Topic: Street Photography for the Purist

[Urban Hafner]

I came across this (free) ebook from 2006 through one of the many photo blogs I read. I haven't found it through the search in the forum so I thought I'd post it. I'm not through yet but I can say that the images in there are very nice. The style of writing however isn't anything I would pay money for, but it free. And he gets his message across I think.

http://cweeks.deviantart.com/art/Street-Photography-38038974

Urban

[Francois]

Thanks for the link.
I just got the hefty PDF file... will have to take a look later.

[DS]

Yeah- read this a while ago. Have you seen the associated documentary?
Its in 3 parts:
http://vimeo.com/6497905
http://vimeo.com/6502390
http://vimeo.com/6504591

Safe to say he loses the Leica & B&W film hyperbole when he gets an M9.

It's very good though and much more enjoyable than the PDF- less ranty....

[Urban Hafner]

He went digital? Ha! You would never think that given what he's written in the ebook. In a weird way the ebook is inspiring nonetheless.

And thanks for the links to the video. I'll certainly watch that.

Urban
 

[DS]

He went digital? Ha! You would never think that given what he's written in the ebook. In a weird way the ebook is inspiring nonetheless.
 

Yeah, exactly. It is quite inspiring (the vid more so because the photos are better). The first time I watched / read this stuff i got annoyed at all the Leica pretentiousness but now I've played with a friend's the whole thing makes me 'leica itchy'.

[Ed Wenn]

Watched the first part and enjoyed it a lot; thanks. Anything that talks about the 'invisible' street photographer makes me smile (as you'll know if you've heard us chuckling about this very topic on various Filmwasters audio podcasts), but it was great to see people at work.

[CamerAsian]

I've read his essay on Leica street-shooting and seen the accompanying pictures. Didn't find either inspiring. As for "the Purist," I'm not sure what he means.

[Phil Bebbington]

I'm not sure I've ever been invisible, I tend to be looked upon with suspicion and then disregarded as a nutter! Perhaps that renders me invisible - my odd behaviour acting as a cloaking device.

[DS]

I'm not sure I've ever been invisible, I tend to be looked upon with suspicion and then disregarded as a nutter! Perhaps that renders me invisible - my odd behaviour acting as a cloaking device.

me too- like the SEP (Somebody Else's Problem) method of invisibility in the Douglas Adams books?

[Phil Bebbington]

As most of my street people shots involve elderly people and me shooting from the hip at close quarters, I think I just confuse them to the point that I am no threat. I find I can take them whilst having a conversation with my prey, they  don't even twig when I start winding on the film.

[Francois]

You're lucky, I usually simply get the hairy eyeball look