Journal — Tristan Parker Photography

As the topic title says, we are going to have a look at street photography without people. A lot of the street photography at the moment is centred on people. People doing things out of the norm. People in the right light. People who have an interesting look. A majority of the work of the masters of Street Photography also contained a people element, but I think at that point there was more of a trend of telling a story and showing a snapshot of society. Maybe the trend of the moment of seeking out and capturing the weird and wonderful says something about us as a society in the modern era, but that is likely the topic for future conversations. But... Is there a need to have a person in a shot, or is it possible to shoot street work of high quality without shooting people?

Where Will the Street Photography Boom End?

Street photography is booming right now, and I think that this raises a few questions. Some of these questions in my mind will lead to desirable results, others however may not.

In the years gone by there have been a wealth of very talented artists that have walked the streets of the various cities and locations of the world with a simple camera in hand, and a very simple goal. The goal was to document and record the world around them. Some were doing it for different reasons to others. Some were doing it to preserve memories of their life, others as they loved to interact with their subjects and record life of people in the places that they either lived or visited. Others still as they were simply obsessed with the still image and its wonders. I think that even the later needed to be draw in some way to the people around them though, it was a requirement of the trade for most.

Setting up a Home Darkroom (part 1)

I think that its quite evident if you have read through the progressive writings on this evolving blog that I am well towards transitioning back to film as my preferred medium. I started with an OMD, went through the usual find the right focal length type deal. Got a Nikon FA, tried a few point and shoot classic film cameras. Got a little rangefinder Leitz CL. Broke the FA, replaced it with an F100. And finally added a Leica M6 to the mix. I think its been about 2 months since I took the OMD out of the house and used it. Shame really as its a great camera. I dont think that I will ever sell it, as there is a time and a place for digital still and I think that I would end up getting something different anyway... Maybe a point and shoot digital is a better option... Anyway, I digress.

Real Photography - The whole process and why you should know how it works

I am very lucky in the fact that my Dad is a photography teacher, and this means that I still have access to a darkroom, and all the equipment that goes with it. Not only that, but as Dad has always taken photos, i was also very lucky to learn how to process my own black and white film, and print from an enlarger in a darkroom from a very young age.

Long Term Street Photography Projects?

If you look to the greats of our magical art form they by in large have something in common. They have long term bodies of work exploring something that they found interesting. This is not only the case for the street photographers, and it may not have been that the project theme was something that they intended to investigate until they realised that something tied a lot of their work together already, and continued with something that was already there.It can be broad or very narrow, but they usually have something that to them built their body of work.

Light Makes Me Happy!

So, I was driving to my second job as a SPIN instructor the other night (on a side note, I have noticed I start a lot of Blogs with the word "so"), I will give you a little context... I left my main job at about 4pm and it was pissing down rain... I ride a bike to work, and I only live about 2k from work, so I ride in normal clothes... Now when I say pissing down rain, Im talking thunder bolts and lightning, very very frightening... Oh my... I digress... So, we get the idea, there is lightning and thunder, Im wet through, and riding home... I have had a cracker day, so this little hurdle isnt getting to me one bit... I come home, get changed, jump in the car and drive to SPIN, its not far away... When I get in the car its still black and gloomy outside, and still belting down rain...

Finding the Balance (part....)

So I have discussed balance in life in a previou posts. See these links, as its starting to become a bit of a hot topic for me (here)…

You might gather from the fact that I haven’t posted for some months that this balance has shifted a little again. It intrigues me how we go through life shifting and negotiating with ourselves, and often our loved ones, and even our employers as well, about what at that moment in time is more important than other things.

Restoration of the Balance

So I have written in the past about the requirement for balance in ones life to find enjoyment from everything that you do. When balance starts to slip its a painful process for me, where I spend time doing a lot of one thing, and become divided about what I am doing because I want to be spending time doing something different. Essentially I need to do a variety of things in order to do any one of them well.

Unfortunately I have this issue with some of the tthings that I take on being rather large, and therefore they tend to take up more time that what was originally planned, and balance becomes compromised... One of these things that I recently decided to do was run a 100km ultra Marathon.

PhotographyTristan ParkerMay 20, 2013Life Balance, Photography, Street Photography, triathlon, ultra marathonComment