7 Street Photography Rules That Should Be Broken
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Loading... - Nafula Muinde
- 09 Aug 2022
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Street photography, like most genres of photography, comes with rules: oft-repeated ideas about how you should structure your images, where you should shoot, and the types of subjects you should capture.
But should these street photography rules really be followed? I don’t think so. Sure, they work up to a point, but if you pursue them too diligently, you’ll start to feel trapped, and your photos will start to look like everyone else’s.
In other words, if you want to capture sophisticated, unique photos that really make viewers stop and stare, you’ve got to go beyond the rules. And that’s what this article is all about.
Below, I share seven commonly repeated rules of street photography. And then I explain how you can – and should! – break them whenever you get the chance.
Let’s dive right in.
1. Street photography must contain people
Street shots often contain people, and many beginners only raise the camera when a person is nearby. Yet street photography is really about life, and you do not need to smack a person in the middle of a frame to get a beautiful street image.
In my view, the goal of street shooting is to capture unique and interesting moments that mean something to you. You can do this by including people in the frame, but you can also capture meaningful images that are devoid of human life.
For instance, you might photograph:
· Storefronts
· Buildings
· Trees in the park
· Bridges
· Houses
All of the above are fantastic street photography subject ideas, and the presence of people will often just act as a distraction. Therefore, if you’re prone to including people in your street photos, I’d encourage you to spend some time looking for some non-human subjects. Explore your surroundings and try to describe them through your imagery. Include people when it furthers your aim, but look for unique shots of your surroundings at the same time.
If you find a great area with beautiful light, then capture it like it is. Don’t mess up an interesting scene by including random passersby! If you find a good background and want to include a person in the shot, that person needs to add to the photograph. Otherwise, wait for any people to walk on by, then just capture the scene as it is. Read More…
