Easiest way to make better photos: photograph your subjects against a clean background.
99% of photos fail because the background is messy.
Signal to noise
- Signal: What we want
- Noise: Everything else
In photography, we want Signal. Signal is what is important or significant to us in a scene. Aka, the Signal in a photograph is your SUBJECT. Your subject can be a person, a car, a tree, or just hands.
Noise: distractions. Noise is stuff that doesn’t add to your photo, but removes focus from the Signal (SUBJECT) of your photo. Noise is distracting backgrounds, distracting white cars, bright plastic bags, or overlapping figures.
To make better photos, seek to SIMPLIFY your scenes, and to SIMPLIFY reality.
Simple is hard
It is harder to make a simple photo than to make a complicated photo.
To simplify a photo, or a scene, or reality… we need to chisel away or SUBTRACT the superfluous, the messy, and the noise.
Innovation is subtraction
The best innovations subtracts.
For example, noise canceling headphones from BOSE (QC) is innovative because it SUBTRACTS annoying ambient noise.
The Leica Monochrom is innovative, because it SUBTRACTED the color sensor array. It is only black and white. That’s cool.
The Leica M-D is cool, because it has no LCD screen. That means less “chipping” (being distracted by looking at your photos immediately after on your lcd screen, instead on focusing on shooting).
The iPhone was innovative, because it SUBTRACTED superfluous buttons. Remember how ugly Windows smartphones were, with a billion buttons?
The iPod Shuffle was innovative, because it removed the lcd screen. And it added RANDOMNESS and serendipity to our music. Randomness and serendipity is good for creativity.
How to capture simple backgrounds
How do we make more simple backgrounds? Simple advice:
- Use a flash: Using a flash will darken and simplify the background, and cause your subject to pop out more
- Shoot from a high angle, pointing downwards: Make the concrete or sidewalk a simple background.
- Ask your subject to stand against a simple background: Study the portraits of Richard Avedon, who had his subjects stand against a simple white backdrop. This causes the viewer to just focus on the subject. His photos are timeless. So in street portraits, just ask your subject to move a little to a simple background. You can first find a simple background, then wait for your subject to enter the scene.
- Crouch very low: Crouch low angle composition, and photograph your subject against the clean sky.
- Get closer: The closer you get, the less distractions in the background or the edges of the frame.
- Black and white: Monochrome will simplify the scene, fewer distracting colors in the background.
- Clean edges: When you’re shooting keep the edges of the frame clean.
Zen street photography: simplify your photos and background.
To further your learning, join STREET CLUB and participate in the CLEAN BACKGROUND homework assignment, on ERIC KIM FORUM.
BE STRONG,
ERIC
STREET PHOTOGRAPHY 101 >
If you’re new to street photography, start here:
- 100 Lessons From the Masters of Street Photography
- How to Shoot Street Photography
- Street Photography by Eric Kim
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Street Photography Inspiration
- How to Make Controversial Street Photographs
- Street Photography Project Ideas
- How to Make Good Street Photos
- Is Defining “STREET PHOTOGRAPHY” a Good Thing?
- STREET PHOTOGRAPHY “RULES” TO BREAK
- Walking Meditation in Street Photography
- 10 COMMANDMENTS OF STREET PHOTOGRAPHY
- Street Photography is Improvisation
- In Praise of Randomness in Street Photography
- How to Become a Fearless Photographer
- How to Make Better Street Photographs
- 12 ERIC KIM Street Photography Assignments
- Meaningful Street Photography
- 25 Street Photography Tips by ERIC KIM
Beginner Street Photography Articles
Get started in street photography:
Definitions in Street Photography
- Visual Sociology Street Photography
- Why Street Photography?
- What is Street Photography?
- Why Shoot Street Photography?
- The History of Street Photography
How to Shoot Street Photography
- How to Shoot Street Photography
- Street Portraits 101 by ERIC KIM
- The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to Street Photography
- 70 Street Photography Tips for Beginners
- 15 Street Photography Techniques and Tips
- A Letter to My 18 Year Old Self: If I Started Street Photography All Over Again
Street Photography Equipment
- What is the Best Camera for Street Photography?
- What is the Best Lens for Street Photography?
