SHOOTING STEPS
1
FIND THE TIME The best advice for anyone interested in trying street photography is to carry a camera everywhere. A smartphone in your hand during your commute or a lunch break is all it takes. If you can’t make specific time for photography, then street is the genre for you.
2
KNOW YOUR GEAR Get into the habit of picking your camera up and just playing with it. Build the muscle memory for the most-used buttons and settings. You never want to miss an unrepeatable moment because you’re left fumbling with your camera settings.
3
FIND THE LIGHT Locate a great spot of light and let people enter it, capturing what happens as they do. Pay attention to the direction of the light and how it’s hitting the surroundings. Look for how highlights are reflected and how shadows are being thrown onto walls and people. If the light isn’t quite right at that moment, make a note of the time and come back.
4
CAPTURE ACTION Anywhere people are working is a great place to start, like an area where loading/unloading happens or a market early in the morning. Tourist hotspots are a great place too. They can be overwhelming, but aim to concentrate on small moments, a gesture, an emotion, or something that a person might be holding.
5
WORK THE ANGLES Once you find an interesting spot, try different angles. Get creative and don’t be afraid to take a bad photo. Try different compositions, shooting a reflection of the light or even obscuring part of a scene with a foreground element.
6
LUCK The extra element is luck. Something completely unexpected might happen, or even walk right into your frame. To help you see these moments and be ready for them, learn to visualise the possibilities by watching the way people move and interact with the elements in your scene.