|
Linger on the sidewalk where the neon signs are pretty
How can you lose? The lights are much brighter there!
—“Downtown,” lyrics by Tony Hatch
I love street photography. Whether wandering through the ancient narrow lanes of a tiny Italian hill-town or strolling down Fifth Avenue in New York City, urban environments offer an ever changing visual canvas to stimulate and motivate photo inspiration. All cities great and small have their own unique personality, as distinctly individual as people, and equally as interesting to shoot. And like good portrait photos, capturing the particular character of a location is both photographically challenging and richly rewarding.
If you are like me and most other people, you spend so much time in urban areas that you hardly notice your surroundings anymore. Nonetheless, normal everyday street scenes remain one of my favorite photographic subjects. While quaint little burgs have many obvious visual charms, I love the energy and excitement of modern industrial cities and find them utterly packed full of interesting, albeit challenging, photo subjects.
The fast pace of a big city means the scene around you will constantly change, even if you don’t move. In fact, this is the making of a good self-assigned photo essay: Select an urban location like a busy street corner near a subway or bus stop, a newsstand, a sidewalk café, etc., and photograph it over the course of several days. Shoot lots of photos (with digital cameras there is no penalty for overshooting), but edit your images down to no more than 10 selections. Training yourself to be a ruthless editor will have surprisingly positive effects on your shooting abilities. Follow my tips below to maximize your time and photo efforts.
City landscapes can be photographically intimidating. With so much activity swirling around you, where do you begin? One approach is to start with wide and/or panoramic views and work your way into tight detail shots. Invariably I find myself more emotionally drawn to photo close-ups—including extreme, sometimes unidentifiable images—over the more predicable wide shot. It’s the small, often overlooked aspects of a place that truly define its character. A pattern on a door, weeds growing up through the sidewalk, a jumble of billboards or street signs—these are the kinds of things that will add texture and atmosphere to your images and help express your personal point of view.
As with all outdoor photography, morning and evening light is more interesting and attractive than noontime. But when shooting cityscapes, getting out early has the added advantage of having the whole setting to yourself before the inhabitants and commuters arrive. With good light and without the distraction of people, you are free to focus your attention on skylines, close-ups and good still-life composition. Additionally, streets and other areas normally congested with traffic and crowds take on a completely different, quasi-ghost-like feel when shot devoid of people. Interesting!
Shooting urban landscapes—or anything for that matter—using a totally atypical approach (such as the deserted street example above) is a great way to flex your creative muscles. Many city scenes and landmarks have lost some of their photographic appeal because they have been photographed so many times using the same lens and framing. Avoid this unimaginative and cliché rut. As an alternative, devote yourself to capturing the spirit of the site instead of merely documenting what it looks like. Spend some time thinking about how the subject makes you feel; don’t just rush up and shoot. Choose an angle and framing that emphasize the character of the scene or structure, and shoot at a time of day when the light conveys the proper mood. The resulting image will be fresh, unique and utterly yours.
Urban environments will look dramatically different depending on the time of day and weather conditions. But unless you are only shooting stationary buildings, the differences will expand beyond lighting to include things like number and type of pedestrians as well as traffic flow. Serious-minded commuters will inhabit your scene during rush hour, shoppers and ladies-who-lunch during the middle of the day and party revelers late at night. Each will noticeably change the ambiance of the scene and alter your viewer’s impression of the location.
Whether you prefer modern skyscrapers or old world architecture, chances are you will find what you like in any moderately sized city. City skylines are forever changing; with old buildings destroyed and gleaming new structures added, along with everything in between. Other great urban self-assignments might include highlighting urban change/growth or the contrast between old and new architecture. Construction sites are multistoried anthills of activities and materials that lend themselves to unlimited photo opportunities. Look for angles that include elements of both something old and something new in your frame. Oftentimes you can find an old-style streetlamp or part of an old church structure to pair with an ultra-modern building or contemporary sculpture. Perhaps you see modern architecture as a majestic art form, or maybe you see the destruction of old buildings as a tragic loss of history—whatever your feelings, look for shots that convey your personal point of view.
Don’t forget your camera the next time you head for the city!
Suzanne Salvo and her husband/partner Chris are co-owners of Salvo Photography, an international award-winning studio with bases in Houston, Texas and near Milan, Italy. They specialize in location shooting, and assignments have taken them to more than 60 countries. Typical projects include annual reports, ad campaigns and editorial assignments. See their member photos on the IABC home page. For more information, visit their web site at www.salvophoto.com. For more fun, visit Suzanne’s nationally recognized photoblog at www.salvoatlarge.blogspot.com. |
|
Shanghai, China is one of the fastest growing cities in the world. The pace feels electric, like the lighting streaks in this shot, which were created by shooting out of a fast moving (and I mean fast!) taxi.
|
|
By cropping out any modern signs such as power lines or satellite dishes and prominently featuring the old-style street lamp, this shot correctly conveys the old world charm that is the hallmark of Bergen, Norway.
|
|
The equivalent of U.S. fast food in Xian, China means buying freshly fried persimmon cakes from a street vendor.
|
|
The Shibuya area of Tokyo is known for its amazingly crowded crosswalks. Shooting with a slow shutter speed using a fisheye lens exaggerates the busy feeling.
|
|
