This week, we've been looking at some of my personal experience in taking street shots. This is the fourth post.
(Crossing in the Rain: I was hiding behind my umbrella and held up my GX200 to compose the image freely)
Over the past three days, we've reflected on the settings I saw fit for the stret shots of human conditions. The word "human conditions" refers to scenes invloving passers-by and their acitivities.
As such shots are taken in the street and, for one reason or another, mostly without the subjects' knowledge, the strategy is a far cry from the rest. There are there are some pointers I find useful and hope to share with you from my experience.
1) Subjects engrossed in their some activities fall prey to your camera more easily. They seldom notice things happening around, not even if you hold the camera up to their eye level.
2) A camera neckstripped to your neck alerts your subjects less than one being handheld. When you've got a neckstrip, your hands rest comfortably and naturally on the camera, giving you a superb position to steal a shot in no time. Handholding a camera in the street is more a standard "photographers in combat mode" signal which betrays such an attention. My experience tells me that my subjects will more likely notice my camera whenever I handhold it.
(Queuing Up: This shot was taken through the window of a taxi. This shot would not be possible otherwise. I like the different posture of each person who are at a bus stop)
3) If you take the same route frequently, and accidently show what you are doing, people will get used to you and notice you less. This will stand you in good stead for taking the street shots. This is how: Take the same route for a few days, and just casually take photos (of buildings, streetscapes and passers-by) on the way each day. The passers-by will more likely believe that you're on a photography assignment. They become used to you and don't bother to shun your camera. There will be a higher chance of taking successful street shots of human conditions. You don't need to shoot them in an obstentious fashion though.
4) In case the lighting conditions make it impossible to come up with a fast shutter speed (around 1/450s is needed to freeze the subject if you are walking while you release the shutter), pause for a split of a second when you come close to your subjects and release the shutter.
5) When it rains, that is great! Hiding yourself behind an umbrella in one hand, you are almost free to compose your shots with the camera in another hand. For sure, be watchful for the splashes and splatters of rains, especially when the street is jampacked with people carrying soaked umbrellas.
(This is a casual shot which I did after trailing the carrier of this cheese-style umbrella for a while. I just found the umbrella and the backpack went very well in colour)
6) Take a spin on a bus or a taxi (except you've, well, in London cos the public transport charges dearly) and you'll be bestowed with totally novel perspectives for street shots.
7) Once again, let me repeat these: set your favourable settings in the customizable mode; pre-meter a scene by making reference to areas with a similar illumination level; pre-focus a scene if the camera doesn't allow you to pre-set a focusing distance.
Go on some practices and take street shots of passers-by.
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