technically not easy, where we have to understand lighting, cloud, time of day etc to get it right. But we can take our time. Street is different - it is fast, at the moment, and most importantly, if not captured, we would probably never see the same moment ever again. That's why I think it is the most challenging.
Just my 2cents. Here's a pic
Motor-cart ride by charpi123, on Flickr
I hear ya charpi, I feel, as an amateur in the very beginning stages of learning, that street photography in particular kind of just jumped out at me.
I love the idea that if you think about it like a picture per day, I can take 365 pictures of a beach sunset, or a building facade, or even an artic tundra, and within reason, I'll have 365 very similar looking pictures. All with unique beauty and interest, sure, but pictures of sunsets, buildings, and tundras nonetheless.
With street photography, stand at a street corner and take a picture a day, heck, even take 365 pictures a minute. Each moment brings with it a new chaos. It's amazing.
I personaly find that as long as you have a purpose when taking the street shots than you're doing the right thing. As other people mentioned here, you need to be able to have a shot that anyone can see and feel the situation. Anyhow, I'm far from being a pro in street photography but had to take some shots when the temperature fell 40 degrees below 0
![IMG_8679.jpg]()
If anyone here has the fold out LCD back on their camera, try setting it so you have to look down at it and shoot from chest level or slightly lower. This perspective is akin to early street photography and similar to twin lens cameras such as Yashica, Rollei, and single reflex box style cameras ranging from blads, rolleis and true box cameras. Some of you might be amazed just how different the perspective is and in particular people who are tall.