Street Photography

Today we were sent out on a street photography shoot to try and grasp Plymouth and the diversity it includes within imagery. For this we needed to stick to the laws revolving around street photography and taking pictures of people as well as sticking to things which are morally and ethically okay. My ideas for this shoot included asking people if I could take their portrait - simple photographs in the city of them acting however they felt was necessary or them. Due to the weather on the shoot location I struggled to find many people who didn't mind me taking their photograph as the weather put many people off.

Thankfully 2 of the men I asked on location were more than happy for me to take their photograph. The first person was a very kind man called Ernie who is a Big Issue seller on the main highstreets of Plymouth. As it can be quite daunting when someone with a big camera asks for your picture I approached him with my college pass and told him what I was doing and about the college course I was on so that he didn't think I was being rude and he was very calm and happy to let me take his portrait. My favourite image of him is below. I have edited this piece a little but tried to keep it as natural and raw as possible.

The next person I approached was a busker also on one of the main streets of Plymouth who was trying to earn himself a smalll amount of cash. Again I approached him with the same information about the task and the college and he agreed to some photos of him busking. I took quite a range of photos of him from different angles and heights to try and get the best image possible. The image below is my best one as it truly grasps the way buskers live and what they do. You can see the passion for what he's doing in his facial expression which I feel definitely makes the shot. I think the compostition of this shot adds a dynamic element to it and make it come alive a lot more than if it was a plain straight on shot.

Overall I think the shoot went well as I managed to learn about the correct way of getting people to let you photograph them. It was interesting to see how many people wouldn't allow it against how many people would. I liked having to come out of my comfort zone in order to complete this task as it is something I will more than likely need to do in the future.