W/NW - Photos taken on the street

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London, June 2011 (M2 and 50mm M-Planar).
 
Some (more) small-town street shots...

Some (more) small-town street shots...

Sorry for posting so many, but usually the streets in this sleepy little town are empty.


015_15 by Greyscale3, on Flickr


008_8 by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Shane of the "Heavenly Hog", with my niece Lynne lending a helping hand by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Erika by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Donut lady by Greyscale3, on Flickr


008_8A by Greyscale3, on Flickr


002_2A by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Cash for corn by Greyscale3, on Flickr
 
Greyscale said:
Sorry for posting so many, but usually the streets in this sleepy little town are empty.


015_15 by Greyscale3, on Flickr


008_8 by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Shane of the "Heavenly Hog", with my niece Lynne lending a helping hand by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Erika by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Donut lady by Greyscale3, on Flickr


008_8A by Greyscale3, on Flickr


002_2A by Greyscale3, on Flickr


Cash for corn by Greyscale3, on Flickr
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Greyscale. I hate to say it but they are a bit snapshotty. It would help if you didn't point the camera up or down at an angle; kneeling if necessary. Also being at perpendicular angles to walls, benches, street markets etc helps, rather than any old angle. Rules to be broken, of course, by a skilled eye.
 
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lorriman said:
Greyscale. I hate to say it but they are a bit snapshotty. It would help if you didn't point the camera up or down at an angle; kneeling if necessary. Also being at perpendicular angles to walls, benches, street markets etc helps, rather than any old angle. Rules to be broken, of course, by a skilled eye.
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Lorriman, no need to "hate to say" anything, that's why I'm here, is to learn from those more experienced than me.

The kneeling part is out for me, unfortunately, with my knees, crouching is the best that I am going to do. 😉
 
Actually, I think the tip about not pointing the camera up or down on an angle may be the single best advice regarding photography that I have yet received. And from looking at my recent photos, this seems to grow in importance as the focal length of the lens decreases, especially evident in that last picture I posted, with the severe shortening of that poor fellow's legs.
 
Greyscale said:
Lorriman, no need to "hate to say" anything, that's why I'm here, is to learn from those more experienced than me.

The kneeling part is out for me, unfortunately, with my knees, crouching is the best that I am going to do. 😉
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Hope you do not mind but another bit of gratuitous advice if you wish to consider it. I mention this only becsue you say you are open to advice.

A lot of photographers shoot in program mode (when using an SLR) and so often get a small aperture which means everything from the subject to infinity is in sharp focus. Especially when using a wide angle lens. Some people think that a wide angle is necessary for street shooting. I disagree.

My preference (although not everyone's obviously) is to shoot with a slightly longer lens and in aperture mode with the aperture set to maximum size. That means the background is at least moderately out of focus which immediately focuses the viewer's attention on the main subject. Of course this is easier to achieve (although harder to focus) when using a manual camera like a rangefinder camera especially if it has lenses that are relatively "fast". (Much harder with most digital pocket cams which are seldom able to throw the background much out of focus.)

As I say its purely gratuitous advice and you can take it or leave it. But its something a lot of photographers do - I think to the detriment of the shot. As a result it often bugs me when I look at an street shot as I am left wondering what the main image is meant to be - the person in front or those behind - or both.

Also my rule of thumb is pick a subject who is attractive in some way. Or better still, pick someone who is doing something interesting and engaging or at least different and unusual. That way you engage your audience.
 
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peterm1 said:
Hope you do not mind but another bit of gratuitous advice if you wish to consider it. I mention this only becsue you say you are open to advice.

A lot of photographers shoot in program mode (when using an SLR) and so often get a small aperture which means everything from the subject to infinity is in sharp focus. Especially when using a wide angle lens. Some people think that a wide angle is necessary for street shooting. I disagree.

My preference (although not everyone's obviously) is to shoot with a slightly longer lens and in aperture mode with the aperture set to maximum size. That means the background is at least moderately out of focus which immediately focuses the viewer's attention on the main subject. Of course this is easier when using a manual camera like a rangefinder camera and , one with lenses that are relatively "fast". (Much harder with most digital pocket cams which are seldom able to throw the background much out of focus.)

As I say its purely gratuitous advice and you can take it or leave it. But its something a lot of photographers do - I think to the detriment of the shot. As a result it often bugs me when I look at an street shot as I am left wondering what the main image is meant to be - the person in front or those behind - or both.

Also my rule of thumb is pick a subject who is attractive in some way. Or better still, pick someone who is doing something interesting and engaging or at least different and unusual. That way you engage your audience.
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Thank you, Peter, for the helpful advice. Normally, when I do use an SLR, my lens of choice is a fast 50mm, on a fully-manual camera. This was my first time using a 28mm, and it does take a little bit of getting used to.

I did try to look for attractive subjects, but with so little street activity in this town with its small population base, I think that I will have more luck looking for "interesting" over "attractive".

I did debate using the 50mm lens before choosing the 28mm, perhaps at next weekend's market, I will screw my best 50 onto my old Yashica and use the advice that I have received here, hopefully with better overall results.
 
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