SPF
Newbie
Many have suggested that you check out other photographers. I'd second that.
I'd also suggest that you think hard about what it is that you want from your photography.
I can't help but notice that you live in Toronto where the streets are probably still pretty chilly right now.
But Toronto is also one of the planet's most diverse cities. Refugees and immigrants from around the world make it their home. I can only imagine the photo essays waiting in those communities or in your own.
W. Eugene Smith died before he saw his Philadelphia project fully realized. You should check out his work in a little book called "Dream Street." It's his paean to his hometown, its industry and its people. Has anyone made a document of Toronto's life and people?
He approached the project as a journalist or as a documentary photographer. With the exception of someone like Winogrand, who truly did burn film in search of an interesting image, most good photographers or storytellers, of any stripe, develop a through line to their images.
I'm fairly certain that Robert Frank set out across the US with the idea of "sucking a sad poem onto film" as Jack Kerouac put it in the intro to "The Americans." He shot on the street but some of the most compelling images in that book come from funerals, barbershops, men's rooms, restaurants and bars.
Contrast his images (which I am an ardent admirer of) with those of photographers who get inside their subject's lives. Frank was an outsider and kept his distance. It worked for him and HCB and Winogrand (who is enormously over rated in my book save his "departures" series from shortly before he died.)
See Mary Ellen Mark or Larry Towell, who followed a group of Mennonite farmers (from Canada!) for years for "street style" aesthetics and shooting style but an entirely different method of connecting with subjects.
Good luck.
I'd also suggest that you think hard about what it is that you want from your photography.
I can't help but notice that you live in Toronto where the streets are probably still pretty chilly right now.
But Toronto is also one of the planet's most diverse cities. Refugees and immigrants from around the world make it their home. I can only imagine the photo essays waiting in those communities or in your own.
W. Eugene Smith died before he saw his Philadelphia project fully realized. You should check out his work in a little book called "Dream Street." It's his paean to his hometown, its industry and its people. Has anyone made a document of Toronto's life and people?
He approached the project as a journalist or as a documentary photographer. With the exception of someone like Winogrand, who truly did burn film in search of an interesting image, most good photographers or storytellers, of any stripe, develop a through line to their images.
I'm fairly certain that Robert Frank set out across the US with the idea of "sucking a sad poem onto film" as Jack Kerouac put it in the intro to "The Americans." He shot on the street but some of the most compelling images in that book come from funerals, barbershops, men's rooms, restaurants and bars.
Contrast his images (which I am an ardent admirer of) with those of photographers who get inside their subject's lives. Frank was an outsider and kept his distance. It worked for him and HCB and Winogrand (who is enormously over rated in my book save his "departures" series from shortly before he died.)
See Mary Ellen Mark or Larry Towell, who followed a group of Mennonite farmers (from Canada!) for years for "street style" aesthetics and shooting style but an entirely different method of connecting with subjects.
Good luck.
williams473
Well-known
Just a quick correction - Eugene Smith's work that is collected in "Dream Street" was made in Pittsburgh, not Philly, and he wasn't a native Pittsburger. In fact he was very self conscious about trying to make the work look like it wasn't done by an outsider.
He considered the project a colossal failure, but from another photographer's perspective, it is a fascinating book because the guy who put the book together includes lots of letters and history from the period of Smith's life - and the book shows how frustrating it can be even being a famous photographer! The book is cheap - 20 bucks new on Amazon - I'd recommend picking it up if you're into Smith and/or photo history.
He considered the project a colossal failure, but from another photographer's perspective, it is a fascinating book because the guy who put the book together includes lots of letters and history from the period of Smith's life - and the book shows how frustrating it can be even being a famous photographer! The book is cheap - 20 bucks new on Amazon - I'd recommend picking it up if you're into Smith and/or photo history.
Nh3
Well-known
Thank you! it was quite uplifting to read all the encouraging advice and tips, I really appreciate it and I already feel refreshed.
Thanks SPF and william. I'm a great admirer of Gene Smith and I consider him as one of the greatest photo artists. I have also considered following his approach but the problem is that I don't have any credentials. Do you think i could get access by simply saying I'm a photographer and not a professional? I do have a lot of ideas but I'm hesitant.
Its human nature to search for meaning in what we do and especially what we love to do. So its time for me to do something more meaningful. I have some ideas but its a question of breaking the ice.
Thanks SPF and william. I'm a great admirer of Gene Smith and I consider him as one of the greatest photo artists. I have also considered following his approach but the problem is that I don't have any credentials. Do you think i could get access by simply saying I'm a photographer and not a professional? I do have a lot of ideas but I'm hesitant.
Its human nature to search for meaning in what we do and especially what we love to do. So its time for me to do something more meaningful. I have some ideas but its a question of breaking the ice.
