A Thinking Street Photography Site
This has been done many times before.
I really like this wall.
There’s texture, brick by brick.
The colour is luminous.
The window is dark enough.
I’m a fly on the wall.
Nice door.
There’s no end to the stream of individuals.
All deep in thought.
Conversing with their individual humanity.
Camera: Olympus XA 3
Film: Kodak UltraMax 400
The street markets of Shamshuipo are very busy.
There’s a constant assault of colours.
There’s so much movement.
So much that may be hidden.
That you can’t take what you see for granted.
Every scene is a visual poem.
The camera is a notebook with which to write.
Thanks for reading!
Camera: Olympus XA 3
Film: Kodak UltraMax 400
Yes, I’ve recently acquired a taste for high contrast monochrome.
It is stark, clear, and in some ways, minimalist.
Stripped of colours, our attention is drawn directly to the subjects.
You could overexpose a bit to make a social statement about modernity – the face of the security guard is partially eclipsed, in contrast to the blown-out advertisement.
There’s the dichotomy between an individual and a building, and the image draws attention to rectangular grids of the building and pavement, in contrast to the white polka dots echoed in the two round shapes on the building.
The rectangular grids here are enhanced by the bus and the back of the shirt.
More grids, blocks and lines in the next few shots:
The face is blurred out, again emphasizing the blocks, grids and lines.
I’m about to reveal a useful street photography technique.
All these shots are done from a mobile elevated position.
I’ve set this up so I could do street photography on the move.
I spent $40 RMB setting this up, though the equipment involved, depending on the model, could easily cost more than $200 000 RMB.
I’m a very talent street photographer, you see.
Can you guess what it is?
It’s really a fantastic piece of equipment for the street photographer, which has to be manned by another person.
It’s called an open-air double-decker tour bus.
$40 RMB is the price of an all day ticket on a route with 3-4 bus lines.
My ten-year-old son wants to have a go. The next eight images are by him.
I gave him 2 very important street photography tips:
1) Try not to place the subject at the center.
2) Don’t drop the camera or else.
I’m responsible for the high contrast monochrome, of course.
But what can I say – he has good creative genes. 🙂
Okay, my turn.
The above is the street photographer assistant I hired, taking a break from handling that fantastic piece of equipment for me.
The youth of Shanghai, walking with a swagger.
I like the facial expressions.
Cool dudes.
A blurry shot, something I learnt from Daido Moriyama…
Thanks for reading, and buy my prints!
Time to go bargain hunting!
This is Shanghai Laojie (Old Street), a touristy area with lots of “specialty shops” selling various Oriental stuff.
The light was no good (this was just after a drizzle on a really cloudy day), so my poor Olympus XA2 with Fuji Superia 800 was stretched to its limits.
I’m probably forgiving myself too much, but some of the images have a soft-focus painterly look that nonetheless grows on me.
Check out the goods.
I was looking at one of the shirts in a store and the shopkeeper said to me (in English) it’s made of really exquisite material, at only 360RMB.
I nodded and said I would think about it (in Mandarin/Putonghua) and walked away, only to be told two steps later that it’s 180RMB.
I said I’ll think about it.
And she said “Ok, ok, 100RMB final offer. If you don’t believe me, go to the other shops to compare prices and you’ll see this is the best price you’ll get.”
I said I’ll indeed take a quick look at the other shops and she said, “ok, ok – 90 RMB.”
So I bought two.
I’m an expert negotiator, you see. (This was one of those rare moments when my wife was very impressed with me.)
I basically brought the price down from RMB360 to RMB90. (I now suspect the price could have been lowered further.)
I think that at this place, they’re selling generic stuff (from the same suppliers/factories) that can be found at every other shop, and they know that you know.
Hmm…
Yummy traditional snacks!
A shop specializing in chopsticks.
Another one specializing in Oriental curios.
Thanks for stopping by, and please do check out my Saatchi Art page for open edition prints.
Again we choose.
We decide.
We look.
Hmm…
That one! Yes!
This is the season.
We’re in season.
We stop to think.
And buy wisely.
All images are taken with my stealthy Contax TVS II with Ferrania Solaris 400 film.
For collectors: some images here are available as open edition affordable prints at my Saatchi Art page.
Thanks for reading!
For the images here, I’ve done a B/W conversion from Fuji Venus 800 film loaded on Olympus XA2.
I’ve done a minimal bit of tweaking for some high contrast.
To my eyes, they look somewhat raw and harassed.
Here’s another one of Luohu Commercial City, viewed at a lower level.
You could see this is a popular place for bargains.
The above composition looks quirky – though it looks strangely apt.
This is how we see things – artlessly.
I’m up close, and they’re too busy negotiating prices to notice.
Why is it that yummy food is always unhealthy food?
That’s the way we see things sometimes – blurred and hurried.
You could see I lingered for a bit at this stall…
Check out those food on the skewers …
And yes, let’s not forget the man who winked at my wife…
Some images from this post are available here as affordable prints, in case you haven’t checked out my Saatchi Art page yet.
Hong Kong Lucida 