Why? Street

B-9 said:
Maybe I have not made that clear enough.
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Not for me, at least.

This is from OP.

Why is this such a fad these days? "Street"
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But "Street" is not such a fad THESE DAYS. It is fad for decades.

People asked what is "street" for years and talk about "street" cameras for years. Like in on-line video with Winogrand and students where Winogrand was asked which camera is better for the street. And he goes on about Leica.

Personally, I don't see any issues with people keep on asking same questions again and again. Should be no issues to use answers from the past and find new ones also ;)
 
skopar steve said:
Because rangefinder cameras are good tools for street photography?
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ANY camera is good tool for street photography.

As far as "art" applicable to "street", art is never "what about?" but it's always "how?".
Any object (street, person, dog, car) is only an opportunity to create an expression.

This are examples of art. No factual data to speak of, but beautiful art. On street or inside the house.

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B-9 said:
Same here,

Ive done maybe a dozen paid gigs, surely does not make me a professional.

Cant we upgrade ourselves to hobbyists? ;)
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They say, "amateurs built the Ark, professionals built the Titanic".
Completely wrong on many levels, but a nice sound bite :)
 
Sometimes, there are a lot of advantages to being an "amateur". I happily let all my medical credentials expire many years ago so that I could deal with medical situations without fear.

Today, when I'm playing "street photographer", it helps to be an amateur photo-enthusiast when people ask me what I'm doing (not necessarily confrontational). As a member of the local "camera club" I can honestly say that I'm in such a club and taking photos as part of an "assignment". Most often, people are actually happy to oblige me and offer to take more photos, or at least any hostility that may have been present previously will have dissipated.

Also, real professional photographers are very, very, very hard on their equipment. As a rule, I do NOT buy used gear that has been owned by a real professional photographer. I chuckle when I see people advertise gear owned by a professional as a positive selling point (even with a premium on price). Often, that's a stretch of the truth, or even an outright falsity, which could be good if I was actually interested.
 
rfaspen said:
. . . . real professional photographers are very, very, very hard on their equipment. . . .
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Not always. Very few wore out LF cameras, and quite a few made their Nikons last very well. Did you mean "hard on their equipment" in the sense of "wearing it out" (which I have seen) or "hard on their equipment" in the sense of thinking it's macho and "professional" to abuse it?

The latter, of course, is not professional at all. It's just stupid. Yes, there are times when getting the picture is more important than looking after the kit. But it's a big mistake not to look after your kit when you can.

Cheers,

R.
 
Oh, I was referring to professionals that use their equipment -- a LOT. That high amount of use often results in a gear that's "worn out" and either no longer functioning, or perhaps very near the end of its functional life. I just get a kick out of people who think that such professionally owned and USED gear would command a premium price and make it more attractive to someone like myself, who would be looking at used gear to get something in good shape for less than new price.
 
rfaspen said:
Oh, I was referring to professionals that use their equipment -- a LOT. That high amount of use often results in a gear that's "worn out" and either no longer functioning, or perhaps very near the end of its functional life. I just get a kick out of people who think that such professionally owned and USED gear would command a premium price and make it more attractive to someone like myself, who would be looking at used gear to get something in good shape for less than new price.
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Eminently true. An acquaintance who shot glamour professionally wore out several RB67s, which still looked immaculate on the outside. But equally, I don't think many people ever wore out LF gear (and I used to work in a hire studio in London) and many Hasselblads were used for a decade or more.

For that matter, one of my jobs as an assistant was copying slides for audio-visual preparations, putting immense amounts of film through Nikon Fs. I still have one of them somewhere, still in perfect order. All I'm saying is that so-called "professional" wear and tear is more often the result of abuse than of use.

To quote my gaffer from those days, the late Colin Glanfield, "Some people can go for a walk around the block and come back looking as if they and their cameras have just covered a war, and others can cover a war and come back looking as if they and their cameras have been for a walk around the block."

That was the era of Tim Page, whom I used to know reasonably well when he lived in England. His cameras often looked surprisingly good.

Cheers,

R.
 
This is perhaps the most relevant input I have for this thread: I have done a lot of sports photography at events that I don't even consider real sport.
 
B-9 said:
You know what frustrates me?

"It's not good for shooting street"

"I only shoot street"

"Street photography"

"It will be great for those who do street"

It sounds rediculous!

Hello, My name is Devin, I'm a street carpenter, I only work with wood on the street, my Estwing 16oz hammer is ideal for street carpentry, but my sledge is just to bulky and people really notice how large it is when I'm hammering wood in the street.

--

I love my cameras (tools) and taking photos is the product of my love. I couldnt care less about anyone's opinion of my photos. I am not a photographer! I am an Artist with many tools.

Why is this such a fad these days? "Street"
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I dunno, but i have the Estwing 16oz hammer in my home wood shop, and I would not be without it. I have the one with the stacked leather washers. If I lost it, I would have to have another one immediately. I tried their 12oz version, and didn't like it. It seems like just the same head as the 16oz, but with a smaller handle. It just didn't feel right. I'd like a 12 oz with a smaller head, and the full length handle. What do you think?

We now return you to the street photography thread.
 
Why? Because it's hard to do well! Who cares what it's called.
Yay, Winogrand, Freidlander, and their fans.

Populism? There are oodles of great pictures in folks' foto albums. which were taken over the years. A few might have been taken with Leicas; most were taken with gear like Brownies and Instamatics.

By the way, because my pictures paid the rent only occasionally, I must be an amateur / hobbyist.

And yes, my film Nikons never wore out, even when I used them hard, in bad climates, to make money
 
airfrogusmc said:
Here's what Winogrand had to say about the label street photographer.
The entire piece is good but what is in relevant to this thread is from about 45 secs in through 1:44
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RM9KcYEYXs
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In another thread someone cited this extended Winogrand video interview, in which he also addresses "street photography."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wem927v_kpo

I watched it last night and found it well worth the time. The interviewer's voice is enchanting and Winogrand is more forthcoming that his usual cryptic self.

To me, one only has to look at his or Frank's work to answer the question, "Why street?" If you don't see it or feel it there, no amount of verbiage will explain.

John
 
Thanks for posting that John. I saw that years ago an I will watch it again some time today.

I totally agree with your words in regards to his and Franks work. The Americans is truly one of the really great photography books and either you feel it or you don't....
 
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