SPF
Newbie
Thanks for the corrections on Smith, Matt. I'm sorry to say my copy of Dream Street is in storage. Still, I should have googled to check some of those basic facts.
N3h: Access is always tough. Even top journalists struggle with it. People are often guarded and wary of someone with a camera. But I think if you ask a lot documentarians who have gained the trust of a group or a person they'll often tell you that they first approached without a camera and got to know their subjects, then started shooting.
Public events are often a good place to start. There's a certain expectation that photographers (pro and otherwise) will be there. Hand out cards and promise to send images to people. Hang out and chat. Explain your project. You'll probably leave with a half-dozen new ideas.
Thanks for your original posting. I struggled with the meaning and purpose of street shooting myself a few years ago. I ended up gravitating towards documentary work which has felt much more substantial and meaningful.
N3h: Access is always tough. Even top journalists struggle with it. People are often guarded and wary of someone with a camera. But I think if you ask a lot documentarians who have gained the trust of a group or a person they'll often tell you that they first approached without a camera and got to know their subjects, then started shooting.
Public events are often a good place to start. There's a certain expectation that photographers (pro and otherwise) will be there. Hand out cards and promise to send images to people. Hang out and chat. Explain your project. You'll probably leave with a half-dozen new ideas.
Thanks for your original posting. I struggled with the meaning and purpose of street shooting myself a few years ago. I ended up gravitating towards documentary work which has felt much more substantial and meaningful.
williams473
Well-known
Nh3, I have to second SPF - getting to know people first is a great way to do meaningful work. Having a rapport with your subject frees you up to stop worrying about decisive moments and getting hasseled by police and the public, and enables one to focus completely on making images. It is a much more comfortable way to work.
Among other projects, I did a series of images with a family I lived with on a farm in WV for 3 months. It was one of the most enjoyable projects I've ever worked on - I had free reign of the farm, and spent as much time doing farm work as shooting, and when I did work it just flowed out. Of course the farmer and his family had no problem with me being there, so it was great to be able to move where I wanted, get right on top of them when I needed for close up work - whatever. Maybe you could even start with family or\ friends - find a story there somewhere.
Also - keep a journal (it doesn't have to be daily) and try writing about the process - recroding frustrations and successes will help in the process of sorting yourself and your photography out. Don't worry about spelling and don't edit it or put it out for anyone to read, or you will start writing to an audience - just record your thoughts and feelings, with your goal being to come toan understanding of how photography is fitting into your life.
Matt
Among other projects, I did a series of images with a family I lived with on a farm in WV for 3 months. It was one of the most enjoyable projects I've ever worked on - I had free reign of the farm, and spent as much time doing farm work as shooting, and when I did work it just flowed out. Of course the farmer and his family had no problem with me being there, so it was great to be able to move where I wanted, get right on top of them when I needed for close up work - whatever. Maybe you could even start with family or\ friends - find a story there somewhere.
Also - keep a journal (it doesn't have to be daily) and try writing about the process - recroding frustrations and successes will help in the process of sorting yourself and your photography out. Don't worry about spelling and don't edit it or put it out for anyone to read, or you will start writing to an audience - just record your thoughts and feelings, with your goal being to come toan understanding of how photography is fitting into your life.
Matt
T
tedwhite
Guest
What Matt said about the journal.
Postscript: A journal is emphatically NOT a diary. A journal is where you record your thoughts, impressions, ruminations, etc., and it's something you can come back to and read when you want to, and it certainly doesn't have to be done daily. As a photographer you might want to try translating a visual image into language - the way something looked, and the way you felt about the way it looked, and why you were attracted to it.
Postscript: A journal is emphatically NOT a diary. A journal is where you record your thoughts, impressions, ruminations, etc., and it's something you can come back to and read when you want to, and it certainly doesn't have to be done daily. As a photographer you might want to try translating a visual image into language - the way something looked, and the way you felt about the way it looked, and why you were attracted to it.
Alm3000
Member
I completely get not being in the mood. For me though, i need to be inspired, something must trigger me to go out and shoot. Most of the time though i gather my camera and some film; just about to leave the house and i loose it...I realize at that point that there is nothing out there for me to take pictures of. I've done (At least in my area) everything to death. There are no people walking around in my suburb, if there are, they will try to interrogate me if they see me photographing them. I don't really want to deal with that. All thats left are parks and the woods. NYC is only 30 minutes from my house, but i rarely feel like taking the drive. Mostly because, i was under the impression the last time i went that people in general seemed angrier/more unpleasant then usual. So shooting in the city puts me off now.
