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Joel Meyerowitz street shooting video

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S.P.

Guest
... i don't teach street shooting this way. You want to be invisible than exactly what Irakaly said be invisible and dress like everyone else and don't run around like a idiot. But it is all about attitude and also about respect for who you are shooting. Sometimes i will walk away from a shot if I feel i am truly invading some ones space. I am not into harassing people for my benefit
View attachment 5213

is this street shooting how you teach it?
 

robertwright

New member
you know the thing is, JMeyerowitz is dressed like a newyorker in the winter, all black. I've seen him around and he does dress like that normally. It may look weird but just stroll down Madison and you will know what I mean. And the gloves, well, it gets cold holding an M6 outside in the winter, I use one glove on the body and let the focus hand go free. Thing is, people dress however in ny and that is really not an issue.

But I did get the impression he was just doing it for the video. Hamming it up. It is impossible to work with someone filming you.

Jeff Mermelstein otoh I have seen working and that is what he looks like. Both of them are tall. Mermelstein is a little bit like frankenstein walking, even when he is not shooting, a strange physical presence. He was at the recent NY photo festival and his energy is definitely shy.

Bruce Gilden I have only met once, and he is a classic ny crank from the old school. I think we forget that ny is not what it used to be, remember how the other Bruce, -Davidson did Subway and essentially prepared himself for battle each day in camo fatigues as a way to claim some territory in the subway. What Gilden was doing I think has more to do with how the street was in ny in the 80's, you needed to assert more, today it is totally different, mostly 90% tourists.

Street is not one thing, it is a lot of things, and sometimes the best pictures are when the subject is aware of the photographer, while I don't like BG possibly giving old ladies heart attacks, he does try to find that aspect of ny, the freaks and geeks, the people that you think only exist in fiction, he creates his own cast with this technique. We all have to find our unique "population", we "cast" our own stories in photography sometimes. BG is no different.
 

charlesphoto

New member
I think these videos of famous street shooters doing their thing should be taken with a grain of salt. I've been trailed with a video camera before taking pics and let me tell you, it's not an easy thing. To do the best street photography one must be alone. I find that even a guide (when I'm in a foreign country) can be a hindrance. And sometimes things happen and other times they don't. I wouldn't judge the body of Gilden's or Meyerwowitz's work on an hour in NY with a videographer. It's really just to show an example of their style.

Street photography is about one thing: CONFIDENCE. There are no set "rules beyond that as to what to wear, how to act, etc etc. Of course not sticking out like a sore thumb is best. I find looking good (not formal though) works best for me. For example when I'm in other countries I dress in long pants even if it's 100 degrees out, which is usually how the locals dress. I think Meyerowitz looks like a NY artist hipster to NYers (not a ninja) and therefore people see him as working. Gilden just looks a bit like a crazy person and therefore not worth bothering with which works to his advantage.

I would say the pics posted above are a good example of how NOT to street photograph. Personally I find the touristic horde approach more off putting than Gilden.

And of course NY is a different beast from most elsewhere. There is a constant flow and people take things in stride. Heck what's a camera flash in the face when anytime a construction crane could come falling down. I'm with Helen when it comes to Gilden. Methinks people actually aren't quite as sensitive as you make them out to be, esp NYers who've "seen it all."

This Jeff Mermelstein video is another must see of a photographer at work. He sort of cuts the balance between Gilden and Meyerowitz.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuXcm35m50Y
 

irakly

New member
i've seen a video of garry winogrand shooting on the street. i can totally relate to the way he did it. even his body language... i think i know exactly what he felt before and after pressing the shutter.


I think these videos of famous street shooters doing their thing should be taken with a grain of salt. I've been trailed with a video camera before taking pics and let me tell you, it's not an easy thing. To do the best street photography one must be alone. I find that even a guide (when I'm in a foreign country) can be a hindrance. And sometimes things happen and other times they don't. I wouldn't judge the body of Gilden's or Meyerwowitz's work on an hour in NY with a videographer. It's really just to show an example of their style.

Street photography is about one thing: CONFIDENCE. There are no set "rules beyond that as to what to wear, how to act, etc etc. Of course not sticking out like a sore thumb is best. I find looking good (not formal though) works best for me. For example when I'm in other countries I dress in long pants even if it's 100 degrees out, which is usually how the locals dress. I think Meyerowitz looks like a NY artist hipster to NYers (not a ninja) and therefore people see him as working. Gilden just looks a bit like a crazy person and therefore not worth bothering with which works to his advantage.

