Street Photography 101 - By Gord Barker

    So I woke up the other morning and, after the prerequisite two cups of coffee, opened up the photos section of my laptop. My plan was to sort through, edit and perhaps print some photos for some possible upcoming shows. The last photo I had uploaded to the computer was this one. It was the first picture I looked at that day.

                                                   At first glance it's kind of a nothing shot. Just a young couple walking over a bridge with a lot of traffic going by. But look more closely. They're both smiling or laughing at something. Perhaps a joke or a funny story. They are in their own little world. They are oblivious to the traffic going by. They are oblivious to the scruffy old photographer who just took their picture. They are connected in a beautiful moment. Look closer still. He's reaching for her hand. He hasn't quite got it yet. But he wants to make their connection even more complete. If you want to know what love looks like, well... I've got a picture of it.

     From a photographic standpoint, it was a lucky shot. I managed to capture them in a nice shaft of light. A few seconds more and they would be in dark shadow. When I first saw the shot, I considered cropping in tight to focus attention on the couple. But cropping in that tight would have reduced the resolution of the image. It was already a tad out of focus because it was a quick grab shot. The light that they're walking through as well as the light posts and bridge rail all serve as leading lines to direct the viewer's eyes to the main subject. The picture stands on its own. 

     So the title of this post is, "Street Photography 101." I can almost hear some of my readers asking "So old grey bearded camera slinger, what exactly is street photography?" The answer to that  question is wide open to interpretation and is something that has been debated in the photographic community for decades. Some say it's only a street photograph if it shows people. Some say it's only a street photograph if it was taken in black and white. Some go so far as to say it's only a street photograph if it was taken with a Leica camera ala Henri Cartier-Bresson, Garry Winogrand or  Joel Meyerowitz. To all of the above definitions I say hogwash! My definition of street photography is pretty broad. "If I was on the street or in a public space  when I took it, it's a street photograph!" I don't have time for silly nuanced debates. I want to make and process photographs with the gear I've got at hand!

     So for me, street photography can cover a pretty wide range of subjects. Sometimes it can even be the street itself captured with some beautiful morning light.

    Street photography can also be as simple as a quick portrait. A dear friend and I had attended a photography exhibit at the Art Gallery of Hamilton. Inspired by the photographs we had seen, we hit the streets to do some photography ourselves. We stopped for a coffee at a local coffee shop and I couldn't help but notice the nice window light illuminating the face of the patron sitting near to us. I approached him, explained who I was, and asked to take his picture. He agreed to my request and asked what I wanted him to do. My response, ''Nothing. Ignore me. Pretend I'm not here.'' I went back to our table and made this shot. I later showed it to him and gave him my card so that he could send me an email if he wanted a copy of it.        

    So sometimes all the elements come together. Let's see. I've got beautiful window light, interesting lines and angles in an old coffee shop, an agreeable subject for the human element and some inspiration that comes from seeing a very good photo exhibit in an excellent gallery. Kinda hard to go wrong here!

    Sometimes a good photo can be made from just seeing life going on around me.

Look around. Sometimes look up. For me, part of the joy of street photography is often seeing things in a way that others don't see. In the words of American photographer Dorothea Lange, ''A camera is a tool for learning to see without a camera.''                                                               

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Often a good photograph can be made simply by the juxtaposition of the main subject against an interesting background. For example. a photo of a woman checking her cell phone in front of a wall mural that reads ''Everything is much more connected than we think.''              

 

                                               

    Sometimes a street photograph is nothing more than a simple depiction of life on the street.  

                                                                                                                                                           And sometimes a street photograph can be simply capturing an interesting interplay of light and shadow on an everyday subject.                                                                                   

                                                                                                                                                                                                         Street photography can be as simple as an image taken while having a chat with a friend or acquaintance. My friend, Pat, was on her way home after dropping her grandchildren at their parents' place. I couldn't resist taking a picture of the stuffed critters in and clipped to the bag she was carrying. 

                                                                                                                                                           Street photography usually doesn't require a lot of gear. Some of the best street photographers, like Henri Cartier-Bresson and Garry Winogrand, worked with one camera and one or two lenses. Probably the camera you have now will do the job. In a pinch, a cell phone will suffice. The trick is in learning to use it quickly and, in the words of Cartier-Bresson capture ''the decisive moment''. My street photography kit usually consists of two small Fuji cameras. A Fujifilm X100F and a Fujifilm X70. When not in use, they are carried in a Domke F3 super compact camera bag that also allows me to carry a few essentials of photographic life. (spare batteries, spare SD cards, a notebook and pen, my cell phone etc.) I find that it's a kit that I can comfortably carry all day if necessary. 

    Okay. so I've let this blog post run a little long. Clearly, this is a genre of photography that I could write about all day. But if you haven't tried it, grab a camera and get out there! I can almost guarantee that you will learn a lot about photographic technique, using the gear, composition, timing etc. You'll learn a little about yourself, your personal vision, interacting with people and your environment. You'll learn about the essence of life itself, captured forever in fractions of a second. Ultimately that is what the practice of the art and craft of photography is all about.

               ... more later