- What to Consider When Buying a Camera
How to Conquer Your Fears in Street Photography
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Intermediate Street Photography Articles
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- How to Become a Stoic Street Photographer
- The 10 Principles of Good Street Photography
- 7 Tips How to Capture “The Decisive Moment” in Street Photography
- The Importance of Social Skills in Street Photography
- The Street Photography Code of Ethics
- “Taking” vs “Making” Photos in Street Photography
- Follow Your Gut in Street Photography
- 10 Reasons Why You Should Never Chimp While Shooting Street Photography
Advanced Street Photography Articles
Find deeper meaning in your street photography:
- How to Master Street Photography
- How to Be a Zen Street Photographer
- Personal Street Photography
- The “Bookend” Technique in Street Photography
- Street Photography is Self-Therapy
- Zen in the Art of Street Photography
- Taoism and Street Photography
- How to Find Your Style in Street Photography
- Follow Your Gut in Street Photography
Street Photography Tips & Technique
Learn how to shoot on the streets:
- 70 Street Photography Tips for Beginners
- 15 Street Photography Techniques and Tips
- Take More Risks
- Don’t Think About Composition When You’re Shooting Street Photography
- 7 Tips How to Capture “The Decisive Moment” in Street Photography
- 7 Tips How to Make a Great Street Photograph
- Tokyo Street Photography Contact Sheets
- Video: Why it is Important to “Work the Scene” in Street Photography
- Shoot Less, Better
- Make Shitty Photos
- Shoot Effortlessly
- 10 Tips for Candid Street Photography
- 103 Lessons I’ve Learned From Street Photography
See all street photography tips and techniques >
Street Photography Guides
In-depth guides on street photography:
- How to Shoot Candid Street Photography
- How to Shoot Street Portraits with Permission
- How to Shoot Black and White Street Photography
- How to Shoot Color Street Photography
- How to Shoot Street Portraits with Permission
- How to Shoot Layers in Street Photography
- How to Shoot Urban Landscapes
Street Photography Equipment
The best equipment for street photography:
- What is the Best Camera for Street Photography?
- What is the Best Lens for Street Photography?
- Why I Love Cameras with Non-Interchangeable Lenses
- The Ultimate Beginner’s Guide for Cameras in Street Photography
- What to Consider When Buying a Camera for Street Photography
- In Street Photography, The Smaller the Camera, the Better
- Why Sharpness is Overrated in Street Photography
- How to Shoot Street Photography on a DSLR
Street Photography Editing and Workflow
- Video: Introduction to Editing, Processing, and Workflow in Lightroom
- How to Edit (Choose Your Best Photos) in Street Photography
- How Studying Contact Sheets Can Make You a Better Street Photographer
- Debunking the “Myth of the Decisive Moment”
How to Start a Street Photography Project
- Free E-Book: The Street Photography Project Manual
- How to Start Your Own Street Photography Project
- How to Come Up With a Personal Photography Project Idea
Learn From the Masters of Street Photography
“He without a past has no future.”
If you want a distilled version, read the free ebook: “100 Lessons From the Masters of Street Photography.”
- Alfred Stieglitz
- Alec Soth
- Alex Webb
- Anders Petersen
- Andre Kertesz
- Ansel Adams
- Araki
- Blake Andrews
- Bruce Davidson
- Bruce Gilden
- Constantine Manos
- Daido Moriyama
- Dan Winters
- David Alan Harvey
- David Hurn
- Diane Arbus
- Dorothea Lange
- Elliott Erwitt
- Eugene Atget
- Eugene Smith
- Garry Winogrand
- Helen Levitt
- Henri Cartier-Bresson
- Irving Penn
- Jacob Aue Sobol
- Jeff Mermelstein
- Joel Meyerowitz
- Joel Sternfeld
- Josef Koudelka / Part 2
- Josh White
- Lee Friedlander
- Magnum Contact Sheets
- Magnum Photographers
- Mark Cohen
- Martin Parr
- Mary Ellen Mark
- Rene Burri
- Richard Avedon
- Richard Kalvar
- Robert Capa
- Robert Frank
- Saul Leiter
- Sergio Larrain
- Sebastião Salgado
- Shomei Tomatsu
- Stephen Shore
- The History of Street Photography
- Todd Hido
- Tony Ray-Jones
- Trent Parke
- Vivian Maier
- Walker Evans
- Weegee
- William Eggleston
- William Klein
- Zoe Strauss
Free Downloads
Free Street Photography Books
Distilled information on street photography:
- 100 Lessons From the Masters of Street Photography
- Street Photography Contact Sheets
- Street Photography 101
- Street Photography 102
- Film Street Photography Manual
- The Street Photography Composition Manual
- The Street Portrait Manual
- 31 Days to Overcome Your Fear in Street Photography
- Zen in the Art of Street Photography
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