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It’s a Man’s World, It’s a Woman’s World

The song “It’s a Man’s World,” made famous by James Brown, was written by one his girlfriends, Betty Jean Newsome, but it’s far from being a feminist tract. According to the song, man made the cars,...

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More About Words in Photos

I’m reasonably sure that words appear in a disproportionate number of my photos. Maybe the ratio is one to ten: one picture containing words to ten without. For whatever reason, I always notice them....

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What Are We Waiting For?

When you photograph someone waiting patiently — or impatiently — you’re introducing an element of expectation into your photo. This means the shot is “open-ended,” or not complete in itself. It’s...

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In Praise of Shadows in Street Photography

To write a blog post I enjoy switching on my computer in the morning and be greeted by another splendid landscape from Microsoft on the start-up screen. Mostly, the photos are well chosen: spectacular...

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Something Mysterious is Going On

Cities are deeply mysterious places because it’s almost impossible to understand the full truth of what’s happening. People are moving around, occasionally pausing in doorways to chat on the phone, but...

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The Subjects Are Hiding

When subjects are fleeing into darkness, or when they have their backs turned towards us and are studying something unseen with intense concentration — that’s when you can get a good street photo....

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Sometimes the Devil Is in the Detail

If you’re like me, there are occasions when you look through the shots you’ve taken and you come across one which prompts the question: “Why on Earth did I take it?” The composition is poor, there are...

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The Trailing Street

I wish I had the perfect shot with which to illustrate this concept, but I’m still waiting for the right opportunity. Let me explain what I have in mind. I imagine a scene in which the camera viewpoint...

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Street Photographer Goes Birding

If you’ve just built a hide in the woods and bought a 600mm lens, please stop reading now. This morning I looked out of my bedroom window and snapped a baby goldcrest with my Canon 5DIII and 40mm lens,...

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In Street Photography, Let the Viewer’s Imagination Go to Work

Cameras are magical instruments because of their potential. When you look at a brand new camera, just out of its box, you can imagine all the wonderful photos it may eventually take. You mind completes...

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Using Posters and Graffiti in Street Photography

If you’re a street photographer it’s almost impossible to resist taking full advantage of posters and graffiti: readymade artworks that provide a colouful and sometimes meaningful backdrop to your...

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The Urge to Simplify in Street Photography

Can you resist it? Should you resist it? I’m talking about the urge to simplify your street photos in order to make them more striking, giving them more instant appeal. The compulsion to simplify is...

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Colourful Arguments

As I’ve said approximately twenty times in these blog posts, “contrast” — in the broadest sense — lies at the heart of street photography. So here’s a potential theme with built-in contrast: domestic...

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Dressing Windows

A sheet of plate glass less than an inch thick separates the life of the street from the life of the shop window. When window dressers change their display, they — and their display — become a...

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Deliberate Obscurity

When William Eggleston said “I am at war with the obvious” I don’t think he was recommending the deliberate embrace of obscurity. Yet it’s a measure of how far we’ve come that today a photographer can...

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Feasting, Eating, and Snacking on the Street

The civic authorities in Bangkok are beginning to outlaw the sale of fastfood on certain streets, especially those in trendy, up-and-coming areas like Thonglor. Not everyone is happy about it. After...

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Waterway “Street” Photography

Can you do street photography on rivers and canals? I don’t see why not. The only difference between the waterway and the street is the obligation to use a boat for transport, rather than your feet....

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Allow Themes to Emerge

This blog post is all about one single tip for the aspiring street photographer. It’s this: don’t set yourself specific tasks or place yourself in the straitjacket of a “concept.” Just take pictures...

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Keeping the City at a Distance

Like most street photographers I place people centre-stage. In musical terms, I give people the vocal role while the city provides the instrumental accompaniment. I tend to keep the two components —...

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The Charm of Pedal Power

Why are bicycles so charming and photogenic? You would think they’d make terrible pictures, being cluttered with chains and spokes and odd bits of metal here and there. But no, a bike can lift the...

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