Eric’s Note: I was cruising Flickr and I came upon these wonderful images by Alison McCauley that she submitted to the Street Photography Now project. I was particularly interested in her fresh and diverse group of images, and I hope you will as well! Make sure to read more to see her thoughts about the project as well as her inspirational photos!
These images are a selection from my submissions to the Street Photography Now Project. Sophie Howarth and Stephen McLaren, the authors of the Street Photography Now book (published by Thames and Hudson in 2010) created this project to inspire fresh ways of looking at and documenting the world we all live in. The images contributed to the yearlong project were made in response to a weekly instruction. Each week a different photographer featured in the book would issue the instruction. The participants had one week to take and post their image.
Eric’s Note: This post is by Bellamy Hunt (aka Japan Camera Hunter) who has a weekly column on camera gear, lenses, film, and other topics every Tuesday on my blog.
The question that everyone asks me when they have decided to buy a camera is usually “which camera should I buy, oh wise one?“ (Well, maybe no the wise one bit, but you know what I mean).
This is a bit of a loaded question really, as there is no right or wrong answer other than “whatever suits you bestâ€. You could spend hours pouring over the net, reading magazines and reviews or listening to the bloke down the pub, but until you actually hold a camera you have no idea. What I usually tell people is this, find a camera that suits your needs and your style, and most of all, one that feels good in your hand and next to your eye. Because cameras come and go. This is certainly even more relevant now, in the digital age. The average digital camera has a ‘cycle’ of about 3 years, which means that just as you are getting comfortable with your camera, the next piece of eye candy is out there on the shelf flaunting its megapixels at you, and the piece you have in your hand looks forlornly back at you waiting to die.
I am excited to announce that Thomas Leuthard (85mm) has just released his second book on street photography titled: “Collecting Souls: What Street Photography Means to Me“. This book is much more advanced than his previous book, and contains more of his personal thoughts and ideas when it comes to street photography. It includes more than 30 short chapters about street photography, and should help with your own story-telling and style.
As with Thomas’ other street photography book, it is totally FREE and available for download here.
If you haven’t checked out Thomas’ first book “Going Candid“, you can also download that here as well.
Show Thomas some love by leaving a comment below and telling him what you think about his book/generosity!
The last day of the Downtown Los Angeles Intermediate Street Photography Workshop really touched my heart. Being able to facilitate a community of equally passionate and open-minded street photographers really made me realize how wonderful life has been to me. A year ago, I had a faint idea of starting a street photography blog to share all my tips and insights about my path of becoming a street photographer. I had no idea that a year after, I would be able to meet people from all around the world and share this same passion for street photography.
The second day of the workshop went smoothly, and a great time (and great food by my mom and sister) were enjoyed by all! Huge shout-out to The Think Tank Gallery for hosting the workshop and letting me use their venue.Being in the heart of Downtown LA really helped us explore so many colorful neighborhoods (the fashion, jewelry, and toy district as well as Little Tokyo and other areas). Below are some images from the workshop, and expect to see photos from the participants (Mattei, Norman, Nannette, Justin,Rinzi, Elizabeth, Ibarionex, Bo, Todd, Jordan, and Dana) soon!
If you want more information about my upcoming Introductory Street Photography Workshops in San Francisco (9/10-9/11) with Leica or in Chicago (9/17-9/18) with Jason Martini check out my workshops page or shoot me an email at erickimphotography@gmail.com
Hey streettogs, the Think Tank Gallery in Los Angeles is looking for 32 street photographers for a fascinating project. They will select an undisclosed location, and you will be given 10 days to shoot during October 1st-10th. Those chosen will then have their best 3 images shown in their gallery during the LA Downtown Artwalk on October 13th. If you are interested in participating, shoot an email at youareherethinktank@gmail.com with your 5 best images in JPEG format (resized to 950px wide). This can be a great opportunity to get more exposure for your work and even get featured in an up-coming gallery!
*Deadline to submit is September 15th, 2011
*You don’t need to be from Los Angeles to participate, but you will have to be in Los Angeles during October 1st-10th to participate.
Hey streettogs, I’m excited to say that the first day of my Downtown Los Angeles Intermediate Street Photography went extremely well! It was the first time I taught the Intermediate workshop, and quite frankly was worried how it would go. I made the Intermediate Workshop from scratch (completely new material from the Introductory Workshop) and wasn’t quite sure how it would be in terms of engagement, timing, and fun.
However things went very smoothly, and I really fed off all the positive energy from the participants of the workshop. We studied the work of some of the great street photographers, such as Cartier-Bresson, Doisneau, Winogrand, Erwitt, and Levitt and learned more about their methodology and philosophy when it came to shooting. By looking at a combination of videos of them shooting on the street, documentaries, as well as images and quotes– it helped us understand their style and how we could apply it to our own.
I want to personally thank all the participants of the workshop (Mattei, Norman, Nannette, Justin, Rinzi, Elizabeth, Ibarionex, Bo, Todd, Jordan, and Dana) for their enthusiasm to keep an open mind, learn new things, and apply them when shooting on the streets. Although I love doing workshops for the street photography, my favorite is meeting new and passionate people from all around the globe and different walks of life.
To you guys who attended today: rest up and let’s have some more fun tomorrow! Read more to check out all the photos from today!
Hey streettogs, I recently put together this list of my favorite 50+ street photographers on Google+ (also based on your recommendations!). Although I got mad love for my folks on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and now 500px— Google+ is definitely a great place to stumble upon beautiful photos and interact. The people at the Google+ team (I’m looking at you +Brian Rose!) have done a fantastic job integrating Picasa and a combination of their past Google Buzz and Wave products.
Apologies that this list is not as thorough as I would like it to be (and I’m sure I forgot a few people–sorry!). However check out this list of amazing street photographers on Google+ below (rated in no particular order) and don’t forget to add +Eric Kim as well! ;)
Some of the talented street photographers over at Seconds2Real, a co-operative of thirteen passionate Austrian and German street photographers are going to be hosting an exhibition titled:  “Fascination Streetâ€, their first exhibition of contemporary Street Photography. The Berlin show opens October 15th, 2011 and runs for two weeks. They will also be showing more than 100 prints at the unique MEINBLAU Kunsthaus.
Read more information below to get the inside scoop.
My father inspired my passion for cameras and photography when I was a child. This led to me becoming a full time wedding and portrait photographer to pay the bills.
However in my spare time I have been shooting street photography on and off for over 10 years, mainly since I switched from film to digital and because I have always lived in large towns rather than in the countryside and love people watching. Looking back however I now realize that I always had an observational eye for the ‘street’. At the age of 15 my first published photograph, that made the front cover of my local paper, was of speed limit signs on either side of the road that confusingly didn’t match!
“Pipe it in” by Jason Martini I am excited to announce that I will be teaching an Introductory Street Photography Workshop in Chicago 9/17-9/18 with talented street photographer Jason Martini. This workshop will be great for anybody interested in street photography or wanting to improve their current skills. Here are some of the topics we will cover: 1. How to get over the fear of shooting street photography 2. How to shoot candid images without anybody noticing you 3. How to tell a story with your photos 4. The best technical settings to use in street photography 5. How to post-process and edit your images and create captivating color or beautiful black and white photos. The workshop will be full of insightful tips & techniques, and there will be lots of time for you to ask us your individual questions on street photography. Not only that, but you will have the opportunity to shoot with other passionate street photographers and us on the streets of Chicago.
WORKSHOP TIME & LOCATION
Date: September 17-18th Time: 10am-6pm (both days) Location: University of Chicago
REGISTER NOW:
If you are interested in registering or would like more information, please email me at erickimphotography@gmail.com
For this feature I interviewed Robert Larson about his experiences shooting in Haiti. He went there to document what was going on after the earthquake, and has had an on-going project about Haiti. The words and images that Robert shared is extremely emotional and powerful, and really shed light on the situation in Haiti as well as the people living there. Read more to see his images as well and his experiences as well.
Eric’s Note: For this blog post I am excited to present this article written by Bellamy Hunt (aka Japancamerahunter). Not only is he a skilled street photographer, but he is a professional camera hunter. If you are looking for a vintage or classic camera, he is your man. Knowing nothing about classic cameras myself, I asked him some tips that you may need to know when looking to buy one. Read what he has to say below!
So, you have decided to take the plunge and buy a classic camera, well hold on to your horses, this is something that you shouldn’t run headlong into with wild abandon.
Obviously if you are buying a $20 camera most of this will be completely irrelevant to you, but if you are thinking of getting something a bit nicer, then there are a few things you should consider.
First up, and perhaps most importantly, know what you are looking for. Don’t have a vague idea that you want a film camera and just buy the first one you see; you will just be disappointed.
Here is a little list of things that you should be looking for when you are buying a classic camera.
Don’t forget to order the new re-print of “The Decisive Moment” by Henri Cartier-Bresson!
I have been doing quite a bit of research into Henri Cartier-Bresson, the godfather of street photography.
Although my current approach in street photography is more like Bruce Gilden and less of Henri Cartier-Bresson, HCB influenced much of my earlier work and I still deeply respect his photography and philosophies. I hope you are able to enjoy these things I believe you can learn from Henri Cartier-Bresson about street photography. Keep reading to become inspired and learn more.
My incredibly beautiful and talented girlfriend (and manager) Cindy Nguyen put together this great footage of all the “behind-the-scenes” footage of my previous workshops in the UK, Switzerland, and Los Angeles. Props to her for putting together such a well-made video with cool music to accompany it as well! As a reminder, here is my upcoming workshop schedule:
August
Level 2: Developing Your Own Street Style (Los Angeles)
Ready to go out and shoot
This workshop is going to be held next Saturday/Sunday so sign up while spots are still open! This workshop will be focused on developing your own street photography style, and we will spend time studying the work of the masters (Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Doisneau, Garry Winogrand, Vivian Maier, and others). We will start off the first day with a portfolio review of everyone who is attending, and everyone will be given certain tasks and assignments to shoot on the streets. It will be a great learning experience for those who consider themselves intermediate to advanced street photographers who want to continue to develop their street photographic vision.
*You don’t need to attend the introductory course to apply
Email me at erickimphotography@gmail.com for more information or if you would like to register.
September
Level 1: Conquering Your Fear of Shooting on the Streets (San Francisco)
Rinzi Ruiz Shooting On the Streets
Have some experience in street photography but you are having a hard time figuring out what to shoot or how to get closer to people? Sign up for this workshop where I will teach you great hands-on tips & techniques how to conquer your fear of shooting on the streets. We will understand what makes a great street photograph by looking at the work of influential past and contemporary street photographers.  The environment will be very collaborative and engaging. Check out reviews by Ibarionex Perello at The Candid Frame and Todd Hatakeyama from Lighting Leica to get a good sense if this workshop is a good fit for you. Also check out photos of my participants shooting on the streets.
Recently the Leica Blog just published an interview that I did with David Kim, a Korean-American street photographer currently living in Korea. He shoots film on a Leica M6, and many of his images capture Henri Cartier-Bresson’s “Decisive Moment” aesthetic. It was a fantastic interview, with many insightful thoughts from David himself about how he got started in street photography and soulful photos from Korea. I encourage everyone to check it out.
To talk about street photography you first need to explain what it is.
I will start off by saying that there is more than one way to shoot street photography. It also depends on the the history and context in which you live.
European and international street photography has a history and a variety of different styles. However this doesn’t mean that one style or way to shoot is better than the other.
I am excited to announce my first international street photography contest. Adam Elmakais is generously sponsoring the contest and is going to give away some sweet Lens Bracelets to the winners!
The theme of this contest is going to be “The Decisive Moment” as a tribute to Henri Cartier-Bresson, the definitive master of street photography. For the contest you will submit your best street photograph that best highlights the aesthetic of “The Decisive Moment”. I am excited to see all your entries.
