Umbrellas. Everywhere. You can usually purchase an umbrella within 80 metres of wherever you are in Tokyo! They are cheap and readily available to save you from any unexpected cloud burst. They are uniformly clear – and people tend to hold them quite low, looking through the transparent, weather resistant plastic, to see where they […]
Continue readingCreative Brief – Japan! Part One
Third time lucky? I am lucky enough to be off to Japan for a third trip soon. Reviewing past images of Japan will be a key part of my preparation for the upcoming shoot extgravaganza. I have not been shooting a lot for the last twelve months or so. Part of the preparation will have […]
Continue readingThe Missed Shot
Initially, I thought I had messed up this shot entirely – but have come to kind of like it after a day of consideration. I have been focusing on a couple of key techniques lately reduce : look for simpler compositions that have less clutter isolate : make sure the subject in each image is […]
Continue readingIf you say “no” often enough…
Ever stop and realise that you haven’t seen someone you would normally call a “friend” for a long time. Suddenly, the realisation crashes into you that you have completely lost track of what they are doing and where they are at. They are not really a friend anymore, just somebody you used to know. Usually, it […]
Continue readingThings I Learned (and loved) Shooting New York City at Night – Part Three…
Here are some more thoughts on Street Photography after dark… Black Sky When you shoot something brightly illuminated against the night sky, it can turn out like a black curtain. The image above is the sign from the deli where the famous scene from Harry Met Sally was shot – the one where she fakes […]
Continue readingThings I Learned (and loved) Shooting New York City at Night – Part Two…
Here are some more thoughts on Street Photography after dark… Work the Windows Night provides some fantastic framing opportunities – the contrast between the dark of night and brightly illuminated windows is pretty, and nuanced with the inclusion of reflections on the glass. The reflections on this window are subtle, almost like fireflies drifting across […]
Continue readingThings I Learned (and loved) Shooting New York City at Night – Part One…
New York City is a place full of images waiting to happen at night. Here are some images along with some thoughts and learnings from a pilgrimage I made a few years ago to the Big Apple! My shoulder still aches just looking at the images. For this particular trip I hulked around NYC with […]
Continue readingI signed up for an online Udemy course…
I have been a long time fan of Thomas Leuthard, a street photographer based in Switzerland. I love photographers who are also able to share how they get to the final image. Understanding the thought process and techniques someone else uses is invaluable in developing your own skills. I often read and look at other […]
Continue readingFeatured Street Photographer – Hudson Hilliard
We glance at those small moments, but then they’re gone and you think nothing more of them. But when you capture them (especially with film, in my case) you get a small glimpse into someone’s norm, the routine of their life. Why Street Photography? The reason I have such a draw to street photography is […]
Continue readingFeatured Street Photographer – Joseph Chow
“I started by just shooting random things in the city. Just because. I didn’t really “know” about street photography until a few years ago when I suddenly found this stuff on the “internet”. Now I’m engrossed in it.” Joseph Chow is our next featured street photographer. Let’s hear what he has to say! Why Street […]
Continue readingFeatured Street Photographer – Mathew Mangnall
Mathew is a passionate monochromatic photographer, capturing images of Sydney on his way to and from graveyard shift work. Mathew is passionate about promoting his love of street photography on his web and facebook sites. Why Street Photography I struggled for a long time with what style of photography to start with. I had my mind […]
Continue readingFeatured Street Photographer – Joe Jongue
“Best of all, [Street Photography] starts the moment you step out the front door…” My favourite quote from our next photographer, Joe Jongue. Why Street Photography? Street Photography to me is the capture of humanity and culture in its rawest form. It is unique in that no two shots will ever be the same, so every […]
Continue readingFeatured Street Photographer – Mike Reed
Why Street Photography? As a kid I always loved to wander with foot and mind, the back streets, lanes and places. My father was a kind of ‘rag and bone’ man. Thus I am a flâneur, a collector of junk, detritus, books, photographs. A camera was something I could use easily use and carry as […]
Continue readingFree Ebook Download #2 – 2015 Melbourne Street Photography Article Archive!
