Street Photography: 10 Tips for Developing Your Own Visual Style
10 Tips for Street Photography.
1
It can have historical and documentary value. It can take a pictorial and purely aesthetic approach. It can be storytelling or serve as the foundation for photojournalism. The possibilities are endless. Find your own path—the one that best represents you at that moment. There is no single definition, nor are there clear-cut boundaries.
2
It can help you understand yourself better. The seemingly random yet deliberate repetition of elements that you’ll notice as you build your photo archive has a very specific meaning.
3
You can speak from a place of presence or absence. You can observe on an infinite number of levels. It’s up to you.
4
There are no such things as absolute technical errors; there are only poor choices in the chosen communication strategy.
5
Consistency is important. But it’s never as important as knowing WHEN to break the rules.
6
Learn to connect your emotions to the world through the camera lens. Learn to synchronize your emotional flow with the random flow of life that the street unfolds before your eyes.
7
Learn to distinguish between “hunting” and “gathering” in photography. Gathering requires a very different kind of sensitivity.
8
You don’t need ultra-fast cameras. You need to be able to anticipate the action. You need to be able to see the photo before it’s taken. And that happens when you’re connected—both relationally and emotionally—to the world around you.
9
Master all the technical aspects first, then take lots of photos until it all becomes second nature. Then forget everything and look at the world through the eyes of a child, capable of being amazed by everything around them, by everything they see.
10
Try to discover yourselves in the photos you take. Have the courage to let go, to stop obsessing over controlling everything. Because the journey will never allow you to do so. But even if you managed to control everything, the result would be extremely stiff photos, lacking that element of the unexpected that only life can give you. Losing that element is an unforgivable mortal sin. Have the courage to lose yourself because when you find yourself again, you’ll be amazed by who you’ve become. And happy. I know that getting lost can be scary. I know that very well.
In conclusion
I understand that the last point—in particular—but also the distinction between “hunting” and “gathering” might seem difficult to fully grasp at first, but let me offer some advice. Try to think back to those outings where you went out looking for something specific and instead came back with something completely different. In those cases, you either “got lost” or changed the way you interacted with the world (hunting or gathering, to be precise, but there are other possibilities as well). So, think back to what you experienced on those outings. Focus on that experience and analyze it. You’ll find more inspiration, more answers, and probably even more questions. If that’s the case, you’re on the right track.
Don’t be afraid to let go of some control. That’s where the magic begins. It’s the same principle as in dreams.
A gift: “One Night”
This is a mini-series shot entirely over the course of one night. During that night, I unexpectedly found Rome completely empty and deserted. However, by changing my approach, I was able to portray the city in a different way.
