Street Talk on Nik Radio

Scott Sheppard of Nik Radio featured an interview with me on a recent podcast. It's available through the iTunes store, and (I think) on Google+, but I'm not sure how to access it there. In the interview I talked about the Nik software plugins, the Fuji X-Pro 1 camera system, and the genre of street photography. I was honored to be considered for the interview.

As the weather has been getting more agreeable I've been inspired to get out more. In the interview I discussed two different approaches I take to shooting on the street - being anonymous and capturing a slice of life of which I'm just an observer, and being an agent of the unfolding scene in which the  subject responds or reacts to my presence. In these images my presence was duly noted, the three responses are different and unique, and there's an nonverbal story in each image. I leave it to you to make up your own.

A Bit of Street and Fujinon Lenses

No big surprises for my blog readers today: my pics are all street photos, shot with either the Fujinon 14mm or 18-55mm zoom lens. I've been mixing my approach to shooting street. For a very long time I tried to stay as anonymous as possible, not to insert myself into the situation to alter the moment or situation. But I'm a shmoozer by nature. I take shots of people because I enjoy capturing their expressions, gestures, attitudes, and feelings. When I nail a shot I get buzzed, it makes my day. When I interact with people to evoke expressions I feel the joy of connectedness - I can click away without hiding that I'm shooting, so I can work angles and light.

I saw this gentleman on 34th street, sitting on a fire stand just below a light and next to the window display, I chatted with him as I moved around to get the light just above him. Got pretty close, but not exact (14mm lens).

I really enjoy taking shots of men with mustaches/beards and with cigars. This gentleman gave me a five minute dissertation on how good the stogie was (14mm lens).

Another beard shot (but no cigar). He actually thanked me for taking his photo and asked to have a copy emailed (zoom lens at 55mm).

What's a blog post about shooting street if there's not a sneak shot? Just goes to show ya, even pretty girls get stuff stuck in their teeth (14mm lens).

Scenic Saturday

Walking through the neighborhoods of SoHo and Chelsea on Saturday I had a chance to interact with quite a few people. The weather was fine - a nice taste of Spring in the air - and most people were happy to be out in the crisp 50ºF temps.

One of the exceptions was this gentleman who responded to my greeting with a sneer:

Spring and Prince Streets in SoHo were lined with peddlers and artists. This guy couldn't figure out why I looked so strange to him:

One of my favorite corners to visit is on 13th street just above the lower end of the High Line. There's a gritty biker bar there - The Hog and Heifer - that always has interesting characters ready to engage in interesting badinage: