It is a well-known maxim that specializing in one genre of photography helps in promoting and selling a photographer’s work. We agree with that.
However, such a narrow specialization, while logical and commercially viable, could lead to unwelcome reverberations. One of them is conformity and stiffness. Those of you who have journeyed with us for the last few years know that we view self-satisfaction and ease as the greatest enemy of creativity. Therefore, this year we promised ourselves we would venture into more places. One of them is street photography.
It’s not that we haven’t done any street photography before. Quite the opposite! However, most of it was personal work not shared on this blog in order to comply with the theme of road photography. To keep our New Year’s resolution, we recently started to share our street photography on this forum. We are aware that some of you may be disappointed in this detour and want us to keep laser focus on road photography. Others welcomed this addition and encouraged us to do more. We appreciate all feedback.
Part of our decision to expand is the commonality between the two genres. Indeed, both road and street photography require travel in the car or on the foot. This visual wondering and exploring could be done either on the road or on the sidewalk. Similarly, it involves finding a connection to a place or a person. Then, light and mood play a decisive role in both. A composition – one of the most important aspects – is crucial in both cases and requires careful examination. Finally, strict examination and selection is a must in order to respect the viewer and present only the best work possible.
The genres complement one another and we enjoy both. It doesn’t mean we have abandoned our road explorations. Not at all. The recent hiatus in our travels will end shortly and we will be vising some stunning and sometimes surprising places. In short, in the upcoming months you will find posts with imagery from our road trips as well as our street trips. We hope you enjoy both.
Here are some of our most recent images from the streets of Vancouver. All shot with the Fuji X-Pro2 and XF 35mm F1.4. Acros and Classic Chrome film simulations.
Classic Chrome (CC)
2016 © Kasia & Olaf Sztaba Photography. All rights reserved.
Hi,
1st time commenting, but I’ve been reading and enjoying your blog regularly for a year or more. I’m very pleased to see you making a shift into street photography. Vancouver is so rich with photo opportunities and and I enjoy seeing other people’s views of this city.
John Jackson
John,
I appreciate your note a lot – especially that you haven’t commented before.
You are right – Vancouver is such a visually rich city.
All the best,
Olaf
I’ve long been a fan of street work done right. Of course, being the viewer I get to decide what’s done right!😉 Like any other genre it has to contain elements of composition, background, light (light!), color, etc. You’ve got some great work here. I really like the B&W, I can see why you shot in color and, perhaps just as importantly, most of the color could have been B&W and been just as powerful. A very enjoyable post.
Ken,
Thank you so much for your support and your kind comment. I appreciate it a lot.
Olaf
The border between street and road is a blurry one as a lot of borders.
Very true!
Excellent street work!
Thank you.
Olaf
Would you post your thoughts on street shooting with the X-Pro2? Optical vs. electronic viewfinder, manual pre-set vs. automatic focus and Exposure, etc.?
Yes, we will talk more about this in our posts.
Thank you for visiting.
Olaf