Birmingham street photos

[ChrisCummins]

Hi all,
so I decided to join the 'dark side' and pick up a digital camera, and for the past couple of weeks I've been stalking the streets with it and having a lot of fun. I thought I'd share my images here for your review and hopefully to pick up some constructive criticism and opinions. Not only is this a departure from the film photography process for me but also it represents a first 'true' endevour into street photography, as I've always been an admirer from the sideline.

Here's some shots from yesterday, I'd love to hear your thoughts:

I popped on the little onboard flash and tried to channel the spirit of Bruce Gilden haha

Regards,
Chris

 

[sar-photo]

Excellent shots Chris! Do you just shoot and run?

 

[ChrisCummins]

Thank you, every shot is different - but I tend not to ask, since I don't like the results. In the pic of the guy with the St Patricks hat on, I had a brief chat with him afterward and asked to take another picture but at that point, the photographs looked like 'here is a photo of my friend I took' fodder, which doesn't appeal to me. On the other hand, the smoking suit guy was totally cool with me, I move quickly so people's reactions aren't particularly significant, I just stay courteous and thank everyone. If they talk to me I talk back, if they don't like it I apologise.

Chris

 

[ChrisCummins]

As this is an x100 thread, I should just add that the camera is not especially fast. With manual focus and Aperture priority exposure mode, there's still a minor delay between framing and the shutter opening, which could prove to be a problem if absolute response time is especially important to someone.

 

[Austerby]

I think they're decent photos of people I don't know.

What they're not doing is showing me that you have an eye for an interesting situation or an amusing juxtaposition, or an illustrative context.

The closest ones to these are the St Patrick's day chap - as that's a good photo of a type of person you do occasionally see in UK cities - and the guy in the suit, contrasting his look with the rather sad little alleyway he's standing in.

The others are grab shots - technically good, but they don't really show me much.

I hope that makes sense - I'm trying to give some constructive feedback here: you're certainly doing better than I've ever managed and no one said street photography was easy. Keep at it please!

Edit: I've come back to look at the photos and the second one with the woman with the modern hair style and the shop sign behind "Laser Hair Removal" is actually the best of the bunch for me.

 

[rbelyell]

yes, i think everyone is different and perhaps wants different things from 'street' photography. part of me philosophically feels the same way, that if the frame is full of a 'person', that subject should be doing something interesting, or have an interesting 'look'. for me, i like street shots with more in the frame to provide context, or tell a story, like the woman in the phone booth, more of a 'scene' if you will. i think my philosophy is its less about a random 'capture' than it is being a storyteller, or focusing on the less typical. as an example, with someone smoking, perhaps wide open aperture focused directly on the cigarette, something like that...

really hard i guess to put it into words...

 

[ChrisCummins]

Hey Austerby, I really appreciate the critique, and for teaching me a new term (grab shot). It's something I'll keep in mind next time I'm out and about, and rbelyell I think you're thinking along the same lines.

Anyway, here's a few more shots I've taken with it:

Best regards,
Chris

 

[jsrockit]

Very interesting...