Archives for March 2012

Put Yourself Into the Picture: How You Can Help Grow the Hatakeyama Gallery Center for the Photographic Arts

Hey streettogs, I am excited to announce that my good friend Todd Hatakeyama (the owner of the Hatakeyama Gallery) is undergoing a plan of creating a dedicated classroom, to continue to nurture the local arts scene in Los Angeles! The Hatakeyama Gallery was used to featured numerous photography workshops, exhibitions, and is on the Downtown LA art walk route! The venue would be used as a hub for all photographers to meet and interact, while giving a location for up-and-coming photographers to display their work as well.

The Best of March: 15 Inspirational Street Photographs From the Community

(Above photo by Daan Loeff)

I know it has been a while since I featured street photography from the community – but here is the last batch of great shots I have noticed on Facebook! If you would like to get one of your shots featured in the future, make sure to upload them to my Facebook fan page! (I prefer using Facebook because it is easier to sort/look through all the photographs).

Some tips to get included in the next post:

Don’t use watermarks on your photographs or white/black borders. They are often distracting to the image and take away from the power of the photo.
Don’t over-process your photographs. Once your photo looks too “HDR’y” you should tone it down.
Street portraits are great – but try to incorporate the subjects/backgrounds more.
Get good lighting. Try not to include shots that have been shot mid-day.
Think about balance and composition. Don’t have your subjects too center-focused.
Don’t shoot people’s backs. Sometimes they work but typically they don’t.
Think about the statement your photograph is trying to say. Is it just a person of a person walking on the streets, or something more?
Generally photos of street performers/homeless people are cliche and not very original. Try to find the extraordinary in the ordinary- rather than capture ordinary photos of extraordinary people.

Keep reading to see if your photograph got included in the post, and see all the great images!

[Read more…]

Featured Street Photographer: Stéphane Daniel from Montreal

Eric’s Note: I am happy to feature the work of Stéphane Daniel, a street photographer based in Montreal. Check out his background in street photography and his images below!

Stéphane: During my childhood in France I first learned photography from my father, who showed me how to make a right exposure on his Ricoh. To be quite honest, I remember it as somewhat boring. I also remember for Christmas one year, I received a an ugly red full automatic camera. As a student I used to record “souvenirs” on disposable cameras.

The day I finally had a decent salary, I bought an EOS300 and start to travel with it. Until that moment my life changed. I discovered on photo-magazines the way to shoot with a 24mm, I visited photo exhibitions in Paris and fell in love with Depardon, Salgado, Cartier-Bresson and Nachtwey’s black and white pictures.

10 Things Martin Parr Can Teach You About Street Photography

Note: Photos used with permission from Martin Parr

As of late, Martin Parr is one of my idols in street photography. I love his never-ending passion for street/documentary photography (Alec Soth recently called him the “Jay-Z” of documentary photography)- and the thought-provoking images that his photos tell. For this article I will share 10 things that I learned from Martin Parr and his work that I hope will help you in your street photography as well!

Beer, Gear Porn, and Street Photography with Bellamy Hunt, Eddy Boom, and Darren Wong

Having fun with the boys in Koreatown in Los Angeles. Showing Bellamy Hunt (Japan Camera Hunter) a great time during his last night here!

People featured in the video

Bellamy Hunt
http://twitter.com/jpncamerahunter

Eddy Boom
http://twitter.com/lazyedt

Darren Wong
http://twitter.com/sticboy

Cameras mentioned in the video

Ricoh GR1v
Ricoh GR21
Leica M9-P
Leica M6

See you back in LA Bellamy! — See you back in LA soon Bellamy!

UC Riverside Extension Introduction To Street Photography Student Exhibition

Some behind the scenes footage from my student exhibition at the UC Riverside Extension Course I taught this quarter (I showed some of my photos as well!) Many of the students had never shot street photography before, and I was very proud of the images they were able to create during the quarter! Thanks to Colin Westerbeck (author of Bystander: A History of Street Photography) who helped edit and sequence the student photos as well!

Enroll in the Spring course here: https://www.extension.ucr.edu/enroll/catalog/olr_course_details.php?crsid=27030

FREE Giveaway! Win a Custom SLR Glidestrap + C-Loop!

*4-2-12 Update: We have randomly chose a winner, and it was Julien Rath! His winning comment was below. Stay tuned for the next free giveaway! :)

—

The good folks at Custom SLR (one of my site sponsors) has generously provided a Custom SLR Glidestrap + C-Loop ($64.95 value) for a give-away on the blog! You can have the chance to either win this great strap which is perfect for street photography- especially on your DSLR, Leica, or rangefinder camera. It takes a ton of strain off your neck- while letting your camera hang to the side – perfect for getting ready for “the decisive moment”. You can see a sample video of it in action here.

