Tag: henri-cartier bresson

  • 10 Dinge die wir von Henri Cartier-Bresson über Street-Fotografie lernen können

    (A.g.: In the spirit of Open Source here on Eric’s Blog, this is a German translation of Eric’s 10 Things Henri Cartier-Bresson Can Teach You About Street Photography made by photographer Lukas Beinstein).

  • Learn From the Masters: Lesson #4 Don’t Crop

    Learn From the Masters: Lesson #4 Don’t Crop

    “If you start cutting or cropping a good photograph, it means death to the geometrically correct interplay of proportions. Besides, it very rarely happens that a photograph which was feebly composed can be saved by reconstruction of its composition under the darkroom’s enlarger; the integrity of vision is no longer there.” – Henri Cartier-Bresson Another…

  • Book Review: The Decisive Moment by Henri Cartier-Bresson

    Book Review: The Decisive Moment by Henri Cartier-Bresson

    “A bible for photographers” – Clement Cheroux Wow— where do I even begin? I would say that “The Decisive Moment” by Cartier-Bresson is one of the most beautiful photo books I have ever handled— and it is a book that brings me extreme joy and happiness (you can see all the photos from the book…

  • 17 Lessons Henri Cartier-Bresson Has Taught Me About Street Photography

    17 Lessons Henri Cartier-Bresson Has Taught Me About Street Photography

    As this article is very long, I recommend reading this by saving it to Pocket or Instapaper. All photos in this article are copyrighted by Henri Cartier Bresson / Magnum Photos.  I recently picked up a copy of “The Mind’s Eye” – which is a great compilation of thoughts and philosophies Henri Cartier-Bresson wrote. Aperture published this great…

  • Must-Buy Books: “The Decisive Moment” by Henri Cartier-Bresson and “Exiles” by Josef Koudelka

    Must-Buy Books: “The Decisive Moment” by Henri Cartier-Bresson and “Exiles” by Josef Koudelka

    I am really excited to share that Henri Cartier-Bresson’s “The Decisive Moment” in addition to “Exiles” by Josef Koudelka is going to be reprinted. These are two of the greatest street photography books published in history, and once sold for hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars. Don’t miss out, pre-order a copy today! “The Decisive Moment“:…

  • Street Photography Composition Lesson #4: Leading Lines

    Street Photography Composition Lesson #4: Leading Lines

    All photos in this article are copyrighted by their respective photographers. For today’s street photography composition lesson– I would like to discuss leading lines. Leading lines are one of the most basic photography compositional techniques– I am sure you have all heard of it before. But it is a technique that we often don’t listen…

  • Street Photography Composition Lesson #3: Diagonals

    Street Photography Composition Lesson #3: Diagonals

    For today’s street photography composition lesson, we will discuss a compositional rule that is simple enough: the diagonal. Credit goes to Adam Marelli for teaching me about this important design element which can help street photographers all around the globe. Diagonals are one of the strongest and most fundamental compositional elements– something that we all…

  • Zen in the Art of Street Photography

    Zen in the Art of Street Photography

    (All photographs in this article provided by Rinzi Ruiz) My good friend Nicholas Susatyo recently recommended a book to me: “Zen in the Art of Archery.” In-fact, it was the book that Henri Cartier-Bresson said had the deepest influence in his photography. I have been meaning to read it for a while, so on my flight…

  • How Studying Contact Sheets Can Make You a Better Street Photographer

    How Studying Contact Sheets Can Make You a Better Street Photographer

    (Two shots Henri Cartier-Bresson shot of the same scene. SPAIN. 1933. Andalucia. Seville. © The Estate of Henri Cartier-Bresson / Magnum Photos) One of the biggest misconceptions I know runs rampart in street photography is the “myth of the decisive moment”. What do I mean when I talk about “the decisive moment” simply being a myth?…

  • Just Plain Love: A Documentary Film About The Photos and Life of Henri Cartier-Bresson

    If you haven’t yet, make sure to watch this documentary on Henri Cartier-Bresson, the grandfather of street photography. The great thing about this documentary is that he reflects not only on his photography, but on his life and relationship with other artists. The film was titled : L’amour Tout Court (“Just Plain Love”) and was…

  • “The Surrealist Manifesto”: Decoding the Composition and Surrealism of Henri Cartier-Bresson by Adam Marelli

    “The Surrealist Manifesto”: Decoding the Composition and Surrealism of Henri Cartier-Bresson by Adam Marelli

    (Above image: Henri Cartier-Bresson, Naples, 1960) Adam Marelli, a photographer based in NYC (also doing a street photography workshop with me in NYC [register intent] and Calcutta India [register intent]) recently wrote up an incredible series on composition, surrealism based on the work of Henri Cartier-Bresson. Make sure to bookmark all the pages below (they are…

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

    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.  

