Shooting Strangers
Shoot first, ask questions later. This works better with cameras than with firearms, or at least there are less legal complications. Sometimes you don't even need to ask questions...
Just think of it as going on an urban safari. There's plenty of big game and it can be just as unpredictable and dangerous as anything rich people hunt for sport.
Just look for a watering hole or place where they gather to feed and post up. If your camouflage is good you'll have them coming right to you in no time at all.
Occasionally they will even walk right into your shot.
Humans are curious critters, once they become accustomed to you they start ignoring you.
That's when you can shoot them in all their natural glory.
These photos are all from my safari at the Thunder Over Louisville air show earlier this year.
Great work. It is a little sketchy taking candids. Sometimes I get the vibe to just not do it. That's been happening more often.
Thanks. Yeah, these were all shot with a 70-300 lens, which helps a bit. I've mostly been shooting with a 50mm lately and it's a good bit more dicey sometimes. Everyone just seems to be a bit more on edge these days. Makes for some interesting photos when it's not too sketchy to shoot.
I would like to shoot some street scenes and crowds with a 35mm... Probably won't though. Haha. I would like that super close thing with people in background too. I do shoot with my 70x300mm though. One little trick that I always forget is to flip my screen up and hold the camera down on my chest. it's a little less confronting to people. That and have a smart and (strong) woman with me.
They seem to notice the camera even at quite far. I think what you said in the comments about being on edge is cos people just post everything on the internet trying to shame or cancel random people for the views and likes. It's really different feeling when there's a photographer pointing his camera at you cos you know it's just for the art vs. when a random kid points his smartphone at you. Next thing you know you've become viral not because of the wonderful shot of the photographer but because of the kid trying to embarrass you. :D
Everybody sees the camera but nobody is ever quite sure what you're pointing it at :) A lot of these I took by lining up the camera with a certain point in space and then letting people walk into the shot.
That's definitely a facet of people being on edge but I think it's more generalized than that. Seemingly everyone is armed and twitchy these days, just a few weeks after I took these a bunch of teenagers had themselves a gunfight over a scooter only a few hundred meters from where these were shot. Plus with everything that happened here in 2020 (Breonna Taylor protests) everybody is a little extra paranoid and distrustful.
Very nice Jethro. I tore my knee up in Budapest when the couple got to the stair platform just before us, we were a couple steps away still on incline. She turned around to get a photo and Pura and I both instinctually turned and ducked.
Everything turned except bad foot on my bad wheel, there it went, I've been on a cane ever since. Ended up spending three days inside, no spelunking or anything, elevated on ice. Need to get it fixed but that means throwing in the towel.
Cheeeeese!
Yikes, that doesn't sound like much fun. Did they not have any of the 'Danger Historic Stairs' signs up like in Savannah? Camera, gun, whenever someone raises one you just gotta hit the deck.
Random question, were y'all in Buda or Pest?
You may need to go a little easy on the cheese for a bit. That sucks man. I gotta ask, what color is the cane? One of my good friends/old drinking buddies got hit by a car once and instead of going to the hospital went into CVS and got a 6 pack of beer and a pepto bismol pink cane and limped home.
It's a copper color. Tell your buddy I'll trade him. Pura hit like five different places that day translating trying to find one while keeping in contact with me. Copper it is! They're not just called pharmacy or Walgreens or anything simple.
We toured both but that particular moment we were in Buda. At the ruin bars. Scroll down to the fourth image—those steps!
I'm afraid he gave it away after he quit drinking. We kept it in the living room as some sort of weird trophy for a while though. Of course not, that'd make too much sense.
Nice! Shit, that'll leave a mark. Ruin bars just make me wish I could have taken photos there right after the Eastern Bloc fell apart.
You really took your time to take beautiful unaware shots. I love seeing unaware photographs.
Thank you!