Issue 171 of the SNYC Newsletter
Greetings everyone! I am finally getting around to having a look through some of my photos taken during my recent travels. All the photos in this issue are from my first day in Lisbon, Portugal. I typically take photos in the same neighborhoods in New York City over and over again and I never tire of it. But in my travels it was all new!
I do hope that you are all starting out the new year seeing with new eyes and switching things up a bit. And, that you are enjoying photography whether you are taking photos or viewing them. Both are worthy activities in my book.
Thank you to all the subscribers, new and continuing. This newsletter is about my journey in street photography. Also, thank you to everyone who has taken my workshops and written reviews as well. I am very thankful.
Happy Shooting!
The real act of discovery consists not in finding new lands but in seeing with new eyes. Marcel Proust
I write this newsletter to share my thoughts & experiences on street photography. I hope that you find it of use in your journey. If you are able to, you can support me by buying me a coffee. No sweat if you’re unable to contribute. The newsletter is free for all. Thanks to everyone who has bought me a coffee!!! Maybe one day we’ll be able to have a coffee in person. Mucho love.
Be Yourself
Be yourself. I much prefer seeing something, even if it is clumsy, that doesn’t look like somebody else’s work. William Klein
I didn’t study photography formally. Rather I learned from doing and observing the work of other photographers. But mostly it happened by shooting a lot and experimenting while making numerous so-called mistakes. Yes, that’s where my mantra comes from.
So perhaps I learned it through a better method, at least for me. I didn’t feel bound by the grammar that is taught. I didn’t have to unlearn it. I learn more by doing than trying to understand concepts on a theoretical level. That’s just my style of understanding.
The value that I bring in my workshops and mentoring is my experience. Not theories or recipes. The real learning in anything in life is in the doing. In street photography, you begin a day of shooting by working with the light, the weather and your environment. And also whatever you are dealing with in life at the moment.
I am more influenced by art and cinema than other photographers for the most part. I do spend a lot of time looking at photography in books AND even on social media. I am always looking at everything around me. It’s my way of experiencing the world.
The photos that speak to me have an emotional element. They are not ‘perfect’ photos. I don’t understand perfect photos. They represent an adherence to recipes and letting the technology rule the image. That said, not all of my photos are excellent. That is true of all photographers. We cannot always create a masterpiece.
These are my thoughts and feelings about photography and I don’t say that people should agree with me on this. I am not a religious person, but I don’t discount the beliefs of others as long as they don’t infringe on the rights of other people.
The same path is true in art and photography. When you are no longer concerned about whether other people like your photos in both senses of the word like, you begin to blossom as a photographer.
That of course takes courage. It is a sign of maturity when a person no longer feels that their friends and people close to them need to like and approve of everything that they create.
When you feel free to create and it doesn’t discriminate against others, then people either accept you for who you are, warts and all, or not. Otherwise you spend your time trying to impress others with your ability to be an imitation of others photographers. You are presenting yourself as someone other than yourself.
Yes, photography is a vey personal experience. Yes, we want others to like us. And yes, we need to feel comfortable being who we are and expressing ourselves through our photos. The sooner than you allow yourself to be who you are, the easier it is. Be courageous. Be yourself.
I’d love to hear about your journey in photography and being yourself, finding your own style and even just how photography inspires you.
Announcement
My role as a teacher and mentor has been for the most part on the streets during workshops and also the occasional online mentoring sessions. Now, I will be teaching at the Marlene Meyerson JCC in New York City!
The Art & Practice of Street Photography
The class is 10 Sundays beginning in early March and is half in class and half on the streets shooting. Maximum 10 students. You can see more info and register online. We always have fun shooting street photography.
Biweekly Photo Assignment - Human Expressions
The topic is wide open for all kinds of expression. It’s always fun to capture human emotion.
This is a voluntary assignment if you want to take part. You can submit your photos to the Facebook group for Shoot New York City and also on Instagram tag @shootnewyorkcity. If you're not a member of the Facebook group yet, all you have to do is request to join.
Further Viewing
Alex has a way of often being in sync with what I’m writing about. He emphasizes experimenting in this video.
Upcoming Workshops
Workshops are a maximum of 5 people Workshops are only scheduled on weekend days. If you would like to have a weekday workshop or a workshop in other areas of NYC, let me know with some lead time and I’ll see if others want to also attend it. Otherwise I continue to provide private workshops on weekdays and in other neighborhoods.
The Chinatown workshop takes place on the first part of the Lunar New Year celebration. The Polar Bear Swim is in Coney Island and I don’t repeat this workshop very often. We always have fun.
For those who haven't done a workshop or photo tour with me in the past I have a number of reviews on my website and also on TripAdvisor! Workshops are both for people who live here and also travelers, as are photo tours.
Photo tours are one-on-one and arranged on an individual basis for both neighborhood and photographic style and can be designed as a workshop as well. They are customized to your interests and level. Thank you for your patience and Stay Safe!
I have always felt that anything creative should be about the pleasure you get from the act rather than the final output ... of course if you can live both so much the better but primarily it is the doing ...