I would say the pics posted above are a good example of how NOT to street photograph. Personally I find the touristic horde approach more off putting than Gilden.

And of course NY is a different beast from most elsewhere. There is a constant flow and people take things in stride. Heck what's a camera flash in the face when anytime a construction crane could come falling down. I'm with Helen when it comes to Gilden. Methinks people actually aren't quite as sensitive as you make them out to be, esp NYers who've "seen it all."

This Jeff Mermelstein video is another must see of a photographer at work. He sort of cuts the balance between Gilden and Meyerowitz.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuXcm35m50Y
 
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matmcdermott

Guest
To do the best street photography one must be alone. I find that even a guide (when I'm in a foreign country) can be a hindrance. And sometimes things happen and other times they don't.
Entirely true. It sometimes seems like meditation. When you're in the zone you become an entirely intolerable companion to anyone else that's accompanying you. At least I do; I end up ignoring everything but all the little details in front of me.

Street photography is about one thing: CONFIDENCE. There are no set "rules beyond that as to what to wear, how to act, etc etc. Of course not sticking out like a sore thumb is best. I find looking good (not formal though) works best for me. For example when I'm in other countries I dress in long pants even if it's 100 degrees out, which is usually how the locals dress.
Yes, confidence is the key to good street photography. Perhaps second is patience.

I would say the pics posted above are a good example of how NOT to street photograph. Personally I find the touristic horde approach more off putting than Gilden.
I may dislike Gilden's approach, but the horde is 100% worse. If there are too many cameras around (and it's not an "event" surrounded by press photogs) I often opt not to shoot, or only make one or two images before the camera goes in the bag. It feels entirely predatory to me otherwise. Too many people filtering the world through the camera first then the eyes: all backwards.
 

glenerrolrd

Workshop Member
There are many schools of thought on street photography...really on how to approach people. Since that trip to Germany ..i participated in 4 workshops and three trips to europe specifically for street photography. I am in Paris now for 2 weeks ..everyday on the street. I have had the opportunity to meet with a dozen photojournalists to discuss their work and street photography. Styles very greatly and there are few absolute best practices. The biggest area of debate is do you seek permission to shoot. Most don t but I have seen entire lifetimes of work where the photographer first had to gain acceptance (permission). There are a lot of ways to "ask someone to dance" . My issue with asking is that it changes entire process from being in the moment to creating the moment. Gilden creates the moment with his abrupt style and provokes a response...this doesn t have to be so unpleasant ....but thats his style. JM tries to blend in but his video makes you believe he bobs and weaves...if the subject notices you probably get a negative response. Personally I think he is over doing it to emphasize that you do have to get out in traffic to do decent street photography. How you dress and look , how you carry yourself and how you approach subjects all matter ..but there are few absolutes..just things that work for you. For may taste ..and thats what it is..you have to get close,use a wide angle to include some context and get low . A test I use everyday ..look at the photos in the new york times ...even the sports page. What pictures would you like to have taken? How do you think the photographer got the shot? One thing I do know is that you will have a hard time doing street photography in a group....that one might be an absolute. LOL Roger
 
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nei1

Guest
You need to be obvious,so obviously a photographer that the life that surrounds you can give you permission to be there and then forget you exist.If you think that dressing up as a ninja and flailing your arms around makes you invisible and nobody is smacking you on the nose then maybe your right but Id keep it to yourself.
 

irakly

New member
this is a series that i did in moscow subway. didn't know any of these people, never asked permission, never shot from the hip. no photoshop either. it took me eleven days. i shot 57 frames total.
only once i was approached by a gentleman who asked how could i use such an expensive spectacle of german engineering in the subway. i pretended to be a retard, and he immediately retired.
http://www.shanidze.com/WebGalleries/metro/
 

irakly

New member
Great work Irakly,the last one,among others,wonderful,Neil.
the kissing shot, you mean? actually that one i spent eleven frames on to get it right. the guy on a bench was totally drunk. it was the first time in my life seeing a person yawning while sleeping :)
 
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