Bingley
Veteran
I don't have much to add to the thoughtful advice and commentary already posted in this thread. I'm an amateur who likes doing street photography precisely b/c it forces me outside my comfort zone, and also forces me to look more critically at my surroundings. I see street photography as a process of developing and improving powers of photographic observation (such as they are). And sometimes the results turn out OK (Varjag's post above resonated w/ me).
benedictjames
Member
Clouds!
Clouds!
Join the cloud appreciation society (seriously!) ...
http://www.cloudappreciationsociety.org/
It'll take you as far away from street photography as you can get - not one street, building or person anywhere, but a mighty good creative challenge in trying to get beautiful and meaningful shots of just pure or mostly sky and all its glorious lightings and cloud formations!
I'm a street photog too, and then I found these cloud people a couple years ago and have been re-invigorated with photography generally, which gets me a fresh motivation for ALL of it, street stuff included. Do the sky stuff for 6 months, and the street stuff will also regain its attraction once again as something different. It's so great - you'll love it (especially if you just get a simple fuss-free shooter also to do it with, like I did with a little Olympus Trip 35 (and try it with Velvia!) - which is not as drastic as one person's suggestion of leaving your gear at home!
Only downside is you easily get a stiff neck from looking up all the time ... but a good massage once in a while soon sorts that (and gets you more relaxed generally, which is a good way to be when looking for photographic inspiration : )
Clouds!
Join the cloud appreciation society (seriously!) ...
http://www.cloudappreciationsociety.org/
It'll take you as far away from street photography as you can get - not one street, building or person anywhere, but a mighty good creative challenge in trying to get beautiful and meaningful shots of just pure or mostly sky and all its glorious lightings and cloud formations!
I'm a street photog too, and then I found these cloud people a couple years ago and have been re-invigorated with photography generally, which gets me a fresh motivation for ALL of it, street stuff included. Do the sky stuff for 6 months, and the street stuff will also regain its attraction once again as something different. It's so great - you'll love it (especially if you just get a simple fuss-free shooter also to do it with, like I did with a little Olympus Trip 35 (and try it with Velvia!) - which is not as drastic as one person's suggestion of leaving your gear at home!
Only downside is you easily get a stiff neck from looking up all the time ... but a good massage once in a while soon sorts that (and gets you more relaxed generally, which is a good way to be when looking for photographic inspiration : )
Nh3
Well-known
Today I did some documentary style photography and then went for a walk with my camera and got some shots... I felt a lot better and I feel as if the worst of the "burn-out" is over... I got some wonderful advice in this thread and also the sense of empathy and understanding was simply wonderful.
Thank you all and here is one of the pictures from today - and coincidentally its about clouds.
Thank you all and here is one of the pictures from today - and coincidentally its about clouds.
benedictjames
Member
There ya go!!
two40
Member
There are so many people doing street and since I like it I tend to gravitate towards that in any community I'm a part of. That has been my problem. I'm sick of seeing utter tripe. Boring image after boring image of people in the street walking up and down the street. Maybe talking on the phone, maybe lighting up a smoke or scratching their head. So what? Why should I care anymore after seeing so much of the same crap? The final straw is seeing fools with 200mm lenses calling themselves street photographers. It bugs me and it's putting me off doing it myself.
There are so many other things to explore in photography that to lose interest in street is sometimes a blessing in disguise.
Bill Blackwell
Leica M Shooter
I really don't get it... Is someone making you do it?
There are other types of photography to try/consider (and other hobbies/jobs altogether for that matter). So stop doing it for awhile and move on to something else.
You may just find your passion will return after you've been off of it for awhile (or not).
Photography (and music too for that matter) has always been a hobby for me. For many years I did wedding photography as a “side job”. About 15 years ago I decided I didn't like it any more and just quit - my hobby was becoming work and I wasn't enjoying it any longer. I had even stopped taking my camera with me on vacation.
Over time my heart returned to photography, but I haven't shot a wedding since!
Florian1234
it's just hide and seek
As being pretty new to "real" photography in general - and street photography being one of the most interesting things one could do - I just returned from a short walk in my local city (Bremen, Germany that is), where I finished one 36er roll of XP2.
For the first time ever doing something like "Street" it was a pretty cool and very pleasing thing.
Well, I had some concerns at first and was kind of shy, but today I got something like that I kicked myself and just went out in the city and shot some stuff what looked interesting to me. Hope to get the (maybe crappy) results around thursday or so.
For the first time ever doing something like "Street" it was a pretty cool and very pleasing thing.
Well, I had some concerns at first and was kind of shy, but today I got something like that I kicked myself and just went out in the city and shot some stuff what looked interesting to me. Hope to get the (maybe crappy) results around thursday or so.