To enter this giveaway, all you need to do is:

Share your tip on how to re-inspire yourself in street photography when you are feeling uninspired (in 7 words or less)

There are three ways to enter (the more ways you enter, the more chances to win!):

“Like” me on Facebook and share your tip on my wall!
Tweet your response, and include the following text anywhere in the tweet:

http://bit.ly/GJFl9s #streettogs

Leave a comment below!

This contest will end Friday, March 30th, 2012. We’ll randomly pick a winner and announce it on the blog!

*Credit to PetaPixel for the contest idea!

Travel Update: My Adventures and Street Photography Workshops in Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, and London!

After a month-long trip in Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, and London – finally had some time to sit down and think about my travels, my friends, family, and what I want out of life. Traveling has been tough on me mentally, physically, and emotionally – but it has been through the support of the community and those close to me who have helped me keep on going!

Also watch the video above to hear about my crazy story of leaving my luggage at home (and surviving a month on the road without it!). Thanks again so much for everything guys :)

Fujifilm X-Pro1 Review + 18mm f/2, 35mm f/1.4 & 60mm f/2.4 Macro by Kai Wong from DigitalRev TV

A nice and fun review of the new Fujifilm X-Pro 1 from Kai Wong from DigitalRev TV. Check it out and subscribe to their awesome show today – or else Kai will hunt you down ;)

Lenses reviewed:

Fujifilm 18mm f/2 (~28mm full-frame equivalent)
Fujifilm 35mm f/1.4 (~50mm full-frame equivalent)
Fujifilm 60mm f/2.4 Macro (~100mm full-frame equivalent)

Still haven’t had the chance to play with the new Fujifilm X-Pro 1- but have been hearing great things about it so far! Hopefully I will have the chance to shoot with it on the streets soon and let you guys know what I think!

Behind the Scenes: Street Photography Workshop in Kuala Lumpur with Leica Store Malaysia

I recently taught a street photography workshop in Kuala Lumpur at the Leica Store Malaysia and had a phenomenal time. Huge shout-outs to Shannel and rest of the Leica Store Malaysia crew for making it such a successful workshop! The above video include some snippets shot with my GoPro HD camera in the streets of Kuala Lumpur during the workshop. As you can see, nobody got punched in the face – and most people in the are are extremely friendly!

Also check out my upcoming street photography workshops below, and click more to see all 162 snapshots from the workshop!

April

4/14-4/15: Melbourne, Australia – Introductory – Info – Register now – Sponsored by Michaels –Only 2 spots left!

4/21-4/22: Sydney, Australia – Advanced – Info – Register now

May

5/12-5/13: Berlin, Germany – Introductory – Info – Register now – NEW!

5/31-6/3: Stockholm, Sweden – Introductory – Info – with Fotographiska (The Swedish Museum of Photography) – Only 3 Spots Left!

June

TBA

December

12/9-12/15: Calcutta, India – Week-long Immersion Course – Info – (with Adam Marelli and Jason Martini) – NEW!

You can also stay updated with my future workshops by signing up here.

Insightful Hour-Long Interview with Street Photography Master Henri Cartier-Bresson

Thanks to Martin-Neep who found this hour-long interview with street photography master Henri Cartier-Bresson. If you have time later today, grab a nice cup of hot cocoa- kick back- and enjoy!

Share some insights you find interesting by leaving a comment below!

UC Riverside Extension Street Photography Exhibition Friday, 3/23

saki tanaka — Photograph by student Saki Tanaka

For those of you who may not know, this quarter I taught my first online street photography course with UC Riverside Extension titled, “All the World’s a Stage: Introduction to Street Photography“. Many of the students who enrolled in the class had no experience with street photography before, yet have done incredibly well in the course.

This Friday (3/23) from 6-9PM we will be exhibiting the best street photographs taken by the students from the course.

The exhibition will be held across the street from the extension Center (1200 University Ave in Riverside).

Location

1299 University Ave. Suite 203
Riverside, CA 92507
(Room 2303)

The event is open to the public. Please feel free to bring your friends, family, and fellow photographers! Looking forward in meeting all of you!

Link to Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/252298181531296/

Street Photography Essay: “160 Yen” by Fabrizio Quagliuso

Eric’s Note: I am very pleased to share the work of Fabrizio Q on the blog this week. I met Fabrizio while I was in London, and saw his “160 Yen” series – a project he worked on while living in Tokyo. It is a strong project full of the idiosyncrasies of Japanese life– all jammed inside the Tokyo Yamanote Line. See more about Fabrizio and the project below.