How the Contest Is Going to Work
Phase 1: From August 18-September 2nd you will email me your best street photographs of “The Decisive Moment”
Phase 2: On September 5th I will choose the 20 best street photographs and will compile them in a Facebook album on my Facebook fan page. People will then vote on their favorite entries to make it to the Top 10 (from September 5th-14th).
Phase 3: On September 14th I will judge the Top 10 entries and announce the Top 3 winners.
For my Introduction to Street Photography Workshop in Los Angeles, I assigned all my students to go out on the 2nd day and shoot a consecutive street photography essay. They chose themes such as shadows, hands, tattoos, shadows, and even tourists.
If you would like more information about my upcoming workshops in Los Angeles on 8/28-8/29 or in San Francisco on 9/10-9/11 check out my workshops page or email me at erickimphotography@gmail.com
Keep reading to check out the rest of the inspirational images and essays.
A while back Thomas Leuthard (85mm) put up a blog post on 500px titled “The Best Excuses On the Street.” He came up with a hilarious list of mostly bad (some good) excuses to use when people ask what you are doing. I was inspired by the list and thought I’d take a stab at using a few of them on the streets. I called up my friend Alex Lea and he recorded some footage of me from behind (while I recorded with a GoPro on top of my Leica M9). Yeah I shot the video a while back but didn’t have the chance to edit it until a few days ago ;)
My favorite one that I didn’t mention in the video (but took a stab at Thomas): “You should see Eric Kim, he is a creepy Korean tourist with a Leica M9…”
Although I made this video for fun, I was quite surprised to see that most people reacted somewhat positively to these excuses. Perhaps one could use a lot of these excuses and get away with it. Hope you guys enjoy the video :)
Charalampos Kydonakis (or known online as Dirty Harrry) is a street photographer who was born in Heraklion of Crete and raised in Rethymnon. Dirty Harry is indoubtly one of the greatest contemporary street photographers out there. Not only does he consistently create solid work, but he also creates innovative images getting close and at times shooting with a flash. He is an architect by trade, but creates his true artistic vision through his street photography. Read more to see the rest of the interview as well as his inspirational images.
Recently my colleague and fellow streettog Kevin WY Lee put together a 15-minute documentary for Japanese street photographer Junku Nishimura. The film shows Junku shooting the streets of Singapore with his Leica, and you can even see fun clips of him pop-locking (he is also a DJ and breakdancer). It is quite insightful and well produced–I encourage everyone to watch it.
This week’s street photography assignment of the week was “Hands“. Thanks to everybody who sent in their submissions to my Facebook fan page. Stay tuned for next week’s assignment, and keep on reading to check out the rest of the inspirational images!
The other day I was hanging out with Derriel Almario and we stumbled upon an old Borders bookstore that closed down and was converted into a $1 bookstore. When I saw it, I suddenly got giddy at the possibility that there may be some hidden photography book gems that we could find. Low and behold I stumbled upon a book titled, “The Camera” which was a photography book published in 1970 by TIME.
There was a chapter on shooting people that particularly fascinated me. Most of the photojournalists interviewed for the book generally agreed it was better to get closer to your subjects than shooting far away with a zoom lens.
Chun: I was introduced to analog photography by some friends when I studied abroad for a year in Taiwan. I loved the analog medium immediately and shot as much as I could. Shooting film is still my passion but because it wasn’t really economical, I decided to shoot with what I had available instead, my phone. I discovered some online photo sharing community’s and started to post my pictures there. It wasn’t until then that I started to realize that mobile photography has some serious potential. There are so many apps that you can download and process your pictures with, the possibilities are endless. Of course I tried copying from different people and experimented as much as I could to achieve that distinct mobile photo look.
For this interview I am pleased to present Blake Andrews, one of the most talented street photographers out there and a member of In-Public. Not only is Blake an incredibly talented street photographer, but he is also a prolific blogger as well.
