Street Shots

canon400dcanon400d Banned Posts: 2,826 Major grins
edited January 31, 2013 in Street and Documentary
A few street shots I took recently.
Bob
1
Cherster11-X2.jpg
2
Cherster12-X2.jpg
3
Cherster16-X2.jpg
4
Cherster21-X2.jpg

Comments

  • bfjrbfjr Registered Users Posts: 10,980 Major grins
    edited January 29, 2013
    #3 what's he smokin ?? !! mwink.gif
    Benjamin
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  • canon400dcanon400d Banned Posts: 2,826 Major grins
    edited January 29, 2013
    bfjr wrote: »
    #3 what's he smokin ?? !! mwink.gif

    A cigarette roll up.
    Bob
  • bdcolenbdcolen Registered Users Posts: 3,804 Major grins
    edited January 29, 2013
    Why?
    bd@bdcolenphoto.com
    "He not busy being born is busy dying." Bob Dylan

    "The more ambiguous the photograph is, the better it is..." Leonard Freed
  • michswissmichswiss Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 2,235 Major grins
    edited January 29, 2013
    It looks like you're working on shooting people "in the wild." It's hard if you're not used to it. What's missing though is some form of juxtaposition, interaction or composition that helps complete the visual. That's the "why" in B.D.'s comment. There needs to be more happening in the frame. Something to draw us in.
  • canon400dcanon400d Banned Posts: 2,826 Major grins
    edited January 30, 2013
    michswiss wrote: »
    It looks like you're working on shooting people "in the wild." It's hard if you're not used to it. What's missing though is some form of juxtaposition, interaction or composition that helps complete the visual. That's the "why" in B.D.'s comment. There needs to be more happening in the frame. Something to draw us in.

    This is the first time I have ever taken any street shots and I must admit it was not easy and haven't done any since. In these shots I thought they were actually showing someone doing something, not a lot. However, the rest of the people passing I thought would amount to very boring shots.
    Bob
  • kixsandkixsand Registered Users Posts: 107 Major grins
    edited January 30, 2013
    Using a wider lens would have helped. 28 - 50mm is typically the range where street photographers live. Not sure what you used here but it feels like 85mm or more unless these are heavily cropped.

    I'm still learning the genre myself, but I can tell you that it is called "Street" for a reason...the best images seem to make the scene at least as big a part of the image as whomever happens to be part of that scene. Interaction between the subject and the scene in interesting ways is all the better...
    Darren
  • canon400dcanon400d Banned Posts: 2,826 Major grins
    edited January 30, 2013
    kixsand wrote: »
    Using a wider lens would have helped. 28 - 50mm is typically the range where street photographers live. Not sure what you used here but it feels like 85mm or more unless these are heavily cropped.

    I'm still learning the genre myself, but I can tell you that it is called "Street" for a reason...the best images seem to make the scene at least as big a part of the image as whomever happens to be part of that scene. Interaction between the subject and the scene in interesting ways is all the better...

    I was using 5D mk11 with 24 -105 lens. Would these have been better in mono?
    Bob
  • kixsandkixsand Registered Users Posts: 107 Major grins
    edited January 30, 2013
    Wider would have been better...I'm looking at that third image with the gentleman on the park bench. I see other benches adjacent and quite a few old codgers sitting about. I expect that there's a row of shops or something along there as well. I think a shot that framed several of the old fellers sitting in a row with the shops as a backdrop would have been a wonderful street scene! Otherwise you're just shooting people with a long lens...which feels to me an awful lot like surveilance photos.
    Darren
  • kixsandkixsand Registered Users Posts: 107 Major grins
    edited January 30, 2013
    I'll make one other point - not sure if others would agree or not and that's why I'll make it. Discussion on this point requested!

    I don't think I would have posted the first and second images. When I shoot street I accept responsibility for the presentation of others in my photographs - if my image is particularly unflatering or degrading or takes advantage of their situation (ie. homeless people), then I don't post it. Most of the time these people that have the starring roles in my little photographs, don't know that they're being photographed. As such, I feel that there is an unwritten contract between me and them where I've agreed to work in their best interests up to a point. Ideally, I'd like to think that the people in my photos would be unoffended if presented with the image and maybe even happy with how they look.

    I think the first two shots fail on this account. Maybe not the second one if it was presented on it's own...

    I'd be very interested to hear what others here think about this.

    darren
    Darren
  • canon400dcanon400d Banned Posts: 2,826 Major grins
    edited January 30, 2013
    kixsand wrote: »
    Wider would have been better...I'm looking at that third image with the gentleman on the park bench. I see other benches adjacent and quite a few old codgers sitting about. I expect that there's a row of shops or something along there as well. I think a shot that framed several of the old fellers sitting in a row with the shops as a backdrop would have been a wonderful street scene! Otherwise you're just shooting people with a long lens...which feels to me an awful lot like surveilance photos.

    I take your point here Darren: I think you mean surviellance. I did surviellance work for 14 years when I was on the Regional Crime Squad.
    Bob
  • canon400dcanon400d Banned Posts: 2,826 Major grins
    edited January 30, 2013
    kixsand wrote: »
    I'll make one other point - not sure if others would agree or not and that's why I'll make it. Discussion on this point requested!

    I don't think I would have posted the first and second images. When I shoot street I accept responsibility for the presentation of others in my photographs - if my image is particularly unflatering or degrading or takes advantage of their situation (ie. homeless people), then I don't post it. Most of the time these people that have the starring roles in my little photographs, don't know that they're being photographed. As such, I feel that there is an unwritten contract between me and them where I've agreed to work in their best interests up to a point. Ideally, I'd like to think that the people in my photos would be unoffended if presented with the image and maybe even happy with how they look.

    I think the first two shots fail on this account. Maybe not the second one if it was presented on it's own...

    I'd be very interested to hear what others here think about this.

    darren

    With regard to the first two photos I was in conversation with him for some time before he purchased his roll and I asked him if I could take his photo. He agreed to this and after I took them I showed him the photos on the camera and I have since sent them to him.
    I totally agree with you about taking degrading shots but I do not think that these four fall into this category. I often see photos of unshaven filthy guys which I would consider could come into the category of degrading images.
    The last two shots had no knowledge of the photos having been taken.
    Bob
  • kixsandkixsand Registered Users Posts: 107 Major grins
    edited January 31, 2013
    Well, if he liked them, you're all good!
    Darren
  • canon400dcanon400d Banned Posts: 2,826 Major grins
    edited January 31, 2013
    kixsand wrote: »
    Well, if he liked them, you're all good!

    Thanks Darren. I still take on board everything you have said. I think what is one mans meat is another mans poison and the same goes with a lot of photos one takes.
    Bob
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