help with street photography

TheBiscuitMafia

TheBiscuitMafia

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Simon
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Hi there,
When on holiday recently i thought i would have a go at some street photograhpy, you know taking photos of people whilst going by doing their daily business. I got a look of odd looks and some people commenting. I just want to check, is it ok to take that kind of photography or doni need to ask premision first?
Thanks
Simon
 
OK, or not, depends on the culture and place.

Generally, if I was in London, which is a touristic place, then everyone is just about OK with it; those who aren't may comment but I'd ignore them. But I make sure not to be offending someone while taking their picture, for while the law may permit me to take the photo I want, I don't want to be upsetting people.
 
TheBiscuitMafia said:
Hi there,
When on holiday recently i thought i would have a go at some street photograhpy, you know taking photos of people whilst going by doing their daily business. I got a look of odd looks and some people commenting. I just want to check, is it ok to take that kind of photography or doni need to ask premision first?
Thanks
Simon
Click to expand...

Which country are we talking about? You don't generally need permission for street photography unless there are specific rules forbidding photography.
 
You need to get a thick skin if you want to do street photography, people will alway comment or give you weird looks. Just shoot and move on quickly before anyone says anything.
 
Odd looks and comments are natural. It is not a typical thing for someone to have their photo taken when they are out shopping and they have a right to wonder what the hell you are doing and why you are taking a shot of them in particular.
 
It's a tricky one and, although as far as I know, there's nothing in the law preventing it, some people do get funny over it.

I'd love to get proficient at street photography but do get a bit self conscious about upsetting people. I've found that finding a really busy place is handy as it's easier to be a bit more discrete. I recently spent a few hours in Camden Market and had a great time. Many stall holders seemed to have no issue with me taking pictures (except some of the jewellery stores who, to be fair, had clear signs up saying no photos).

I think the art of street photography is to be able to blend into the background and capture moments instantly without wasting time checking focus, exposure etc. Easier said than done and an art I am a million miles away from mastering
 
daveproctor said:
I think the art of street photography is to be able to blend into the background and capture moments instantly without wasting time checking focus, exposure etc.
Click to expand...

Exactly why I use a DSLR as it works so quickly. Focusing and metering is super quick which enables me to get very quick shots that are always in focus.

Have used slower focusing cameras and hit rate is much lower.
 
Quite a lot of street photographers use manual focus and manual exposure without any problems as it does at least mean the photographer remains in control. You can normally preset the focus and exposure and then take a shot almost instantly once you get the hang of it.
 
boliston said:
Quite a lot of street photographers use manual focus and manual exposure without any problems as it does at least mean the photographer remains in control. You can normally preset the focus and exposure and then take a shot almost instantly once you get the hang of it.
Click to expand...

At Camden Market I put my X100 on Auto ISO and Auto Dynamic range but I did struggle focussing sometimes with AF. Maybe next time I'll try MF and a relatively small aperture to get a decent DOF
 
Use zone focusing and manual settings and the hit rate should be pretty good once youve got the settings dialed in.

As for people making comments, Ive only ever had one, and it was this guy in the middle, infact I got him mid way through standing up to come up to me. He got right in my face and was very aggressive.
I simply smiled and was polite and calm and told him what I was doing. I offered to delete the photo, which he declined once he saw I was no threat.


DSCF1764 by TCR4x4, on Flickr
 
daveproctor said:
At Camden Market I put my X100 on Auto ISO and Auto Dynamic range but I did struggle focussing sometimes with AF. Maybe next time I'll try MF and a relatively small aperture to get a decent DOF
Click to expand...

Or just try a camera that focuses quickly :)

Zone focusing works but I like to use low aperture sometimes and it doesn't allow that. Getting low DoF is not a typical ask for street photography but I like it sometimes for certain subjects.
 
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