Chapter 2: Camera gear

One great thing about street photography is that it transcends technology and gear hype. Bring a small and simple camera with a wide-angle lens, and you will be fine.

8. Use a wide-angle prime lens

It may seem that a telephoto lens will get you close to the action, but it’s actually the other way around. Because it will let you shoot from a distance (hence making you lazy), a telephoto lens will distance you from your subject. This distance—or lack of presence—is devastating to your street photographs. Looking at the images, one might feel like a distant observer rather than a participant. Also, a telephoto lens compresses the depth of your scene, severely cropping the background. The net effect is that the subjects in your images are deprived of much of their context.

Instead of a telephoto lens, try a wide-angle prime lens. A short prime has many advantages: it’s small and lightweight, and it offers a large maximum aperture and high-quality optics. It also forces you to get close to your subjects. For a full-frame digital SLR camera, try a 28mm or 35mm lens. These are the classic focal lengths for street photography. Using them will open your eyes to the world in a way that a zoom lens simply cannot.

Don’t worry about losing potential shots by leaving your zoom lens behind. Shooting without your zoom forces you to be more creative. And you have to be creative; who wants to look at pictures taken by a lazy photographer? Also, you will work more quickly with a prime, since you won’t lose precious time fiddling with a zoom ring at the decisive moment.

9. Carry a messenger bag

To keep a low public profile, a street photographer needs an easily accessible camera bag. The so-called messenger bag is ideal. It is lightweight, casual, and most importantly, it lets you take out your camera without hassle. The most important and obvious part of street photography is to always have your camera with you. But what good is your camera if it’s behind you in that cumbersome backpack? What good is it tucked away in some more or less professional bag that takes minutes to open? Go with the messenger bag, because it will help you with the most important part of street photography.

Also, make sure you pack light. The heavier your bag is, the less time you can spend shooting and the less you’ll enjoy the time you are shooting. In addition to your camera and a prime lens, bring only what you really need: an extra battery, memory cards, perhaps another prime, and some cleaning cloths. Or why not challenge yourself by bringing only your camera and your favorite prime lens? The lighter you are, the more freely you can work, and the more time you will spend shooting instead of fumbling around in your camera bag.

10. Smaller is better

The larger the camera, the more conspicuous the photographer. A DSLR, especially a bulky high-end model, makes you stand out in a crowd. You might as well wear a t-shirt that says, “I am a professional photographer.” This is devastating to your street photography because it can cause subjects to feel uncomfortable, self-conscious, and even threatened. A smaller camera is better. You will blend in more easily. When you use a small camera, people may just dismiss you, mistaking you for a tourist or (shame on them!) an amateur.

Another benefit of a small camera is that its weight and size will encourage you to take it with you more often than you would a big, heavy camera. The smaller your camera is and the less gear you carry, the more photos you will end up taking.

For people starting out in street photography, I recommend a point-and-shoot, a micro four thirds camera, or even a smartphone.

11. Don’t worry about the gear

A beautiful thing about street photography is that it doesn’t require much camera gear. Contrary to other kinds of photography, like landscapes or flowers, expensive lenses are secondary. What you do need, however, is a passion for shooting people and cityscapes.

The father of modern photojournalism, Henri Cartier-Bresson, once said, “Sharpness is a bourgeois concept.” And if you study successful street photographs, you’ll notice that they are often grainy, gritty, and slightly blurry—properties that can evoke the raw realism of life. Many photographers spend too much time worrying about gear and too little time actually taking photographs. But concentrating on photographing—spending your time out there with your camera—is what will inevitably lead to better images.

What you should worry about when it comes to gear is familiarity— meaning, getting to know yours as well as you possibly can. Regardless of what camera you choose, it will have its pros and cons. There is no such thing as the “perfect” street photography camera. What it comes down to is getting comfortable with the gear you have and understanding how to work with its particular pros and cons.

Avoid thinking of your gear as a crutch. Just go out and shoot.

12. Carry spare batteries and memory cards

There is a saying in the military that goes, “Two is one and one is none.” This refers to the necessity for a soldier to carry spares of any crucial piece of equipment. A soldier needs to be extra careful as failing to carry backups might ultimately result in lives lost.

Even though photographing in the streets is a smidgeon less serious than fighting in the battlefield, this is a good saying for street photographers. Without a doubt, there will be times when you find yourself out in the streets with either a drained battery or a full memory card (or both). There will also be days when you forget your main memory card or battery at home. That’s when the backups stacked away in your bag will save the day. It’s all about being prepared. Try to avoid ending up in a situation when you want to shoot something, but can’t.

13. Keep a shooting journal

Some people call it notes, others call it records. Still others use words like data, files, ledger, or even journal. And for every term out there, there is at least one approach to the actual task. You might use a piece of paper and a pen, a laptop, or an iPad. Or why not use a voice recorder, a notebook, a legal pad, or even a personal leather journal? Regardless of the type of person you are, there is an option that suits you. That’s a good thing, because even if the term and approach are unimportant, the task itself is anything but.

Street photography will introduce you to interesting people with incredible life stories. I’ve had the opportunity to listen to some truly touching stories from businessmen, the homeless, street performers, even children. By recording these stories in pictures, a street photographer is preserving a piece of personal history as well as a part of society’s history. But don’t forget that the story behind a compelling picture is often part of what makes it so special. When you present your work, whether to friends over cups of coffee or to visitors at your first exhibit, it’s important that you can retell the stories behind your pictures.

We all know what a “keeper” looks like. But what makes it so good? Try to uncover the secrets of good photography through your notes. Describe what makes that image so powerful and moving to you. What compositional elements work well? Is it the framing, the action, the person’s physical traits, or the expression? By zeroing in on what fascinates you about your “keepers,” you will better understand and develop your photographic style.

Type in dext.mobi/g6Ke for YouTube video.

14. Try shooting film

Although analogue cameras are becoming more and more obsolete, there’s still a good reason for trying one (if you can find a roll of film for it, that is). Actually, shooting film can be a powerful learning experience. When you are shooting with film, you automatically force yourself to be more critical and disciplined. The limited number of shots in each roll makes you economical and selective. While a digital camera makes it is easy to take hundreds of bad photos by aimlessly firing away, film requires you to think a bit before pressing the shutter.

The film developing process will also teach you patience. Digital cameras provide “instant gratification” in that we can immediately review the images we shoot. With film, there is uncertainty about how your images turned out —whether they were framed correctly, exposed well, or sharp. All of these questions get a chance to marinate inside your mind. And once you get your roll of film developed, you can study it from a more mature perspective and learn from it with a deeper understanding.

If you shoot with a film rangefinder camera that does not have built-in metering, you will also have to learn to handle available light. For instance, you will get a better sense of what aperture and shutter speed to use during certain times of the day at certain ISOs. Understanding light and exposure will make you more aware of the lighting in any scene, an awareness that can only help when you return to shooting digital. It will allow you to go beyond what the auto-exposure setting on your camera can offer.