Issue 165 of the SNYC Newsletter
Greetings everyone! I’m out shooting all the time these days. People are booking private and group workshops and I am so fortunate to meet people from everywhere around the world and from all kinds of backgrounds.
I love street photography and this city as well. People tell me that my enthusiasm is contagious and that they feel comfortable shooting the streets with me. From beginners to advanced photographers and from young to retired I work with everyone. Inclusivity is important. Street should always be inclusive and diverse.
Thank you to all the subscribers of this newsletter. If you haven’t subscribed, it’s easy and free.
And a big thank you to all the new and returning customers who take my workshops and who’ve written a review. You can see more that 200 reviews on my site.
As always, 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. 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.
Just Keep Doing It
Every other artist begins with a blank canvas, a piece of paper… the photographer begins with the finished product. Edward Steichen
I call myself a backward painter. Art school didn’t work well for me. The idea of having a thought in my mind of what to paint didn’t make sense. I paint/shoot what I see in front of me. It’s my interpretation of the world that I live in.
Like all art, street photography looks easy. Art deceives us because we don’t see what went into it. We don’t see all the photos that get rejected. How long does it take to take a photo? A split second is one answer. The real answer is your entire life of experiences and of shooting.
There are times when you get bored with your photos. The same thing over and over again. Or maybe the thrill of getting a shot gives you a high, only to later discover that it wasn’t that great after all. It happens to everyone throughout a life of making art, me included.
Creativity is the residue of time wasted. Albert Einstein.
Street photography is complex. There are many layers to creating a good image. It is like learning a language and gradually adding new vocabulary. If you work on one concept over and over again, it becomes second nature. Then you can add another element when shooting.
But before getting into the different elements, it is necessary to feel comfortable with your camera. It’s not about knowing all the bells and whistles. Rather, it’s about being able to use it with some predictable results so you can focus on keeping your eyes on the street.
The act of shooting is for me everything. Street is an activity that I enjoy. Whether I get the shot or not is a decision made after the shooting day is over. I don’t remember taking the above photo.
Thinking should be done before and after, not during photographing. Henri Cartier-Bresson
Learning the rules of composition can be a good thing in shooting street or any other genre of photography. But as Cartier-Bresson advises, you shouldn’t really be ‘thinking’ about that while shooting.
If you focus on using the rule of thirds when staying in one place and waiting for people to enter the frame, you can choose to shoot them at one third of the frame or another. I tend towards either side, not the center.
After awhile, you’ll find that you no longer need to actually think about the rule of thirds, it comes naturally. You can also break the rules as well. But it all takes time to be able to do without having to forfeit your ability to observe what’s going on around you, rather that thinking about composition.
Be yourself. I much prefer seeing something, even it is clumsy, that doesn’t look like somebody else’s work. William Klein
As photography is like a language, the photos that you capture should be a representation of you and how you view the world. It’s not about taking photos that look like someone else’s photos.
Keep it simple and add other methods and concepts into your work as a process over time. In some art schools, you start by sketching the human skeleton over and over again using different media and ranging from the entire skeleton to smaller pieces. I will tell you that it bored me to death.
Limitations are a good thing for working on developing your own style. That’s not just for beginners either. In the previous issue the assignment was to work with shadows and light. I work with whats’s available rather than being disappointed when it’s not there to shoot. But when there are shadows and light I always focus on them and look for new methods to capture them.
The thing that’s important to know is that you never know. You’re always sort of feeling your way. Diane Arbus
Sharing your photography with others takes courage. You are sharing who you are. Social media can have a very negative effect on how you feel about your work. Yes, I’ve written about that before.
The latest trend on Instagram is that photographers have begun sharing their work in reels so that they can game the system. Or so they think. Actually, they are the ones that are being gamed. A photograph should always be able to stand on it’s own without music, without smart quotes, and without being crammed in with many other photos.
Photos are to be savored like a good meal, Not to be seen for milliseconds. I continue to post individual photos and I unfollow people who post reels. Good photography should not be confused with being a social media superstar. When people that I respect like my photos it’s nice. But first of all, you need to like your own photos without recognition by anyone else.
Stop looking for others to approve of your work and looking at the work of photographers who gain the numbers of followers and likes to decide what to shoot and how to shoot it.
Yes, it takes times to get good at being able to develop your own style and when you do that, then you have to up your style and find new methods of expressing yourself through your work. Street photography, like any art is a moving target. I credit my ability to get bored by doing the same thing over and over again for pushing me to do new things.
The quote that you will find at the beginning of every newsletter is the key to my shooting and creating in general. Seeing with new eyes requires slowing down and observing what’s going on in your environment and attempting to capture it in a way that speaks to who you are. Follow those things that attract your vision. Rather than thinking about it, respond to your instincts.
Your comments and suggestions are always welcome.
Did you know that you find all of my Shoot New York City newsletters starting with Issue 123 from 1 January 2021 on the Substack app? Previous issues were on a different platform. Anyway, the Substack app is a method of reading the issues at your leisure.
Biweekly Photo Assignment - Minimalism
Minimalism is a great method of directing attention to the subject in the photo while getting rid of everything that is unnecessary. I find it easier to do in monochrome. But whatever works for you. And yes, creativity is a plus.
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.
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.
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! The new Substack App is a very cool way to access this and many other newsletters.
Further Viewing
I adore the photography of Saul Leiter and Tatiana’s discussion is exactly the topic of this newsletter and how to follow your own path. She published this video 2 days ago!
Excellent lessons to be learned. Great post Leanne!