How close to shoot?

[robertdfeinman]

I just looked at a roll of street images I shot awhile ago. I had stationed myself at a single spot and shot people walking towards me with a 50mm lens.

I prefocused at a distance where I could capture the entire person with a bit of "air" around them and where the depth of field would cover if they were a bit closer by the time I fired the shutter.

I wasn't happy with any of the images. The people were too small in the frame and walking people all tend to look pretty much the same. I've tried doing something similar with a 90mm, but then the focus becomes more of an issue. I'm not quick enough to get close and focus before I affect the subject by my presence.

These constraints are because I have a continuing series where I extract the subject from the background and I need a good view for this to work.

Here's a sample of what I'm talking about:

Street People

What do you do? Shoot stealthily or become part of the scene by being noticed? I wonder if an autofocus wonder camera might be a better choice. I don't have a camera with autofocus, but my wife has a modern film SLR which I could see getting used to when focusing interferes with timing and framing.

 

[gb hill]

Don't try to be stealthy and become a part of the scene. Get closer to the subject. Use a wider lens than a 50mm. I like a 35 but there are others here that go wider.

 

[Ducky]

I can't answer the question but that's a very good series. A lot of time in it, I wish you success with it.

 

[Nh3]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dipT...eature=related

watch him carefully. don't try to act like him right away but watch his moves and listen to him carefully.

 

[williams473]

Robert,

I don't think you need to change anything in terms of getting closer, except I think the little halo around the subjects needs to go. I know using the lasso or poly tool in Photoshop is tedious, but I'd consider doing one in which you take it right to the edge of the subject and don't feather at all, so that the edges are crisp right to the white - I'd try one just to compare.

This group of images is refreshingly exciting to view. The elimination of background gives the impression of a study of the clothing, then posture, and the occasional prop (like the image of the guys leaning on the mail box.) It's as if these are wax figures, or maybe hand drawn illustrations recording how people look in our day and age. I think the very fact that the figures are captured full length really, really works here. And the normal perspective works, too. Any wider of a lens and it wouldn't really have the same quality. I hope the finished prints have a good bit of that white negative space around them. Nice work - keep at it!

 

[Dektol Dan]

My two cents

My two cents

I really want to be positive about this instead of always being the resident curmudgeon, but I really don't know what you are trying to accomplish. Maybe a little insight into street photographer slang might help; words like 'mugfaker', 'butt collector', snapper, reptile, etc.

'Clickity clickity, yr a far far fartographer . . . So u need a Crumpler farto bag (that’s photo if u don’t know!) . . . It’s clucked up with Chicken Tex and ripstop lining . . . U can get big and small camera tools inside (deep inside) . . .there’s mesh to keep evrathun safe, there’s a Prince Charles seal (minus his lip wax), internal lid seals, it’s all adjustable, there’s velcro and elastico film and card holderos; some have got yr Third Legstabilisers – do we have to go on? Take a photo of the bags with yr eyes, slip yerself down to the darkroom, stick yerself thru that weird water****e then pop out of it with a Crumpler photobag for a head.'

I think the goal of street photography is to connect your subject with his/her/their surroundings and with artistry add a touch of ethos/commentary/sympathy. Of course, the levels of creativity come into play where shock is at the lowest level, journalism resides somewhere in the middle, and the poetic sublime is at the top.

Look at your work and ask yourself if you are meeting these goals, or are you just a butt collector?

I'm sure what lens you choose matters for naught.

 

[Bike Tourist]

This is an interesting approach, one which might interest stock agencies requiring clean graphics with white backgrounds. Of course, model releases would be required, moving it out of the realm of the practical.

I must say, though, that when I see the title "Street People", I am expecting to see people in context — that is, with backgrounds intact. To me you add to your burden since the characters must tell the whole story without benefit of contextual background, without benefit of the "street".

Keep on experimenting and exploring!

 

[robertdfeinman]

The link I supplied was to my earliest attempts. I've modified the presentation a bit in later sequences. I minimized the drop shadow (and perhaps improved my masking a bit).

As to my "added burden" I think it brings up a theme that I hadn't realized while shooting. Many of the images are of people who are oblivious of their surroundings. In other words their isolation on the page mirrors their mental isolation from their environment.

I think this is true even of the tourists I've shot who are clearly focusing on the sites they are staring at. I've got a bunch taken at Rockefeller Center and also a collection taken near the World Trade Center site. While they are certainly aware of what they are looking at, they are still unaware of what is happening at their elbow.

I don't know how true this is of the rest of the world, but in NYC each person seems to exist on their own trajectory in their own space-time.

 

[Dektol Dan]

The Shadow's Nose

The Shadow's Nose

I shoot 'in yer face wide'. My biggest worry is getting my shadow in the shot. I almost always talk with my subjects because thats the most enjoyable part of street photography for me. I LOVE people and I hope my shots convey that.