Secrets that Any Aspiring Street Photographer Should Know

Secrets that any aspiring street photographer should know are not just technical tricks, but tips to help you find excellent content for your photos, so that it might be interesting and powerful. Two previously published articles – Tips for Street Photography and Taking Better Street Photography can be good primers before you start to explore these secrets that any aspiring street photographer should know thing, if you are new to street photography. Street photography is not easy. Out there, there is a fast moving world and serves a lot of practice to be able to capture it well. However, it is not just practice. Every street photographer expert has a box of tricks that help make life easier on the road. Below are some of  the secrets.

Stop Moving : The First Among the Secrets that Any Aspiring Street Photographer Should Know

Out for street photography as a nice walk through the city ? There is nothing wrong with that, of course, but it is really hard to walk, to devote full attention and at the same time capture photos of good quality. Do you not often find yourself out of place when something important happens and it is a lot easier than they realize you as you try to get into position ?

People usually move in the opposite direction to yours, so it can be hard to slow down your movement enough to get a clear shot while focussing properly. To do all this in motion you have to have a lot of coordination. The trick is to slow down. Set yourself to stop for a few minutes after crossing a few blocks. Look at what is happening. The subjects must come to you, not the other way around. Explore the surroundings in detail and wait for things to develop in front of you. You will be surprised by the amount of events that happen while you are just standing there.

Pay attention to the eyes : Second Among the Secrets that Any Aspiring Street Photographer Should Know

If you want to improve your street photography (or your street portraits), then watch people’s eyes. People know how to be really good at hiding emotions that can shine through their faces, but eyes never lie. These days, we see far too many photos of the street with blank stares. Search in a person’s eyes that glimmer excitement and this will have a revolutionary effect on your photography.

In addition, direct eye contact can be extremely important. It creates a powerful connection with the subject. Usually, we try to avoid to notice ourselves and so often point not to have eye contact. Sometimes, however, wait for one person to look at you is exactly what a photo needs. The photograph will remain until it spontaneously capture the subject at the exact moment he looks at you and before it is able to react.

Focus on the details

Street photography is not just about capturing odd juxtapositions or let in the highest possible number of people or things within a frame. To tell the truth, it is something that we see too often. Often, it is better to simplify your photos and look for the ‘small things’ – those tiny taste of life that everyone seems to miss. Look at the details : the hands of a person, an expression, a garment or a single object framed by very close. Ideas and powerful emotions can be portrayed through the simplest of scenes.

Take at ISO 1600

The digital cameras of today are extremely valuable at high ISO. If you are under bright light or you are photographing stationary objects you do not need to approach to ISO 1600, but in all other cases it is a good idea. Street photography practically live in ISO 1600, 800 and 3200. Shooting with high ISO will help you to get sharper images, allowing you to use a shutter speed faster and a narrow opening, allowing a greater portion of the scene to be sharp. If you use a decent digital camera, you will soon find out that shoot at high ISO will create an image of much greater quality, in spite of the additional grain.

We have more tips and more secrets that any aspiring street photographer should know, for that part; wait for the next publication and stay connected with us via free newsletter subscription or following Twitter or Facebook or Google Plus.

Update : Read the rest on second part.