Technical tips for street portraits

Harbinder Marok wrote

"Would add to the discussion imo to hear from any woman involved in street photography and if they would approach this in any other way."

Paul Morgan wrote

"Personally I don`t know any, but it is my guess that it should not be any different."

I agree with you, was just asking after discussions in another thread (about street photography in the U.K) included comments suggesting the need to grow" st__l b__lls". LOL! and apparent lack of replies from any women to this thread

Asking the question resulted in some insightful takes from Shutterbud though into diifferent approaches that may help others.

--
Dpreview Gallery
http://www.dpreview.com/galleries/6003691572

Well there are two approaches I've used. Either to find nice light and a suitable background and wait for a subject to come along, or to find a subject in nice light in the first place. Most of my shots have been in the Middle East where language has been a barrier so once it's been communicated that I'd like to take a portrait and I get confirmation back it's then a case of being as quick and inobtrusive as possible, politely offering to show the subject the image afterwards.

Generally I see a subject in a pose and want the subject to maintain that natural pose, which can be difficult with a audience so more often than not I've got to be quick to not lose the moment or get more people wanting to join the shot. It's therefore important for me to be in auto ISO with an adequate shutter speed and know my focal length so that if I'm kneeling or crouching I'm pretty close to being at the correct distance for the image I'm looking for very quickly.

Thanks for the links. They were informative.

I don't do these, unless asked, though I may start doing so with my Otus lens as an exercise. When I do them, I concentrate on getting the background right. I have gotten smiles of gratitude in several different languages.

However, the fact is that simply taking street portraits is easy. A beginner can do it. But watch the videos, and see how these pros think about it. They want to control the background. They want to control the light. At the very least they want to understand it and take it into account. Of course the personal interaction is there as well. A portable background is easy. Just some paper taped to a wall. Or a nice wall alone.

Compare that to any of the photos posted in this thread, or any similar one. Are the lighting and the background controlled?

Personally, I like environmental portraits. But they're even tougher. Look at those by HCB. Begin by thinking about the light and the background. That's what a pro does.

i guess the point is that shooting a good portrait is very difficult. Just because one does it to strangers on the street does not make it any easier. Just the opposite.

I like what you are doing and writing. your choice for the around 50mm ( full frame eq.) is exellent for full body portraits and your light and background is well thought about. thanks for sharing

MeaC

I rarely shoot street portraits, but I was in this shop that sold 'éclairs of genius' in Paris today. This girl was serving me, we exchanged a few words --éclair means lightening in French, and I asked her where the thunder was. I noticed the lighting was OK an the background was good. I took one picture, and she was startled, then posed for this one, obviously pleased.


Not the greatest portrait in the world, but nice enough. The key thing was that I would not have taken it without the background and the lighting checking out. The best expression in the world without a suitable background is never going to look polished. You have to overcome the mind's tendency to black out the background when you talk to someone. Photographs don't work the same way.