Challenge - Street Scenes

Challenge Topic: Street Scenes

Posting Date: Saturday, February 8, 2014

Online Background Information:

• Street photography tips for beginners
• Street photography tips for travel photographers
• 21 street photography tips from the professionals
• Street photography and the law: 7 things you need to know

Additional Tips and Suggestions:

Now that we’ve been honing some basic photography skills, it’s time to hit the streets! I’m talking about street photography, where you record candid moments of everyday life in an urban environment. The goal is to capture a story or define a mood in a street scene. Those photographers who have a photojournalistic bent enjoy this specialty. For those of us who are introverts (hand raised here!), this assignment will get us out of our comfort zone. But if you can’t bring yourself to take photos of strangers, then adopt another approach, such as photographing dogs, traffic, storefronts, etc.

What if you don’t live in an urban environment or can’t get to one before the challenge date? In that case, practice the art of street photography in a local setting that is convenient, such as your neighborhood, a local park, shopping complex, craft fair, etc.

If your goal is to photograph people, please be courteous and avoid conflicts. And if you want to be less obtrusive, use a small camera! It’s better to go out on this type of photo shoot with someone else, rather than alone. 

Your photographic response time can be taxed because scenes can change in an instant. So your camera settings need to be chosen well in advance. You may barely have time to focus on the subject matter. Observation skills are paramount. Light, shadows, and reflections can be used to your advantage. Consider presenting your images a black and white format, instead of color, to emphasize a photojournalistic style.

Instructions:

Prepare one to four of your own photographic images that portray street scenes. You may use photos from your personal inventory or take new ones for this challenge. It’s your choice. Please include any information or tips that may be of assistance to other participants (e.g., how you took the images, post-processing details, camera settings, what you learned). If you have more than one blog, please present your challenge photos on only one of them.

The linkup tool will be available the day before the challenge date (February 7) and a couple days thereafter. Don’t forget to set up a calendar reminder for yourself!