Something that tends to strike fear into the heart of many new photographers is street photography. So today I’m going to urge you to get out of your comfort zone and go try it. I teach a travel photography class and when I share my photos of different exotic places, it’s always the street photography, and in particular the people photos, that get my students most excited.
Taken during a photowalk in Portland, OR. This guy was stopped at a light and I took about 20 photos of him in 30 seconds. Made him laugh! If he had minded he would have said something, or gestured – if you get my drift.
To me, it’s the people that make a place what it is; they are the essence, the culture. But that fear of photographing a stranger, in a public place, and actually having them see you take their photo is a biggie. Am I right?
Getting outside your comfort zone, doing something you don’t normally do, stretching your limits – that’s where real growth will occur. If you want to take your photography to the next level, give it a try and push yourself a little. You don’t need to travel to do this kind of photography. The two images below are done in my own city.
I was basically running behind these guys with a wide lens. Good timing is everything in street photography.
The other approach is talking to people. I chatted with this guy for 10 minutes. Then gave him $2 for his newspaper (how he makes a living) and took his photo.
Yesterday I posted 25 inspiring images of street photography, go have a look to get you fired up. Then find some a friend to go with you (even if they aren’t taking photos) and hit the pavement.
Your challenge this week – street photography
Get out there and walk around. Photograph what grabs your eye including architecture, traffic, people along the way – everything! Be fearless, you can do this!
To help you out – here are some other great articles with more tips to get started and overcome the fear.
Once you’ve taken your ‘Street Photography’ shots we’d love to see them in comments below. Simply upload your shot into the comment field (look for the little camera icon in the Disqus comments section as pictured below) and they’ll get embedded for us all to see or if you’d prefer upload them to your favourite photo sharing site and leave the link to them.
Further reading to help you gather courage for street photography
- Using Street Photography to see Beyond the Ordinary
- 103 Things I’ve Learned about Street Photography
- My 30 Day Adventure with the Fuji x100s
- Seeing and Street Photography
- How to Approach Street Photography in 12 Easy Steps
- Terrified of Street Photography? So am I – here’s how I do it!
- 30 Street Photography Images to Inspire You
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