160 yen

Fabrizio: I have always been fascinated by the pulse of Tokyo life, by its pure, elemental energy, by how the city and its inhabitants embrace each other like partners in a dance: naturally, gracefully, in perfect unison.

In April 2010 I had the opportunity to spend a whole month in this great city. While I had been shooting in the streets there previously for photographic projects, this time I set off with a very precise purpose – documenting the countless aspects of Tokyo life by photographing commuters throughout the day.
[Read more…] about Street Photography Essay: “160 Yen” by Fabrizio Quagliuso

15 Tips How to Choose Your Best Photos

(“Nails” from my City of Angels series)

Editing in street photography is one of the most important aspects to know. When I refer to “editing“, I am referring to the act of choosing your best images, rather than “post-processing”. However nowadays when most photographers refer to “editing” their work, you can almost determine with 99% accuracy that they mean “post-processing” their work. Due to this confusion and interchanging use of the word “editing” – the true art of editing of choosing your best work is a lost cause.

For this article, I will attempt to explain why editing is so important in street photography and give practical tips and advice on how you can become a better editor of your work (and how to ask others for advice as well). Keep reading if you want to find out more!

Insights from Street Photographer Martin Parr on Google+ Hangout

In this Google+ Hangout video, Magnum Photographer Martin Parr talks to Aaron Schuman, photographer and curator about his own personal work, capturing the uniqueness of boring objects, how to take non-cliched photos, and his general insight about photography. You must check this video out, probably the best 18 minutes you will spend all day! :)

One of my favorite quotes from the video was when someone asked him what one phrase of advice he would give aspiring photographers (14:18 mins in):

“Find the extraordinary in the ordinary” – Martin Parr

See more interesting insights over at Martin Parr’s blog and check out his book, “Common Sense” (which is mentioned in the video).

Which quotes from Martin did you find most inspirational? Share them in the comments below!

Henri Cartier-Bresson Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare 1932 vs Google Maps 2008

Darkon Coan, one of the readers of the blog, recently shared me an image of Henri Cartier-Bresson’s famous “Behind the Gare Saint-Lazare” shot in 1932 compared to what it looks like now in Google Maps shot in 2008. Fascinating to see how little has changed in that period of time!

See it large here.

Video Interview with Gary Tyson from F8 Photography in Hong Kong

Eric Kim interview in Hong Kong from F8 Photography Ltd.

While I was teaching my street photography workshop with Gary Tyson from F8 Photography in Hong Kong, I had the huge pleasure of being interviewed as well. In this video I talk a bit of my reflections on the workshop, as well as general questions about my approach and thoughts on street photography in general. Great production by Gary and the rest of his team!

F8 Photography runs workshops and training in Hong Kong and Cambodia for photography enthusiasts, more information can be seen at the website, f8photography.com.hk or on the blog at f8photography.com.hk/blog

Any other questions you got about shooting street photography in Hong Kong or anywhere else in the world? Leave me your questions in the comments below!

75+ Inspirational Street Photography Books You Gotta Own

Buy books, not gear.

If you want a quality-education in street photography, I recommend either buying, borrowing, or browsing though some of the books below. Books that are bolded are some of my personal favorites.

Free Books by Eric Kim

If you love learning, read the books below:

Street Notes

Street Notes is a pocket-sized assignment journal to break outside of your comfort zone:

Buy (Amazon USA) >
Buy (in our Shop International) >

Photo Book Reviews

See all reviews >

Recommended photo books

See all recommendations >

Streettogs Gallery Feature: “Surreally” by Nico Chiapperini

Eric’s Note: Streettogs Gallery is an on-going feature and intiative by Manila-based street photographer A.G. De Mesa. Check out more info here.

AG: Photography is nothing without seeing. The light, colors, shadows, contrasts, patterns. Human life in general. And it is in seeing that a good photographer will be able to replicate what was seen in a photograph.

This is one of those works that really invites you to just see.
[Read more…] about Streettogs Gallery Feature: “Surreally” by Nico Chiapperini

Mini Review of the Fujifilm X-Pro 1 by Mijonju

My good friend Mijonju from Tokyo recently got his hands on the new Fujifilm X-Pro 1 in Tokyo and made this little mini-review on it. Hope you find it entertaining and helpful!

Make sure to subscribe to him on YouTube and follow him on Twitter.

More info:

X mount to M mount adapter
http://www.petapixel.com/2012/02/09/fujifilm-showing-off-leica-m-mount-adapte…

All the specs
http://www.dpreview.com/previews/fujifilmxpro1/

What do you think about the new X-Pro 1 for those of you guys who have shot with it? Worth the hype or not? Share your thoughts in the comments below!