Bigeejit
Member
Don't Be Shy
Close One Eye
& Shoot with the other.....Pitxu gave good advice,go without a camera for a few day's and you'll miss shot's you'd wished you'd got.How about taking your Cam. up the riverbank,which is kinda less agressive than on the street.Not sure about the River in Toronto,but here in London I often go for a "dander" up the Thames when I wanna test a camera and somthing always pops up.And shooting with an old banger 35mm I 'aint worth mugging.Keep shootin' and the street is half the World...Liam
Close One Eye
& Shoot with the other.....Pitxu gave good advice,go without a camera for a few day's and you'll miss shot's you'd wished you'd got.How about taking your Cam. up the riverbank,which is kinda less agressive than on the street.Not sure about the River in Toronto,but here in London I often go for a "dander" up the Thames when I wanna test a camera and somthing always pops up.And shooting with an old banger 35mm I 'aint worth mugging.Keep shootin' and the street is half the World...Liam
Nh3
Well-known
I'm glad to report that i have recovered and the 'burn-out' is behind me... But I'm still taking my time and these days I'm mostly shooting landscape and spend time alone with the camera and mediate.
R
ruben
Guest
I am going to disagree with most of the writers here, but I will be happy not to enrage them.
If you feel you are fed up with street photography, you should follow your feeling without fearing insulting street photography or missing something. Nor you are sick.
There is no ready-to-follow path for those fed up with street photography or with any other genre. So most of the chances are you will face hard times in settling within a new genre or back with street photography in some other way.
Don't be afraid from this tortuous path, be curious about it. Let your emotions dictate your path, but exclude fear. The path may be long, but it will be truthfull.
You are an individual mind and heart. Let this individuality reveal upon you without any kind of desperation. One day the clouds will vanish and a bright horizon will appear. Trust yourself.
Cheers,
Ruben
If you feel you are fed up with street photography, you should follow your feeling without fearing insulting street photography or missing something. Nor you are sick.
There is no ready-to-follow path for those fed up with street photography or with any other genre. So most of the chances are you will face hard times in settling within a new genre or back with street photography in some other way.
Don't be afraid from this tortuous path, be curious about it. Let your emotions dictate your path, but exclude fear. The path may be long, but it will be truthfull.
You are an individual mind and heart. Let this individuality reveal upon you without any kind of desperation. One day the clouds will vanish and a bright horizon will appear. Trust yourself.
Cheers,
Ruben
Last edited by a moderator:
marke
Well-known
Ruben, I liked your advice. I came from the opposite direction last year. I had been shooting wildlife for the past 6 or 7 years, when I slowly began to feel a pull away from it. What happened shortly after that was a complete surprise.
I have always avoided the city like a plague. But I started dating a professional opera singer. I often had to meet her downtown before a rehearsal. Well, I ened up LOVING the city and have spent the past 2 years shooting nothing but street!
Long story short, I bought my first house this past January and that opera singer and I were married in February! Never in my life could I ever imagine where I have been over the past couple years, and where I am going.
I have always avoided the city like a plague. But I started dating a professional opera singer. I often had to meet her downtown before a rehearsal. Well, I ened up LOVING the city and have spent the past 2 years shooting nothing but street!
Long story short, I bought my first house this past January and that opera singer and I were married in February! Never in my life could I ever imagine where I have been over the past couple years, and where I am going.
Nh3
Well-known
Thank you for your kind words. truly heartfelt words of encouragement and exactly what I need to hear at this point in my life.
I'm deeply touched.
Thanks.
btgc
Veteran
Nh3, I start to discover that street photography has connection with inner insufficiency. While those who are in harmony, enjoy nature/wildlife/etc, I guess some lack of social contacts or character of them brings some fullfillment, taking pictures of random people in random juxtapositions. First, it takes some patience to see moments worth capturing, and thus mind is feed with traces of emotions photographer sees. In some kind it's like watching sea or wood (kind of meditation) - though instinctively photographer is looking for "nerve of situation". It's emotional starving, I guess.
Second, looking at photographs, there comes second wave, having both memories from moment when picture were captured and new emotions arising in moment of looking at picture.
So I guess if anyone has less interest in street, he has got back some amount of mental integrity....maybe, stability.
marke: great story. I think you became interested in surrounding where you met or have to spend some time. You just had to accept that environment. And...people in love feel "right now" moment more than those who are married for a long years and have stopped down, kind of. So for me this explains your interest and it's another state of mind, opposite to that I described before.
Second, looking at photographs, there comes second wave, having both memories from moment when picture were captured and new emotions arising in moment of looking at picture.
So I guess if anyone has less interest in street, he has got back some amount of mental integrity....maybe, stability.
marke: great story. I think you became interested in surrounding where you met or have to spend some time. You just had to accept that environment. And...people in love feel "right now" moment more than those who are married for a long years and have stopped down, kind of. So for me this explains your interest and it's another state of mind, opposite to that I described before.