{"id":2716,"date":"2011-05-12T11:19:25","date_gmt":"2011-05-12T15:19:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=2716"},"modified":"2011-05-12T11:19:53","modified_gmt":"2011-05-12T15:19:53","slug":"how-to-shoot-street-portraits-with-permission-by-danny-santos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2011\/05\/12\/how-to-shoot-street-portraits-with-permission-by-danny-santos\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Shoot Street Portraits With Permission by Danny Santos"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Danny Santos shooting <\/em>Stranger #85<\/em><\/a> & <\/em>Stranger #86<\/em><\/a> , taken by Paulo Legaspi<\/em><\/p>\n

Eric’s Note<\/em><\/span><\/strong>: I am truly excited to have this guest post by Danny Santos<\/a>, who is truly passionate about shooting portraits in the streets. I was fascinated and captivated by his work, and I\u00c2\u00a0asked\u00c2\u00a0him to write a guest post about how he shoots street portraits. Enjoy!<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/em>
\nDanny<\/strong>: Shooting street portraits of strangers is a very daunting task. Often when you see a stranger you want to photograph, you find yourself between a rock and a hard place:\u00c2\u00a0 you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t seem to ask them for their photo, yet you know you just have to. \u00c2\u00a0Here are a few tips that may help you get over that hill. It won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t make it easy, but it may give you the push to start creating your own set of portraits of strangers.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

1. <\/strong>Get used to the fear\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 coz it won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t go away<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Stranger #100 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no magic formula to get rid of the fear. In fact, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a big chance that it will never go away. But that shouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t stop you from doing what you want to do. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t try to get rid it. Instead, try to shoot in spite of it.<\/p>\n

When I was doing my strangers project, I was scared shitless most of the time. In fact, the fear I felt when I shot my 7th<\/sup> stranger<\/a> was exactly the same when I shot my 100th<\/sup> stranger<\/a>.\u00c2\u00a0 Yup, my hands were shaking in both instances, and in most other instances between them. But I guarantee you; the struggle to shoot through the fear will all be worth it as you start acquiring one keeper shot after another. Then you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll want to shoot more.<\/p>\n

2. <\/strong>Keep it simple<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Stranger<\/a>
Stranger #77 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Is it ok if I take your picture?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> Short, sweet, and direct to the point. Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t start with a long explanation of what you want to do and why you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re doing it\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 this has the potential to intimidate your subject. If they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re curious, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll ask \u00e2\u20ac\u0153what for?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 Otherwise , they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll just say yes or no. This saves time and effort for both you and the subject.<\/p>\n

3. <\/strong>Be honest<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Stranger<\/a>
Stranger #57 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When they do ask \u00e2\u20ac\u0153what for?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d sincerity will take you a long way. No need to come up with bogus scripted excuses. The last thing you want from the subject is a tinge of doubt or apprehension.\u00c2\u00a0 Just tell them exactly what you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re doing: whether you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re working on a personal project, or just practicing your photography skills. Just be totally honest about the whole thing. You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d be surprised how many people would be supportive of you.<\/p>\n

4. <\/strong>Accept rejections\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 but stay positive<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Stranger<\/a>
Stranger #35 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

They come in different shapes and sizes. Some people would be shy and polite when they say \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcno.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 Sometimes, they would even smile and say \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcthank you.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00c2\u00a0 But others are just downright nasty\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 \u00c2\u00a0as if you were some outcast to society. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no denying that this kind of rejection will stick, but only for a short while. Before you know it, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll be back in your feet looking for your next keeper.\u00c2\u00a0 You need to accept the fact that rejection is an inevitable part of this whole process. But the exhilarating feeling of getting a series of keepers will more than make up for all the rejections you will get.<\/p>\n

5. <\/strong>Hand out a card<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t absolutely necessary, but it sure helps.\u00c2\u00a0 Bring a business card along that states your name, contact details, and the website address where you intend to post the portraits. This gives the subject a sense of security that their photo is not being taken by a shady character with malicious intent.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

I always bring Moo cards<\/a> that has my contact details and a sample photo at the back. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s professionally printed, and it looks cool. One of the best things about shooting street portraits is getting positive feedback from the subjects after they saw your site.<\/p>\n

Now that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve gone through some quick tips on how to approach strangers, let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s talk about the project itself. Getting a stranger to say \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcyes\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 is only half the battle.\u00c2\u00a0 Getting a good portrait, and series of good portraits, is the next challenge.<\/p>\n

6. <\/strong>Avoid the snapshot smile<\/strong><\/h2>\n

You know\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 the smile that you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve smiled a thousand times whenever you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in front of the camera.\u00c2\u00a0 It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s almost always the automatic reaction. You may want to avoid this because more often than not, the snapshot smile looks contrived. You can either ask them not to smile\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 or if you really want that smile, make them laugh and capture the moment. The point is to capture the subject in their natural state. It makes for a better portrait.<\/p>\n

Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an example of a great exemption from my personal \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcno smile\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> rule:<\/p>\n

\"Stranger<\/a>
Stranger #3 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Stranger #3<\/em><\/a> by Danny Santos<\/em><\/p>\n

7. <\/strong>Always be aware of the light<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Stranger<\/a>
Stranger #29 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As you walk in the streets looking for a subject to photograph, always be aware of where the light is coming from.\u00c2\u00a0 This way, when you encounter a subject, you know exactly how to quickly position him to get the best light. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve made the mistake of disregarding the light so many times because I was too excited that the subject said \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcyes\u00e2\u20ac\u2122, I ended up with a portrait that should have been better.<\/p>\n

8. <\/strong>Stay consistent<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re creating a series of street portraits, the set will be more interesting and meaningful if there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a unifying factor amongst them. It can be as simple as consistent framing or lighting, or as profound as having a general human theme. It has to work as a series, rather than just having good individual keepers put together.<\/p>\n

\"Portraits<\/a>
Portraits of Strangers by Danny Santos <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

9. <\/strong>Establish eye contact<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Stranger<\/a>
Stranger #88 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Rarely does a street portrait work when the subject is not looking at the camera. The viewer needs to feel an instant connection with the subject, and the most effective way is when the viewer feels like the subject is looking intently at him.<\/p>\n

10. <\/strong>Have fun<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\"Stranger<\/a>
Stranger #99 by Danny Santos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Most important of all :)<\/p>\n

Links:<\/h2>\n

Make sure to check out more of Danny’s work on his blog<\/a> and Flickr<\/a>! Don’t forget to add him on Facebook<\/a> and Twitter<\/a> as well!<\/p>\n

So how do you approach people when you want to take a street portrait? Let us know your 2 cents and also give Danny some love below for this great article by leaving a comment below! <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Danny Santos shooting Stranger #85 & Stranger #86 , taken by Paulo Legaspi Eric’s Note: I am truly excited to have this guest post by Danny Santos, who is truly passionate about shooting portraits in the streets. I was fascinated and captivated by his work, and I\u00c2\u00a0asked\u00c2\u00a0him to write a guest post about how he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2717,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[747,21],"class_list":["post-2716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-posts","tag-danny-santos","tag-street-photography"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/05\/shooting-portraits-of-strangers.jpg?fit=640%2C436&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2716"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2716\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2717"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2716"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}