I recently had the chance to interview the talented Shin Noguchi on the Leica blog. He is one of my favorite contemporary Japanese street photographers and what I love most about his work is his strong visual images, uncanny moments, as well as his look into Japanese society.

A quick tidbit from one of the questions I asked him:

Eric: What is some advice you would give to street photographers starting out?

Shin: Currently, activity at SNS is the main stream for all kinds of artists, and as for photography, it is in vogue to get a good reputation at reviewing sites such as 1x.com. Under such circumstances, it is important for street photographers, regardless of a review of one photograph or artistic review, to shoot streets coolly as persistent storytellers or spokesmen from the standpoint of shooting documentaries which exist on the bottom of people’s life.

I do not deny the importance of seeking artistic photographs as expression. On the other hand, I would like photographers to express, without relying on the characters of the subjects, their existence in the themes selected, and the composing ability of elements such as light and shadow, with the final aim of being evaluated by the totality of their activity as a photographer.

>> Shin Noguchi: Open for Interpretation [Leica Blog]

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