This is a guest post by Josh White, a street photographer based in Seoul, Korea.
Josh: Yesterday (and sort of the day before) I took part in the 24 Hour Project. For those of you that don’t know, it is a street photography initiative that involves photographers worldwide.
Basically, how it works, is you take one photo per hour for 24 hours in your given city (cities in my case). So, from 00:00 on Saturday, March 21st, until 11:59 I was to stay awake and take and post one photo per hour. By the time 00:00 rolled around I felt more like #fml than #24hourproject.
Eric’s Note: This project is by Trevor Marcyzlo, a Canadian street photographer currently based in South Korea. He is a part of the collective STROMA.
Trevor: Located on the 9th floor of Shinsegae Department Store “The 9th Floor” is a rural themed playground for kids in urban city Uijeongbu. Photos June – October 2012.
Going to Korea was a trip to be remembered for me. Not only did I have the chance to teach my first street photography workshop (in my mother country) but also taught it in both English and Korean! Huge thanks goes to Josh White, Dani Kim, Jasmine Aum, Olivia Lee, Jinhwan Roh, Summer and the rest of the Leica Korea team.  I also had my first solo exhibition at the Illum Gallery at the Leica Store in Seoul.
Check out some snapshots from the workshop and exhibition below!
Hello everybody, I am excited to announce that Josh White (who I interviewed on my site and the Leica blog) will be having a street photography exhibition of his finest work on June 12 – July 3, 2011 in Guillaume in Seoul, Korea. Read up more information on Josh White’s Blog. If you are in the area, definitely check it out!
"Anchovies" - Korea, 2009. Taken on the crowded Seoul Metro.
Before you go out and shoot, you must decide where to go out and shoot. I usually go to an area with lots of people walking around. Museums, parks, or any downtown area work very well. The more people you have in a certain area, the more likely your chance of finding interesting subjects to shoot.
"Anchovies" - Taken on the crowded Seoul Metro in Korea.
However you shouldn’t only limit yourself to heavily-populated areas. The beauty of street photography is that it has no limits. You can shoot photos anywhere; it doesn’t only have to pertain to the streets. You can probably find great subjects for photographs in very mundane places like the grocery market or even the library. The entire world is up for grabs.
Above all, the best way to go out and shoot is to pick a location and simply go out. Have a few places that you want to check out in mind, and let your curiosity guide the rest of your little mini-journeys. When I go out, I prefer to take an entire day walking around while taking public transportation to get to my location, be it the subway, bus, etc.
"Eye Spy" - Spotted when walking around the streets of Chicago.
I also bring all of my stuff in a messenger bag, as it makes taking things easily accessible. I typically only carry around 2 prime lenses (my Canon 35mm f/2 and Canon 24mm f/2.8) along with some water and some food. Also just in case, I make sure to pack an extra battery and memory card along with any other random necessities I may need. However I try to always keep my bag as light as I can. Just for reference, I use the Timbuk2 Commute 2.0 bag which I highly recommend that holds nearly all of my stuff. Although it is a bit pricy, it is made out of fantastic materials and also has room to carry my laptop as well. Messenger bags don’t have to be expensive, however. There is a great deal for several in different colors on Amazon for under $20.
Once you walk, bus, or metro to your destination, just feel free to walk wherever you want. Lead yourself down barren alleys, into random stores, and toward strangers. Open up and talk to the local people in the area and strike up a conversation. Tell them about your photo journey and if they have any places that they recommend you check out. Don’t be too picky with what photos you decide to take. If something just attracts your eye for one reason or another, take a photo of it. Don’t feel obliged to only take photos of what you would consider “street photography.†Keep your mind and options open.
"Light Post" - When traveling in Prague, I saw this reflection of a lamp post in the water. I typically don't shoot subjects like this, but I am glad that I did.
After a long day of shooting, go home, download your photos from your memory card to your computer, and have the fun of picking your best images, while reliving your exciting little adventure.