In this interview I decided to switch things up a bit. First of all, I conducted this interview via Skype, and have provided the video and audio for you above. Beware the interview is extremely long (around 40 minutes) but I thought it was necessary to have a long-form interview with Blake Andrews. If you have the time to watch it at night after work, I highly encourage you to do so. It will help give you some useful insights about Blake Andrews and his methodology behind capturing great street photographs.
Finding your own style in street photography is one of the most difficult things to discover. Everyone is influenced by the great street photographers such as Henri Cartier-Bresson and Garry Winogrand, but to differentiate yourself from them can be a life-time journey. Personally I have been having difficulty finding my own style, with my earlier work relying more on juxtaposition and architecture. I have recently started to transition in getting closer to my subjects and shooting with a flash–a technique similar to that of Bruce Gilden and very controversial.
Although I wasn’t able to attend the London Street Photography Festival 2011, I heard it was a huge success. Hopefully I will be able to attend next year, and so will you! If you live in the UK or somewhere closeby, check out their fundraising auction and help support this great cause! All the info you need is below:
Help us raise funds to ensure the festival is here next year. Enjoy a night of entertainment and fun and have the opportunity to bid on prints from the festival, photographic experiences and much more!Tickets: £20 (includes food, drinks and raffle ticket)
This week’s street photography assignment was “Humor” and many of you submitted great submissions to my Facebook fan page. Thanks to everybody who took the time to post, and here are 20 of the best images that stood out to me. Keep reading to check out the rest of the images!
Yesterday I put up a video of me shooting flash street photography in Hollywood as a tool to help people understand how I get close to people and shoot them with a flash. My original intention of the video was to help others build their courage, rather than offend people.
In the video above I talk about some of my thoughts about the video.
First of all, I am not Bruce Gilden and don’t claim to be. I am hugely inspired by the work of his and those of others such as Weegee, Charlie Kirk, Mark Cohen, Dirty Harry, and some others. My idea is not original, and I have been copying aspects of their technique I like. Through this experimentation, I have found out I enjoy this style and am curious to keep on trying it out. The experience is much more intimate and has been challenging me both as a street photographer and person.
Secondly, the images I took in the video were not great. I only put them in there to be instructive and helpful to give people a sense of how the images would look. I can shoot street photography for an entire day and get 1-2 decent shots if I am lucky. To get a good photo in 3 minutes flat is almost impossible.
Lastly thank you for the comments & critiques. I see my blog more as a hub for street photography discussion, learning, and debate. I purposely never censor any of the comments that people leave, and appreciate everybody’s thoughts. I don’t claim to be the master or have all the answers. Rather being a street photographer that struggled with getting over his fear of shooting street photography– I simply want to help others get over that as well.
Feel free to leave your thoughts, suggestions, or critiques below. Also thanks so much for the continued feedback and support. Shooting street photography, doing workshops, managing my social networks, and this blog is a ton of work–but it is my passion and I do it all out of love to help you and the community.
During my Los Angeles Street Photography Workshop, Rinzi Ruiz followed me around and recorded me shooting street photography with my Canon 5D, 24mm f/2.8, YN 560 Flash, and CSLR C-loop and Glidestrap.
I enjoyed the experience and this time aimed my flash aiming upwards from a low angle (while crouching down). As you can see through the video, a lot of people were very friendly (as long as I smiled and said “thank you” or that I liked something they were wearing). A few people objected and gave me weird looks (as you can see) but I am pleased with a few of the resulting images.
For the first day of my introductory street photography workshop, I was very impressed to see all the great photos everyone took! We were able to edit/post-process each of the photos with one another using Lightroom 3 and Silver Efex Pro, and the results look great. Read more to check out all of the photos!
Day 2 of the LA Street Photography workshop was a huge success and I am so sad it is already over! We spent a good time during the day editing our images and post-processing them with Lightroom 3 and Silver Efex Pro, and everyone got some great images! I am still in the process of editing all the images and videos, so please be patient as they get ready ;)
Also I am accepting sign-ups for my Intermediate Street Photography course on August 27-28th–so please shoot me an email at erickimphotography@gmail.com for more info!
Update: Just uploaded photos of the workshop–read more to see them all!
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