street portraiture

looking back

“Do not observe yourself too much. Do not draw too hasty conclusions from what happens to you; let it simply happen to you. Otherwise you will too easily look with reproach (that is, morally) upon your past, which naturally has its share in all that you are now meeting.”*

“… every action has an equal and opposite reaction. This simple concept is fundamental. You can extend it to our lives, our actions and their consequences.

“So when we do something we should always expect a reaction even when we think no one has seen us?

“When we are part of a complex whole; if you move one thing, you affect everything else. And somewhere, without knowing it was you, someone is affect by your action and reacts, striking when you least expect it.”*

*cited in Trans. M D Herter Norton, Letters to a Young Poet. Rainer Maria Rilke

**unknown source

a photo study: street portraiture

 

 

My brain is tired.  After fourteen posts in which my thinking/photographic self weaved in, through, and out of contemplative photography, I decided it was time to shift “focus” to the genre of street portraiture by inviting a number of amazing photographers to share their creative endeavors.

But first, what is street portraiture?

Well to me, a street portrait is just a photograph/portrait of someone you meet on the streets (stranger). Generally it is focused on their face, but doesn’t need to be. A “portrait” just means a “likeness” of someone. For example, you can shoot a “full body portrait” of someone, and you can also shoot a closeup face portrait of someone. ~Eric Kim

On the photo forums they are always debating whether street portraiture is street photography.

There are no hard and fast rules. But in general, if a picture contains a person on the street and is posed / staged, it is street portraiture. If the photo of the person is candid,  it is street photography. Street portraiture may come under realm of street photography, but it is not to be confused with candid, non staged street work. Now, there are no photo police to decide such matters, so people are free to call em as they see em. ~ Daniel D. Teoli Jr.

Now let’s visit the website 123Photogo who shares with us that …character portraits is a whole different type of portrait photography, but, truly an art form that is just totally fun

BRINGING OUT THE CHARACTER IN A PORTRAIT

Jamie Windsor offers us “Tips for taking portraits of strangers”:

Mikaël Theimer’s talk about his connecting with strangers

Amazing examples of street portraiture to inspire you to pick up your camera and connect with life on the street.

 https://www.viewbug.com/blog/street-portraits-photo-contest-finalists

http://www.zunlee.com/streetportraits#10

I am looking forward to seeing one or more of your creative connection with people on the street.  Let’s tag with #aphotostudy.  Thank you for being a part of this learning journey.

the mind becomes…

“To be aware is to be aware of something. When the mind settles on the mountain, it becomes the mountain. When it settles on the sea, it becomes the sea. When we say. ‘know,’ both the known and the knower are included.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh (The Sun My Heart)

endofschoolyear1

I hope you enjoy hearing this amazing young man sing…

seeing differently: 4th of 15

Jung describes synchronicity as a meaningful coincidence of two or more events, where something other than the probability of chance is involved. …The critical factor is the meaning, the subjective experience that comes to the person: events are connected in a meaningful way, that is, events of the inner and outer world, the invisible and the tangible, the mind and the physical universe. This coming together at the right moment can happen only without the conscious intervention of the ego. …it is as though the psyche had its own secret design…

~The Essence of Jung Psychology and Tibetan Buddhism, Radmila Moacanin

windowwindow6

I find myself drawn to photograph people who seemingly are within their own worlds as they wander, interact, mingle within the public realm.  Yet, sometimes the eye is drawn towards the amazing abstract paintings light creates within the window canvas.

Seeing Differently is an October challenge proposed by Robyn.

seeing differently: 2nd of 15

“We may speak of conditions and consequences as though they were things, but if we look more closely they turn out to be processes with no independent reality. The harshness of a barbed remark that haunts us for days is no more than a brief instance isolated from a torrent of events. Yet it stands out in the mind’s eye as something intrinsically real and apart. This habit of isolating things leads us to inhabit a world in which the gaps between them come absolute.”

~ Buddhism without Beliefs, Stephen Batchelor

sittingdown

Seeing things a bit different during the recent “tour de corgi” by viewing events unfold with the camera at ground level…my 2nd image submitted in response to Robyn’s  photo challenge.