Street Focus 05: Q&A and Street Challenge

 

Episode 5: Q&A, Street Challenge and Pick of the Week

And The Winner is….

Congratulations to Dieter Henkel (aka.Variegator) from Austria! Dieter is the winner of our first Street Challenge contest with this great silhouette of a cyclist:

©Dieter Henkel, winner of the Silhouette Street Challenge.
©Dieter Henkel, winner of the Silhouette Street Challenge.

I'm happy to send Dieter a copy of The Art Of Black and White Photography by Torsten Hoffmann, compliments of our friends at Rocky Nook Publishing.

After I contacted Dieter he kindly provided some details about how he shot this image:

“The photo was taken in Vienna on the waterside promenade of the Donaukanal, right in the centre of the city. It is a wonderful place to walk, run or cycle. Many people use it for sports, especially in the morning and evening. There are also many bars and small restaurants, many graffiti artists cover the walls running along the street (it is allowed and even encouraged by the city) which all contributes to a good place for street photography.

It is also not far from my home and so I grabbed my camera and looked for a suitable spot for silhouettes which I found almost instantly. I knew from earlier visits that the afternoon sun would be perfect at this part of the Donaukanal. I didn't know of the big circle but when I saw it, I used it for the composition. Then it was only a matter of waiting for a cyclist to cross at the right distance and getting the shot at the right point in time. Actually, I shot this photo within the first ten minutes of my photo walk.”

Be sure to congratulate Dieter on G+ or on Flickr!

 Q&A Segment:

This week I answer questions sent by Mark Reierson and Steve Brokaw about making money with your street photography. I also go into what to do in a situation when someone confronts you on the street about taking their picture. And how to incorporate fashion and street photography.

NEW Street Challenge: Motion!

I invite you to go out and shoot some motion in the streets over the next couple of weeks, then upload your best shot in the comment section below. Remember that the contest ends two weeks after this episode goes live, and your entry should be shot during that two week period.  Posts are moderated to prevent spam so your image may not show up right away. I will pick my favorite before the next Q&A episode, and post the image on the show notes that week. 

Tips for shooting motion in street photography: Experiment with long exposure and motion blur, panning technique, try a stationary subject and a moving background, etc. Have fun!

Pick of the week: Portraits of Strangers by Ibarionex Perello

Special Announcements:

New 2015 photo workshops announced: A weekend of street photography in Paris in January, Rome for a week in April, Paris for a week in May. I hope to meet some of you in 2015!

Visit our growing Street Focus community on Google+

Samples for motion in the streets for inspiration. The images below are the Copyrighted by Valerie Jardin.

47 Comments

  1. I enjoy these podcasts so much! And the winner of the silhouette challenge is a fantastic image! Thank you for sharing so much of your experience!! I did some motion pics after listening to this and plan to do some more. It is a change from what I usually focus on, so I appreciate the challenge. ~ All the best

    1. I am not sure if I will have an opportunity to work on the challenge again this coming weekend, so I am going to post one. Question: If I get a ‘better’ shot, can I post both, or should I delete this one?

      Moving from bus to train – St. Paul.

    2. Thank you Kim! If you decide to post another one just leave a note so that I know which one you enter. Thanks!

    1. This photo is mine and was submitted for the motion challenge. Not sure why it shows me as guest though.

  2. Valérie, one suggestion. I don’t know if it is possible as you pre-record some of your shows but could you insert a critique section in one of your shows where you pick one or two photos of the last challenge and tell the listeners, what you like about them and where the photographer could improve. It doesn’t have to be the winning shot, perhaps a different one is better suited to the task.

    1. Hi! That is something that was done in the past on TWiP but wasn’t popular because most people don’t look at the show notes and listen to the podcast in their cars…

  3. Valérie you mentioned in one of the Q&A episodes about not having to raise the camera to you eye when shooting on public transport. I would love if you could give some further info on this, maybe some techniques. Do you shoot from the hip? How do you make sure you are shooting straight/in focus/composition etc. I always feel that I stick out like a sore thumb when raising the camera, composing, focusing and taking the shot when I want to be as subtle as possible and not disturb the prey!

    1. Aaron, thanks for the question. Do you mind if I keep it for an upcoming Q&A episode?

    1. I like how the face is only slightly blurred and the arms convey the motion. Works very well in B&W.

  4. sorry, would love to post pictures but the site never shows them. they are under 2MB and follow all the rules buts Discuss just won’t post them. I posted on the Google+ site. Please stop using Disqus. It just doesn’t work. please fix this. Love the podcast hate Disqus

  5. Hello again… I did some SP this past weekend and got another motion shot. I think I’d like to use this one in the contest – as opposed to the first one I posted. I like the composition of this one better, and find it more interesting that he is looking up at ….?? Thank you!!!

  6. New York City Subway. low light so just leaned the camera on a pole and went with the low shutter speed

    1. So sorry John, I went in the comment moderation section but no image appears to be attached to either posts. I don’t know why this is so hit-or-miss. Will talk to my producer about it and see if there is anyway to make this easier in the near future. Thank you for your support and persistence!

  7. My entry this week is this photo taken in a mall. I chose this place because of its architectural setting that caught my eye on an earlier visit. It frames the scene below quite nicely.

    Most of the times when one person stopped moving it was too far to the left or right so that parts of the body were cropped. At other times there was nobody walking when a person stood still. But patience is a virtue and so I was rewarded with this shot.

  8. Sorry, too late…
    Heard the podcast some days ago and went out on the streets today.
    I’d like to share anyhow and appreciate comments from everybody to learn.

  9. Sorry, too late…
    I heard the podcast some days ago and went out on the streets today.
    I’d like to share anyhow and appreciate comments from everybody to learn.

  10. Sorry, I am too late…
    I heard the podcast some days ago and went out on the streets today.
    I’d like to share anyhow and appreciate comments from everybody to learn.
    Don’ know why the phot appears twice – if I try to delete one, both are removed…

  11. Valerie, I have a question for your next Q & A show. For a long time I have wanted to pick my camera up during a rainy or snowy day and go out and shoot in the street. Aside from the obvious points of camera protection, can you give us any pointers on how to shoot in inclement weather?

  12. Federal Reserve Building, Downtown Manhattan, after dusk.Got the motion, not sure if the rest of the picture works.