Sparrow
Veteran
Who thought up the generic title ... Street Photography ... and why?
Street Photography
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jsrockit
Moderator
What would you have preferred?
Sparrow
Veteran
no ... not really, I know who came up with Decisive Moment but just realised I had no idea where or when the title Street Photography comes from or who thought it up
Lauffray
Invisible Cities
Well the discipline is loosely defined wouldn't you say ? A generic title seems fitting.
As for why I think because the early practitioners mostly shot outside, in public, in a city, so the term stuck I suppose.
OurManInTangier
An Undesirable
Wasn't it originally a term used for the photographers who took your portrait, often at a tourist site, event or similar and gave you a ticket to pick up a print later in the day?
Sparrow
Veteran
.. I really don't know ... I remember my sister's boyfriend/husband used it about me because I took monochrome film to a family wedding quite a few years ago now ... and 'hipster' iirc ... when I, was and, am in fact a modernist and have been since I was sixteen
Gabriel M.A.
My Red Dot Glows For You
I think it all started with the silly notion of taking photographs while on the street.
Sparrow
Veteran
... yes, could well be
... although we've had streets for ages, and I've taken photos since I was twelve, I really don't recall when they merged the two ... and it's only quite recently I was first accused of participating myself
rogue_designer
Reciprocity Failure
I thought it came out of Atget's work and his self descriptions. But I do not have a source to back that.
Sparrow
Veteran
... when would that be would you think? ... my brother in law used it in 2005 at a wedding, so it must have been in common parlance then (he hasn't a creative bone in his body)
alistair.o
Well-known
It's a Mission Statement - so, post Bernes-Lee
(no bloody smilies to hand, Bah!)
(no bloody smilies to hand, Bah!)
back alley
IMAGES
i read about street photography when i started photographing way back in 1972ish...
Sparrow
Veteran
... really? I don't recall that, I shall look in a mag of that era
Muggins
Proprietor of Orphanage for Lost Cameras
I have a feeling it's mentioned in a Kodak book I have , something like "Kodak guide to making better photographs", undated but by the illustrations must be circa 1910. I'll have to dig it out and have a look (like that's a hardship).
Adrian
Adrian
back alley
IMAGES
from wiki...
Street photography is photography that features the human condition within public places and does not necessitate the presence of a street or even the urban environment. The subject of the photograph might be absent of people and can be an object or environment where the image projects a decidedly human character in facsimile or aesthetic.
Framing and timing are key aspects of the craft, with the aim of creating images at a decisive or poignant moment. Much of what is now widely regarded, stylistically and subjectively, as definitive street photography was made in the era spanning the end of the 19th Century through to the late 1970s; a period which saw the emergence of portable cameras. The portable camera enabled candid photography in public places became an issue of discussion. Street photographers create fine art photography (including street portraits) by capturing people in public places, often with a focus on emotions displayed, thereby also recording people's history from an emotional point of view. Social documentary photographers operate in public places documenting people and their behavior in public places for recording people's history and other purposes. Services like Google Street View also record the public place at a massive scale. Photojournalists work in public places, capturing newsworthy events, which may include people and private property visible from public places.
Street photography is photography that features the human condition within public places and does not necessitate the presence of a street or even the urban environment. The subject of the photograph might be absent of people and can be an object or environment where the image projects a decidedly human character in facsimile or aesthetic.
Framing and timing are key aspects of the craft, with the aim of creating images at a decisive or poignant moment. Much of what is now widely regarded, stylistically and subjectively, as definitive street photography was made in the era spanning the end of the 19th Century through to the late 1970s; a period which saw the emergence of portable cameras. The portable camera enabled candid photography in public places became an issue of discussion. Street photographers create fine art photography (including street portraits) by capturing people in public places, often with a focus on emotions displayed, thereby also recording people's history from an emotional point of view. Social documentary photographers operate in public places documenting people and their behavior in public places for recording people's history and other purposes. Services like Google Street View also record the public place at a massive scale. Photojournalists work in public places, capturing newsworthy events, which may include people and private property visible from public places.
Sparrow
Veteran
... quick look through my copy of Zoom Feb/Mar 1979 the earliest mag I have to hand, there is no mention of the phrase in the exhibitions section or the prospectus of the contributors that I can find
jsrockit
Moderator
I think the term Street Photography may have been come into fashion with the internet. I had never heard of it when I was in school for Photography in the 90s.
gns
Well-known
The term goes back at least to the early seventies. I remember people using it then. Also, Wingrand's comments about the term are documented in video and transcripts from that era.
Sparrow
Veteran
... in two months of events or exhibitions there is no mention, or in the whole magazine that I can see
Ko.Fe.
Lenses 35/21 Gears 46/20
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDSGWy1CU78
They use "street photography" term in this 1981 documentary.
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