  • Why Sharpness is a Bourgeoise Concept in Street Photography

    “Sharpness is a bourgeois concept” – Henri Cartier Bresson In the modern age of photography, everyone seems to have an unhealthy obsession with how sharp lenses are, how much bokeh they produce, and how “3d” they can make their images appear. Ignore these statements. Anyone who talks at excessive length about any of these topics are…

  • “My Time With Henri Cartier-Bresson” by Ishu Patel

    “My Time With Henri Cartier-Bresson” by Ishu Patel

    Eric’s Note: This original article was published on Ishu Patel’s site and re-published here with permission. It details Ishu Patel’s time with Henri Cartier-Bresson and gets some insightful views into his life and photography.  AFTER GRADUATING IN 1963 from the Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Baroda, India I was lucky enough to be selected by…

  • 10 Things Henri Cartier-Bresson Can Teach You About Street Photography

    10 Things Henri Cartier-Bresson Can Teach You About Street Photography

    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…

  • Sharpness is a Bourgeois Concept: 15 Great Examples of Street Photography with Blur

    Sharpness is a Bourgeois Concept: 15 Great Examples of Street Photography with Blur

    This week I announced on my Facebook fan page that the weekly street photography assignment was: “Blur”. I chose this theme because I was inspired by a quote from Henri Cartier-Bresson that “Sharpness is a bourgeoisie concept.” Many of you submitted your great images, and I chose the best images to be featured for this week! Make…

  • Henri Cartier-Bresson Talks About “The Decisive Moment”

    Recently I was cruising around Petapixel and found this wonderful gem of a video– Henri Cartier-Bresson himself talking about street photography and “The Decisive Moment”. It is a bit of a long video (20 minutes) but worth every minute hearing the grandfather of street photography discuss his thoughts and share some of his most iconic…

  • Which is Better? Black and White vs Color for Street Photography

    Which is Better? Black and White vs Color for Street Photography

    I recently got an email from one of my readers, Kit Taylor, asking me the following question: Color or B&W? What goes into the decision to finish a street/candid photo as color or black and white? Some photographers have a strong specialization. Some of us use both almost equally. Some photos are obvious; often I…

  • The Most Famous Street Photographs Recreated with Legos

    The Most Famous Street Photographs Recreated with Legos

    Recently I came upon these amazing Lego recreations of famous street photography/journalist photographs. Can you identify who took the photos below? Read more and find out how good your photographic knowledge is!

  • Featured Street Photographer: Laurent Roch’s Decisive Moments from France

    Featured Street Photographer: Laurent Roch’s Decisive Moments from France

    Note: Every week, I feature street photographers with great skill and soul. For this week, I decided to feature street photographer Laurent Roch from France. When I first stumbled upon Laurent’s work on Flickr, I was thoroughly impressed by his gritty black and white portrayals of the city. In his images, you see a great…

  • Featured Street Photographer: Jurgen Burgin from Berlin

    Featured Street Photographer: Jurgen Burgin from Berlin

    Note: Every Wednesday, I feature street photographers with great skill and soul. For this week, I decided to feature amazing street photographer Jurgen Burgin. I first stumbled upon Jurgen’s work when he left a comment on my blog, which made me check out his Facebook page. I was mesmerized by his great eye, and wanted to share his…

  • Do you have Leica M9 envy? Then read this.

    Do you have Leica M9 envy? Then read this.

    Let’s admit it–if you are a street photographer and not driving a BMW or Mercedes-Benz, you probably want the Leica M9. Trust me, I want it really badly too–it has been on my mind for quite a while. But honestly, can we justify purchasing a $6,900 camera just because the camera we have doesn’t pay…

  • A Video Interview with Street Photographer Craig Semetko

    Today I was on Twitter and saw two tweets about this video, one from Jonathan Murray and one from RooshPhotog. It is a wonderful video which shows you Craig Semetko, a street photographer in action. He has been featured in countless exhibitions, and has even had his work side-by-side to street photography master Henri Cartier-Bresson.…

  • 3 Tips How to Quit Making Excuses and Shoot More Street Photography

    3 Tips How to Quit Making Excuses and Shoot More Street Photography

    Every street photographer needs to take more photos. Street photographers (and many other types of photographers) don’t go out and shoot photos nearly as often as we should. In an ideal world, we should be outside every day, trying to capture the beauty of everyday life. Whenever photographers say, “I don’t have enough time” or…

  • The Ultimate Aspiring Street Photographer Resource Post

    The Ultimate Aspiring Street Photographer Resource Post

    This post was originally posted here by Neal Bingham, but I thought I’d repost it here to share it with the rest of you guys. A great resource for any aspiring street photographer. Please pass it on! Also follow Neal on Twitter! — I thought it would be useful to create a topic where people…

  • The Top 4 Street Photography Techniques

    The Top 4 Street Photography Techniques

    When it comes to street photography, everybody has their own style and techniques. What interests one street photographer may not necessarily catch the eye of another street photographer. However in order for you to get a better grasp of what kind of styles there are in street photography, I have compiled a few elements that…

  • How to Master “The Decisive Moment”

    How to Master “The Decisive Moment”

    “The Decisive Moment” was a term coined by the pioneer of street photography, Henri Cartier-Bresson. During his time, photography was still a relatively new art medium and it wasn’t taken seriously. Furthermore, photographers were often criticized for not having the same discipline and creativity as traditional artists as photographers can create their images in a…