A Quick Guide on Street/Documentary Photography
10-10-2007, 02:06 PM
#1
Registered User
Thread Starter
A Quick Guide on Street/Documentary Photography
This is simple short guide I pieced together from a large article am doing for a magazine(this write up is properly 1/10 of the full report) on the subject. When my project and article are complete(early December?) and depending on interest, I’ll give more details along with photos.
Its far from complete, excuse the errors.
Many things I have omitted, so feel free to ask questions, disagree or give some advice.
Sorry for lack of pictures, between a messed up server, selling all my rights to my photos, and having type this at the airport, I don’t have any to provide, until my project is completed in early December.
So by request of a camera forum, a few guys here, and having nothing else to do at the airport, I giveth on to you everything I learned the hard way from shooting for various magazines, news networks and governments. All in a condensed form
A Quick Guide on Street/Documentary Photography
Street and documentary photography is mixture of skill in human psychology and the ability to compose composition unplanned. The idea is to take close up photos of strangers, without them reacting to it, yet normally they are completely aware you are doing so. Shooting is about capturing a moment in time, when one does it on the streets when people are acting like people for both good and bad, is the essence of photography.
When and How to Shoot:
Its all about capturing a moment in time, often the time comes out of nowhere and completely unexpected.
The idea is not to force something that is nothing, to go actively shooting, has its propose, however normally it just happens, your walking and find a interesting subject that happens to be in a appealing composition. The best shots are unplanned, you should remain passive but alert.
Its quite common to shoot hundreds of pictures and with only a handful that are of any merit. Don’t expect great photos on every shoot, what makes shooting of this style interesting, is the capture of moments, that tend to be ignore, and filter out with everyday living.
The Difference Between Street and Documentary and Making the Story.
Documentary, is about capturing a mood along with the story, in which case composition is setup with a mixture of natural and arranging yourself in position. Exposure is used to set mood, often taking advantage of shadows and maintain a slightly underexpose look. The story behind the picture, is established by the scenery, subject, exposure and composition.
A close up of a woman crying, with no background, gives little interest, crying is common and everyone has seen it. Showing the same woman with a background of a war scene or the women crying with a background of a celebration , adds different and important stories.
A person can assume and make their own back story behind this picture, adding interest and effect on many levels.
Street is much the same, although it tends to focus on character and the assumed story to a stranger based merely on their looks, and current actions. Street tends to be much faster where emotion comes from subject rather then composition and artistic approach.
Often the two are entangled in various degrees, street shooting doesn’t mean it can be artistic and documentary shooting doesn’t mean it cant be quick moments in time, the combination of the two is what really make for the best pictures. Each moment requires its own way to express it, don’t try to stick to merely artistic expression with documentary as you can miss the random moments in time, as well you should forget to add expression to the ordinary, this adds personality to the photographer and can make the ordinary-extraordinary.
How To Act:
Wear what everyone else is wearing:
In most first world countries nearly anything goes, in third world countries, simply wearing some clean clothes can make you stand out and give off bad impressions. Your goal is to become part of what your shooting, getting inside and blending in.
Don’t try to impress:
A big camera with a long lens, looks cool and people assume you know what your doing, so save that for proper photo shoots. On the streets it only scares and gives a voyeur, sneaking around feel. A small frame camera with a short lens and no attachments, is all you need and doesn’t appear intimidating. Same goes for backpacks or any camera extras baggage, avoid carrying anything at all, if it’s a must a small backpack that doesn’t look like its pack full of gear.
Don’t hide your camera:
Don’t hide the camera behind you, leave it open. Wrap the strap around your wrist and hold plainly in your hand. Keeping it in your hand, appears more natural and relaxed, thus giving the people around no sense of worry. Do not hang the camera around your neck, its an amateur/tourist habit. (only expectation is if you have multiple cameras).
Your attempting to maintain a natural flow, picking up a camera around you neck, and having hanging like a large necklace is not nature. Having the camera become part of your natural hand moments makes the camera disappear and adds to your ability to blend in,
Don’t hide your intentions:
You’re a photographer, not some weird guy(girls have it easy, people don’t seem to mind girls taking photos of them). Its important to appear natural, bring up the camera to adjust some setting if needed, take a photo and ease it down. Do not snap and drop. If someone becomes aware normally the mere fact that you didn’t come off as being sneaky is enough for them not to worry, one quick photo doesn’t usually bother them even if they know what you did, add a simple nod or a smile and all is good.
On people that you feel may come off angered, leave the camera up, as though you havent taking the photo yet, or if though you are focusing on something beside them, this is often enough to remove suspension.
If you get caught don’t fear after the picture is taken to just carry on as its no big deal . They are looking for what your going to do next, now that they caught you. Sometimes even showing the person the picture on a digital camera, often makes a friend and they will allow even more shots. Although street photography is mostly candid shots, a aware shot is often very good. Showing someone the picture works best in lower developed foreign countries, in America for example, people are too feared about the internet and what evil intents you may have, so this may be less effective, although your openness can be of great advantage.
Its far from complete, excuse the errors.
Many things I have omitted, so feel free to ask questions, disagree or give some advice.
Sorry for lack of pictures, between a messed up server, selling all my rights to my photos, and having type this at the airport, I don’t have any to provide, until my project is completed in early December.
So by request of a camera forum, a few guys here, and having nothing else to do at the airport, I giveth on to you everything I learned the hard way from shooting for various magazines, news networks and governments. All in a condensed form
A Quick Guide on Street/Documentary Photography
Street and documentary photography is mixture of skill in human psychology and the ability to compose composition unplanned. The idea is to take close up photos of strangers, without them reacting to it, yet normally they are completely aware you are doing so. Shooting is about capturing a moment in time, when one does it on the streets when people are acting like people for both good and bad, is the essence of photography.
When and How to Shoot:
Its all about capturing a moment in time, often the time comes out of nowhere and completely unexpected.
The idea is not to force something that is nothing, to go actively shooting, has its propose, however normally it just happens, your walking and find a interesting subject that happens to be in a appealing composition. The best shots are unplanned, you should remain passive but alert.
Its quite common to shoot hundreds of pictures and with only a handful that are of any merit. Don’t expect great photos on every shoot, what makes shooting of this style interesting, is the capture of moments, that tend to be ignore, and filter out with everyday living.
The Difference Between Street and Documentary and Making the Story.
Documentary, is about capturing a mood along with the story, in which case composition is setup with a mixture of natural and arranging yourself in position. Exposure is used to set mood, often taking advantage of shadows and maintain a slightly underexpose look. The story behind the picture, is established by the scenery, subject, exposure and composition.
A close up of a woman crying, with no background, gives little interest, crying is common and everyone has seen it. Showing the same woman with a background of a war scene or the women crying with a background of a celebration , adds different and important stories.
A person can assume and make their own back story behind this picture, adding interest and effect on many levels.
Street is much the same, although it tends to focus on character and the assumed story to a stranger based merely on their looks, and current actions. Street tends to be much faster where emotion comes from subject rather then composition and artistic approach.
Often the two are entangled in various degrees, street shooting doesn’t mean it can be artistic and documentary shooting doesn’t mean it cant be quick moments in time, the combination of the two is what really make for the best pictures. Each moment requires its own way to express it, don’t try to stick to merely artistic expression with documentary as you can miss the random moments in time, as well you should forget to add expression to the ordinary, this adds personality to the photographer and can make the ordinary-extraordinary.
How To Act:
Wear what everyone else is wearing:
In most first world countries nearly anything goes, in third world countries, simply wearing some clean clothes can make you stand out and give off bad impressions. Your goal is to become part of what your shooting, getting inside and blending in.
Don’t try to impress:
A big camera with a long lens, looks cool and people assume you know what your doing, so save that for proper photo shoots. On the streets it only scares and gives a voyeur, sneaking around feel. A small frame camera with a short lens and no attachments, is all you need and doesn’t appear intimidating. Same goes for backpacks or any camera extras baggage, avoid carrying anything at all, if it’s a must a small backpack that doesn’t look like its pack full of gear.
Don’t hide your camera:
Don’t hide the camera behind you, leave it open. Wrap the strap around your wrist and hold plainly in your hand. Keeping it in your hand, appears more natural and relaxed, thus giving the people around no sense of worry. Do not hang the camera around your neck, its an amateur/tourist habit. (only expectation is if you have multiple cameras).
Your attempting to maintain a natural flow, picking up a camera around you neck, and having hanging like a large necklace is not nature. Having the camera become part of your natural hand moments makes the camera disappear and adds to your ability to blend in,
Don’t hide your intentions:
You’re a photographer, not some weird guy(girls have it easy, people don’t seem to mind girls taking photos of them). Its important to appear natural, bring up the camera to adjust some setting if needed, take a photo and ease it down. Do not snap and drop. If someone becomes aware normally the mere fact that you didn’t come off as being sneaky is enough for them not to worry, one quick photo doesn’t usually bother them even if they know what you did, add a simple nod or a smile and all is good.
On people that you feel may come off angered, leave the camera up, as though you havent taking the photo yet, or if though you are focusing on something beside them, this is often enough to remove suspension.
If you get caught don’t fear after the picture is taken to just carry on as its no big deal . They are looking for what your going to do next, now that they caught you. Sometimes even showing the person the picture on a digital camera, often makes a friend and they will allow even more shots. Although street photography is mostly candid shots, a aware shot is often very good. Showing someone the picture works best in lower developed foreign countries, in America for example, people are too feared about the internet and what evil intents you may have, so this may be less effective, although your openness can be of great advantage.
Last edited by MagicPie; 10-10-2007 at 02:51 PM.
10-10-2007, 02:07 PM
#2
Registered User
Thread Starter
Getting Close--Keeping Your Distance-- People You Shoot
How close you can get to someone, really depends on the situation. In an festival with lots of action for example a person’s personal space is greatly reduce, compared to that of an individual on a open street. How close you can get without evoking anger and camera awareness depends on a few factors and even the culture of the region you may be in.
