Have you tried Street Photography before?

As a photographer who loves photographing places and moments, I find this genre challenging. It is not about snapping random photos while walking on a busy street in Bangkok but you require more of the “art of seeing” skill here. Before, I had the impression any photo captured on the street could be categorised as a street photo. Of course, there is no right or wrong technique for capturing street moments. Some argue that a street photo needs to have distinguished criteria or techniques to qualify as a REAL street photo.

Whatever the technique is, the best street photo is the one that tells stories.

I was curious after watching a few friends on social media being obsessed with street photography. They argued a lot about techniques. I studied their so-called street photos and tried to connect and understand their POVs. Watching them exploring the streets over the weekend makes me want to join them. A good excuse to sharpen my photography skills and at the same time I want to learn new POVs to improve my favourite photography genre, lifestyle travel photography.

What is street photography?

Street photography is about capturing everyday moments in public spaces including people, architecture, and urban life. A fun way to explore cities and cultures with minimal gear requirements. Street photography could sharpen our observation skills and teach us to be patient.

Whatever techniques you decide to adopt, your ultimate mission is to create a photo that evokes emotion, curiosity, and deeper meaning. A photo that tells stories.

I learned some criteria for a strong storytelling image applicable to street photos.

• Clear Subject. Our eyes should immediately focus on the subject.
• Emotion and Expression. Gestures, facial expressions, body language, and the atmosphere of a place convey or trigger emotions to the viewers
• Context and Setting. The surrounding environment of the location, people interactions, architectural details and overall atmosphere.
• Moment and Timing. Capture decisive moment
• Composition and Framing. Layering, leading line, negative space etc.
• Light and Mood. Photography means ‘light drawing’, the art of capturing light to create images. Lighting affects the mood of your photos. Harsh light creates drama. Soft light creates a warm, nostalgic, fuzzy feeling. Meanwhile, shadows and silhouettes add intrigue or mystery.
• Mystery and Story Gap. Leave some room for interpretation in your images. Don’t flash everything to your audience. Invites engagement from viewers by being openly subjective.
• Relatability and Connection. Try to connect the viewers to the subject with relatable feelings or themes.

Practice makes perfect. I have a long way to go towards mastering the skill and you might see me patiently standing at some corners along the Kuala Lumpur streets observing a potential scene. Don’t forget to say hi! to me yeah.

Thank you for reading. Keep practising!

Cheers

Matsuda

PS: Happy New Year to all of my readers. I got lucky and won first prize in a street photo competition early this month (January 2025). A great start for the new year and I am looking forward to more winning moments this year. In Sha Allah.