Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/05/19

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Subject: Re: [Leica] street photography
From: MicroGrid@aol.com
Date: Fri, 19 May 2000 23:42:53 EDT

Bob & Johnny,
I hope this hasn't been to painful for you, because it has been a quite a 
revealing thread for me. You guys debating this issue have caused me to stop 
and think about the pictures that I really enjoy to make.
My first photographic "assignments" were in my high school, where I was the 
yearbook photo geek. My streets were the football games, the swim meets, band 
practices, the daily life of 16 year olds. I knew the kids, they knew me, I 
took pictures of it all. 

Today what I really revel in is shooting "candids". Give me my M, my 90 'cron 
and a table of my friends as subjects and I am in heaven. When I'm new to a 
group or someone else is new, I get a lot of the deer in headlights look for 
my scrap heap. I don't like the look, or the paused, posed smiles at all. 
People who don't want to be photographed are just not interesting to me. I am 
looking for a natural look, of how people relate to each other, Just like my 
daughter and her friends do now in high school. I enjoy recording that. 

I feel like a voyeur when I look at most "street" photos today.
Having said that, I Was in Asia last month and shot tons of "street" photos 
of the "natives" in the markets, restaurants, everywhere. Why is that 
acceptable and interesting to me?

Bruce Bowman
Killingworth CT

In a message dated 5/19/00 8:35:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time, Bmceowen@aol.com 
writes:

<< 
 2.) Do street photographers ever consider approaching someone they find 
 interesting and simply asking, "can I follow you around for a few minutes 
and 
 shoot some photos?" I bet they'd be amazed at the photos they could get this 
 way . . . 
  >>