Get in the crowd:
Don’t shoot from a distance with a long lens, its always better to be part of the crowd. If you follow the rules on how to act, you shouldn’t have problem being part of it. Capturing a moment of a single person or a several people in a crowd is among the best opportunities, no matter if it’s a calm crowd or a active crowd.
Its important to still allow some personal space, and freedom to the person you are shooting, in tight areas and areas where personal space is near zero, its best not to shoot at all.
Shooting from a distance has no advantage and can ruin the feel one gets from a mass of people. Don’t be a spectator, be a participant.
Shooting the loner:
When someone is in a relatively uncrowned area, often shooting from a unaware distance is required but it depends on the photographer and the subject: A rough grouping:
Old People: Normally don’t care, they either don’t think your worth bothering with, or like the a attention, often they are just completely unaware. Close or far merely depends on what captures the most effective area
Mid Age: Typically keeping them unaware is the best bet, however using all the tips on “Don’t hide your intentions” often will prevent any problems . You can still not hide your actions, but still keep the person unaware that they are the focus of your attention., a bit of misdirection can go along ways. You have to gauge the person and make a decisions, just don’t based the book on its cover, some mean people are nice and some nice are mean.
Teenagers: About the same as the Mid Aged, although you tend to have more allowance
Girls teenage and up: (if you’re a guy): There is where having good looks gives you a advantage, often unless you can pull of a shoot that they never know about, its just best to make them aware. A lot depends on the area and situation you are shooting-- read Kids
Kids: Obvious shooting a small kid alone can have some negative results, shooting a kid with his parents tends to allow for more room. Again much like the girls, it’s a matter of your looks, do you fit the image of someone to fear. This is where the tips of “Don’t hide your intentions” become important. Acting or appearing sneaky and you will suffer.
Shooting a lone person up close , really comes down to the photographer and how they project themselves. The subject as well plays a part, a rushed man in suit will be often become more irate then say a homeless man sitting around.
To briefly …
Shooting riots or violent events:
Its much like shooting a crowd, you must be in it and apart of it. The difference is merely preventing becoming the on receiving end of the anger. In which case its important to participate to some degree. Personal space most be giving, since often no one wants their face on film during this events, keeping in the crowd while hanging away from its core is important.
Shooting people in foreign countries:
For the most part, every person everywhere is all the same. The exceptions come when you shot in countries in conflict and stress is high. Learning customs and hierarchy, along with your place among everything is important. You have to be part of the scene, often helping and acting within or maintain a distance and never get involved, maintain and allow people to ignore you.
Equipment:
Although any camera will work, a small framed dSLR with auto focus and wide angle lens is best.
Normally a lens no longer then 50mm, ideally 14-45mm is perfect.
Equipment Settings:
Take advantage of the Program feature, giving a mixture of auto and manual setting to give the best shots. Preset white balances are much better then auto white balance, and often tweaks to the exposure are needed from what the camera thinks it should be, this can be done using program-shifts giving the ability to choose various camera aperture and shutter speed suggestions.
ISO setting should set to kept around 400, to help keep shutter speed as high to avoid motion blur from being both hand held and on a subject in motion.
The Auto setting can be helpful, a decent shot of a perfect moment is better then no shot.
Shooting Hand Held:
Always use both hands, and don’t allow the camera to make contact with your face.
Keeping steady is a matter of comfort, and everyone has different techniques.
Personally I keep my right arm tucked into my chest or press against your sides to help aid in stability.
The left arm is extended away from the body in a 45* angle, with my hand on the lens.
Left foot is straight, and right foot is align with my body but roughly a 1 to 2 feet forward. Remain, relaxed, hold your breath, and lightly press the shutter button. Executing all these moves can be done quickly with some practice, regardless of your position, comfort and relaxation is key to achieve acceptable focus( its not necessary important to have a critical focus in street shooting)
10-10-2007, 08:37 PM
#4
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Thread Starter
There are 2 both get there own version at different periods, each geared slightly towards the magazines audience.
I hear they are both advance amateur and pro magazines, dont know if they can be easily found, as I really dont know much about them, other then they come out 6 times a year.
Give it a try you might like it.
there should be enough info to give a go, I just gave some advice to start out, and dropped all the technicals to make it easier to understand and read. If you got any question, just ask
I hear they are both advance amateur and pro magazines, dont know if they can be easily found, as I really dont know much about them, other then they come out 6 times a year.
Give it a try you might like it.
there should be enough info to give a go, I just gave some advice to start out, and dropped all the technicals to make it easier to understand and read. If you got any question, just ask
Last edited by MagicPie; 10-10-2007 at 08:42 PM.
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10-12-2007, 08:08 AM
#8
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Thread Starter
Originally Posted by Tubbs
Good tips. I usually just drug and beat my subjects into compliance, though.
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