Street Photography Lesson 1

Susan Brannon
Street Photography Lesson 1

To answer the question “What is street photography?” is quite simple yet complex.  It is taking images in public places, like a part, an urban setting, a small town, conventions; public places that the photographer chooses to take images.  However, the style of street photography is not written in stone, but rather an expression of the photographer taking images of something that appeals to him/her.

The photographer basically wanders the streets taking images of life and culture. The purpose depends on the photographer, some want honest recording of culture, others want to add a creative touch of something ironic, or may want to make use of shadows and light.  The images may or may not have people in them.  It is a style of photography that is independent without rules or regulations.  However, I have rarely seen images that have been altered by photo shop.

Bryn Cambell, an accomplished “street photographer” describes his experience, “The equation is a simple one: streets = people. And it is people’s behaviour that most interests me: actions, reactions and interactions; emotions, body language, eccentricities, humour – and those rare moments of visual surrealism that can make one’s day.

My approach has not differed whether I have been on assignment as a photo-journalist or pursuing a personal project. The values for me are the same: a mix of humanism and aesthetics.”

Richard Kalvar describes it as, “I’m not crazy about the term “street photography” to describe what I do, because it’s not necessarily done on the street. The pictures can be taken on a farm, at the zoo, in an office, and so on. Let’s say we consider the general category of “unposed pictures of people” (or sometimes animals or even inanimate objects when they happen to be possessed by human souls), and then the subcategory “with nothing particularly important going on.” If we further narrow it down to the “play” sub-subcategory, we get into the domain I’ve worked in for forty years.”

Some photographers chose to work only in black and white, and some only in color, and some in both!

Below are three different examples of street photographs I took.  I like to take expressive images that tell a story.  Below each image is the title that I chose for the images.  

  Three types of transportation in a small space.

In different places.

An important conversation.

Related lessons:

Tips on How to Use our Disposable Cameras

Documentary Photography Lesson 1

Documentary Photography Lesson 2

Street Photography Lesson 1

Street Photography and your Camera

Street Photography Tips

Holga Camera

F/16 Rule and Apertures

What is the difference between Street Photography and Documentary?
Four Easy Steps to Learn panning 
High Noon Photography Tips
Tips for Night Photography

Aperture and f/16 Rule
Shutter Speed Basics

Bracketing

Rule of Thirds

Depth of Field

Photography Basics

Common Photography Terms

Focused Bracketing or Photo Stacking 
Exposure 

Four Easy Steps to Learn Panning

Susan Brannon
Have you ever tried to take photographs of moving subjects and everything always came out blurry?  Have you ever wondered how the sports and war photographers capture crisp images of the subject, while the background has movement or blur?

Panning is where you can capture an image where the subject is crisp and still but the background is full of motion and blurred with lines and colors.  You would want to use panning to create the feeling of movement, or to capture a moving object. You can create amazing images by using the panning technique.  Most sports and war photographers use this technique.

Panning solves the problem of blurry moving objects, for example cars, bicycles, and most sports. To master panning, requires a lot of patience, practice, energy and trial and errors.  Don’t worry, if you keep at it, you will be able expand your image taking!

4 steps to learn panning:

1) Choose a moving subject:

For your first few attempts try to locate subjects that do not move very fast, for instance moving cars in a residential area, or running dogs and joggers in a nearby park.

2)  Set your shutter speed to slower speed at 1/30 or 1/60 and your camera on Auto Focus.

3)   Now, you need to learn to focus track!  When your subject starts to come to the area near where you are, put the subject in view and focus on the subject following it’s movement towards you.  Hold down your shutter button half way down to keep the subject in focus.  Do not let go of the shutter while following your subject with your camera at the same speed it is going.  Your camera will automatically adjust its focus.

Here is an image, where my AF was not focused on the subject when I pressed the shutter.  I chose to go to the nearby carousel located in the center of Florence.

 You notice that the background is blurred like we wanted, but the subject is also blurred.

4)  When the subject gets near where you are (in front of you or some focal point you have chosen) shoot! Make sure that the subject remained in focus.

This is how a panned subject should look!  There is a blurry background, while the subject is still in focus.  The image shows the movement of the carousel and provides a colorful background.

Notes:  You may want to play with the shutter speed to gather more blur in the background, but if you make it too low, the subject will also become blurred!

Once you get the hang of it, you can practice on faster moving objects!  Have fun!

Related lessons:

Tips on How to Use our Disposable Cameras

Documentary Photography Lesson 1

Documentary Photography Lesson 2

Street Photography Lesson 1

Street Photography and your Camera

Street Photography Tips

Holga Camera

F/16 Rule and Apertures

What is the difference between Street Photography and Documentary?
Four Easy Steps to Learn panning 
High Noon Photography Tips
Tips for Night Photography

Aperture and f/16 Rule
Shutter Speed Basics

Bracketing

Rule of Thirds

Depth of Field

Photography Basics

Common Photography Terms

Focused Bracketing or Photo Stacking 
Exposure