Street photography - DSLRs vs Camera Phones
I was in London yesterday walking along the South Bank and saw a couple of people with DSLRs obviously doing some street photography. Not everyone was completely happy about a camera pointed at them but no one seemed concerned about hundreds of people taking photos with their phones. Given the that the best street photography is unobtrusive and given the quality of phone cameras, is there a case for dropping the DSLR?
Sadly I have had to drop my Canon 60d DSLR as I found it getting heavier as the years went by. I had found it good for Street Photography which I love, but I did always feel conscious of using it for the purpose. Sadly I began leaving it behind on holiday trips due to its weight. I have now sold it and have gone for a Fuji mirrorless which at 78 yo I find much easier to carry and hold for taking pictures and I feel a lot less conscious of what I am doing now.
PS how do you take a picture on a telephone my lead would never get me anywhere near the street!!!!
PS how do you take a picture on a telephone my lead would never get me anywhere near the street!!!!
Quote:Where has "telephone" been mentioned?
I use a couple of Micro four thirds cameras and a compact for street photography.
My point was that with phone photography now being ubiquitous, the phone and person taking photos on it fades into the background; that might make street photography simpler.
How did you know that some folk were not happy about their photo being taken? My experience (maybe I am lucky) has been that folk actually ignore you and certainly there have never been any protests or grumpy faces.
I have been taking photos of people in cities, towns and villages for many years and have never had a problem. If I need to get up close I usually ask, but then I do not class that as street photography but informal portraiture.
My favourite DSLR for street was my white Pentax KS-1. Because of the 'colour' I assumed that people thought it was a cheap compact or toy. (If they even noticed it.!)
Now I use a Panasonic compact.
As an aside I was once chased out of a Sainsbury's store and almost assaulted by a middle aged woman when I answered my mobile because the silly person thought I was taking photos of her. I was not even looking at her.
I had to show her my old brick-like Nokia phone and explain that it did not have a camera.
My favourite DSLR for street was my white Pentax KS-1. Because of the 'colour' I assumed that people thought it was a cheap compact or toy. (If they even noticed it.!)
Now I use a Panasonic compact.
As an aside I was once chased out of a Sainsbury's store and almost assaulted by a middle aged woman when I answered my mobile because the silly person thought I was taking photos of her. I was not even looking at her.
I had to show her my old brick-like Nokia phone and explain that it did not have a camera.
My experience is as Angie's, I've never had any problem. Generally if people do spot me they assume that they in the way of my intended shot and apologise. Women are however at an advantage, being viewed as less threatening, (and elderly women have the advantage of being effectively invisible to society.)
I use a DSLR pretty well exclusively but stick to wide angle. Less obtrusive than a long lens, and you get a lot more in the frame...
Move around slowly, don't stare at people, avoid eye contact, spend a lot of time staring at interesting architectural details...
I use a DSLR pretty well exclusively but stick to wide angle. Less obtrusive than a long lens, and you get a lot more in the frame...
Move around slowly, don't stare at people, avoid eye contact, spend a lot of time staring at interesting architectural details...
Quote:Not everyone was completely happy about a camera pointed at them but no one seemed concerned about hundreds of people taking photos with their phones
That is because it is easy for people to see they aren't in shot or in reach of a typical phone or at most just a background object in a stranger's Instagram post.
You need to use the Woolybill® Method. You can become quite expert at staring into the middle distance, past your subject and slightly to one side.Glance at your screen then back at the faux subject and back again, never making subject eye contact.
If you can, try to hold your camera at waist height, look down at it and compose using a flip-out screen or angled evf. You will not appear to your subject to be shooting them when compared to a photographer who has a camera to his eye pointed their way or someone with a phone angled completely in their direction.
Quote:You can become quite expert at staring into the middle distance, past your subject and slightly to one side.Glance at your screen then back at the faux subject and back again, never making subject eye contact.
Drat, Chris has been watching me at work...
