Progress stopped dead in it's tracks!

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bildo

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Bill
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I'm trying to experiment with photography and be a little more versatile. After buying my camera I knew I'd like motorsport so went straight in with a 70-300, which I really like. I feel I've progressed with motorsport photography quicker than I anticipated and I'm fairly pleased where I am so far considering.

Various other things I've tried shooting have been decent (things around the house, garden etc whilst learning the basics.)

Today I went on a trip to London with the gf, not the best idea admittedly since she's a little impatient and wants to go here there and everywhere.

I had been told that on a DX the 35mm was a great focal length for street shooting so I went with that.

When it came down to it, I was useless. Couldn't find anything really artistic and when I could the composition/frame just looked rubbish to me. Admittedly I was shooting in the middle of the day surrounded by the usual bank holiday crowds which wasn't the best. Even if I was being greedy with space and standing exactly where I wanted I still couldn't seem to get the shot to look right! :bang:

Is the 35mm rubbish, or do I just need to read up a little on street photography and grasp the basics?
 
Like every aspect of photography, you are likely to get your best results after much practice and experimentation. To expect to come away with winning street shots on your first attempy is a tad unrealistic. The lens/camera combination you have is fine, but you need to spend a long time at a promising spot and observe over a period how people, buildings and street furniture interact. You may spot an excellent composition of buildings and street furniture for example, but the shot may only be a winner when a person, dog, vehicle or other comes into the frame and just makes the scene something special.

TBH, do street on your own next time and take what time you need to do the job to your satisfaction. Then post your results here.

BTW,you don't need to go to London.
 
Hi Bob,
Thanks for your reply. I think I got off to a good start early on with motorsport and exceeded my expectations and now just feel I should be getting good results first time every time, which like you said is unrealistic!

I think part of my issue is like you say with spotting an excellent composition, out on the street I don't seem to be getting it yet. In all fairness, my motorsport photography has lacked composition, I understand and use the rule of thirds (when possible) but other than that it's a completely different ball game.

I think like you say it's probably down to a lack of time spent and taking snap shots and moving on etc. I can get a travel card for £10 so travelling to London isn't too difficult for me and certainly seems to have more to it than my local area.

One thing I do feel is that I'm struggling to work with the 35mm a little. Not sure if it just takes getting used to but I find it hard to have to be fairly close trying to point a camera at someone! Would something like the 18-105 VR be decent for this, or do I just need to work a little harder?
 
I would not recommend a longer lens for street as it detatches the image from reality and makes for a sterile feel. An old friend who has specialized in street since, it seems, cameras were invented, uses only a 28mm lens on full frame. He maintains, with a huge degree of credibility given his results, that people do not react to cameras, but to the person holding it.

From personal experience, it is amazing how close you can get to people without them noticing you are taking a shot. If they do ntice, then interact with them and explain what you are doing and why. You will almost always get your shot, though it may not have the immediacy of a candid.
 
Since I assume my 35mm on DX is nearer the 50mm mark, wouldn't the 18-105mm on 18mm be closer to 28mm if I was to use that anyway?

Would I lose sharpness moving from 35mm prime > 18-105mm if I did?

Would just be nice to have the option there if need be, there were a few things I missed today that I feel I could've had a chance of getting with 50-80mm for instance.

Either that or it is literally just down to seeing what works and what doesn't. Like you say, there seems to be a huge amount of talented street photographers out there who prefer the lower lengths so I guess it's me not the lens!
 
At the end of the day (how I hate that phrase!) you use what you are comfortable with. For me, street is not necessarily about ultimate sharpness, it is more an attempt to communicate a moment in time. You need to think about your scene and extract from it what you want to communicate. Then use the elemnts within that scene to build your final shot.

I would reiterate that shorter focal lengths seem to work much better as they give an immediacy to the image and make your viewer feel part of the scene rather than a mere observer.
 
Fair comments Bob, makes sense and I get where you're coming from.

What I don't have a full understanding of is where the advantage is with a 35mm, it might sound like an idiotic question but you see all the questions about people using a 28mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, etc. What are the disadvantages of using the 18-105 and switching between all four these as and when it is convenient? (Besides the 35mm's superior ability to shoot in low light of course.)

Sorry, I'm sure it's a real "newbie" question, but I'm struggling to see the advantages that being restricted to one focal length has.
 
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It's not a daft question at all. I prefer a short focal length prime for street because it stops me becoming lazy and relying on the zoom feature and taking shots at too long a focal length. You can of course use an 18-105, but I will guarantee you will take the "easy option" and shoot mostly at 105 thus producing "detached" images. You could swap primes, 28, 35,50,85 ad nauseum, but you will gain far more expertise practicing with say a 28 or 35 to develop a consistent approach.

Have a gander at this, it is a great source of tips:

http://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/street-photography-tips-and-techniques/
 
I get where you're coming from there Bob, a fair bit of it was also spent shooting architecture, buildings and general landmarks. I think this is the main place where I found myself missing the zoom, say for instance if you're on a bridge trying to shoot the London eye and it can't fit in the frame, this was where I wanted the flexibility the most.

I see what you're saying about the street shooting though, definitely makes sense. I'll go back soon and give it another shot on a quieter day.

I'll get reading through that link tomorrow too, I have no doubt it'll be extremely helpful after having a quick peek.

Thanks a lot for your help! :)
 
Also go by yourself, or with a like minded person.
For the street stuff just find an interesting corner or location and observe for a while and you will start to see "moments" occurring.
A standard zoom can be fine (or a P&S camera), especially if you want to capture a few scapes as well, in reasonable light.
 
Getting an interesting street photograph is difficult and the spontaneity involved in very different to motorsport photography. For motorsport you are relying on techniques that once learnt mean you can "do" motorsport shots.

The camera and lens is fine and the 35 gives you a good field of view to capture most things.
 
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