I have published all the articles from MSP in 2015 in a nice PDF book, suitable for reading at your leisure. Please feel free to share with anyone interested in Street Photography. Here is the link : Melbourne Street Photography 2015 Oh, and here is the link to the 2014 Articles : Melbourne Street Photography […]
Continue readingFeatured Street Photographer #4 – Cameron Delaney
Highlighting the work of some other Aussie Street Photographers has been a blast. Cameron Delaney is the latest to share his work with Melbourne Street Photography. Cameron is based in the Byron Shire, New South Wales, about 50 kms south from the Queensland border. A tough place to be a street photographer… Limited locations! You can […]
Continue readingSome Melbourne Street Images
Some images taken over the last two weeks in Melbourne. I don’t post a lot of my own images here, as the whole social media cycle of feeling the need to shoot / post, shoot / post, shoot / post, was becoming a real chore. But hey, I like doing the less expected thing sometimes… […]
Continue readingBook Review : Henri Cartier-Bresson “The Decisive Moment”
Henri Cartier-Bresson’s “The Decisive Moment” is one of the most recognised photographic books every released. The “spiritual father” of street photography was very fond of presenting his work in books rather than prints. The Matisse cover is just the first of many joys the book will bring you. The book has been reprinted by Steidl but […]
Continue readingContax G2 Review – Autofocusing Rangefinder Brilliance!
I wish Contax was still making cameras. Every one that I have had a chance to handle was a pure joy. The Contax G2 is a fascinating little unit – an autofocusing rangefinder! The word “unique” gets bandied around a lot by people who have a limited grasp of it’s definition : unique juːˈniːk/Submit adjective […]
Continue readingSOHO at night
Shot on medium format at night on Kodak trix 400. Was experimenting with low light photography and tripods… This dodgy looking door is actually a neighbourhood Synagogue rather and not anything more notorious! Using a 150mm lens on a medium format camera got the right framing for the shot from across the street.
Continue readingOvercoming Low Points in the Creative Cycle : First Try
Pulling negatives off the developing reels, squeegeeing, drying, and then scanning. The best part of the week is when the image that appears on the monitor is one you love. The images on my monitor have not been particularly inspiring for me lately. When things seem the same each and every week, then you have […]
Continue readingDistracted by the Faces
Walking around the city at 6.30am on a Saturday morning is always going to encourage creative epiphanies. Combining a spartan-like early start and caffeine led to the inevitable questions of creative growth and purpose. Have my images been improving? People are my favourite subject for street photography. Capturing a single moment of people’s lives as […]
Continue readingTrying New Things : Adelaide Road Trip
I recently took a trip to see the Trent Parke exhibition in Radelaide. The trip itself was to act as a bit of a “reset” button. After focalising (one of my French bosses created this word!) on black and white street photography since November 2013, it was time to just stretch the legs again. Some […]
Continue readingTrent Parke – The Black Rose Exhibition Visit – And What I Learned Spending Time There…
Some photographic exhibitions can be stingy and sparing in sharing the work of the artist. “The Black Rose” is a lush and luxurious experience of Trent Parke’s extensive body of work. As part of Adelaide Festival, the exhibition is described on the website. “Experience an immersive exhibition by Adelaide based Magnum photographer Trent Parke. Parke’s […]
Continue readingContrasting Time
Having some “go to” locations when you are down on inspiration is a critical tool for any street photographer. Taken in Centre Place – you can read more about the location here – a place I often go to when in need of some easy pickins’… The lens was medium format 80mm, and relatively slow […]
Continue readingSelfie Respect
The “selfie” generation is well and truly in control of popular culture… But so many of my fave photographers have also explored self portraiture as part of their creative development. I would have to say that Vivian Maier would be my absolute #1 draft pick on this topic. I have purposefully not watched any of […]
Continue readingJuxtaposition – Cheap Shots!
After feeling a bit “out of the zone” yesterday, juxtapositional compositions came to the rescue. Just find a great sign and wait for the right subject to come into frame. They are a staple for a lot of street photographers – although it takes a fair bit to add enough to the composition to […]
Continue readingMamiya 7II Rangefinder Review
Everyone deserves a brand new medium format film camera once in their life. You can still buy these as new “old” stock on Ebay. If you have the means, spoil youself. Getting one of these babies, in a brand new, unopened carton is a special experience. They ain’t making many medium format film cameras any […]
Continue readingIs it a bench or street photography?
Posted this today on Instagram tagged with #streetphotography without even thinking. Interestingly enough, I had a response from a random on Twitter : I don’t pay much attention to a lot of interweb commentary on stuff. It just never seems to end well, and I have considered turning off the comments function a number of times […]
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