Stefan

Hello Everyone,
 
Thanks for reading my post.
 
I see a lot of regular street shots that tell a story or that have an interesting subject but so often at the cost of composition or aesthetics. I decided to go out one morning and focus on aesthetics, using colour, light subjects, objects and angles. Taking a note from Cartier. 
 
Please share with me your thoughts, and please share some of your more aesthetically orientated street shots, I love to see them.
 
Thanks again.
 

Hello Everyone,
 
Thanks for reading my post.
 
I see a lot of regular street shots that tell a story or that have an interesting subject but so often at the cost of composition or aesthetics. I decided to go out one morning and focus on aesthetics, using colour, light subjects, objects and angles. Taking a note from Cartier. 
 
Please share with me your thoughts, and please share some of your more aesthetically orientated street shots, I love to see them.
 
Thanks again.
 

Hi Paul,
 
Great shots. I don't want to detract from general feedback but I just want to make mention of the following; I don't think that anything here was taken in an untasteful manner. As a street photographer you're documenting life as it happens. Homeless people are part of life. If you only took of homeless people, never engaging with them to tell their story or share their plight with the world then that is different. But you clearly engaged with the lady and your showing a very specific slice of life. Dorothea Lange, Robert Frank etc .Okay enough about that, every can calm down now.
 
I'd also like to mention that of course everyone is entitled to their own opinion I'm merely sharing my point of few and my opinion. My comments are based on my beliefs, views and aesthetic tastes.
 
4 Guys by the bench:
Since you were posing them, I would have liked to see 1 guy alone on the bench sitting between the two words. As if he were defying or breaking the boundary. Or guys only on the 'Colored' side, with nobody on the 'white' side so as to imply that perhaps all that is left now is this bench but those 'whites' are not around any more etc. However the viewer wanted to interpret the arrangement.
 
Chasing kids with cane:
It's cool, it tells a story. Old man, old city, old traditions with new new kids having no respect or are unappreciative and this angers the old generation. What does it hold for the future of this old beautiful place.
 
Old lady with blanket:
LOVE it. Very photo journalistic, she is roughing it on the streets but that hint of a smile lets you know she's okay. This is me and I'm okay, it's not easy and I'm old, but I have my things and I'm okay.
 
Bus and motorised Wheel chair:
It's cool, it tells a story. Who wins? The bus is bigger but he has the handicap card. I like how he almost seems to be rubbing his head as if to say 'mmmm now what? Are you gonna move?"
 
Old Man street performer:
This one is not my favourite, I think because I can't tell whats going on. Is he real? What was he performing? Why do the viewers look so perplexed? All of these questions are not good questions for me, I leave unsatisfied. The sense of mystery is not a good mystery.
 
Guy peeing in the corner:
Slice of life. Maybe he doesn't like those shows? (lol) I like how he put his packet down and then shyly went into the corner as far as possible and hunched up hiding himself as much as is possible.  Not my favourite shot, but as part of a series it says something.
 
Old man in the park shaving:
Love this shot! Slice of life but so interesting. He must be homeless? But with such a sense of pride. This is me, I'm going to sit here and shave now on this nice sunny day. Life is good right now. Very cool.
 
Big Lady at the Stall:
Aesthetically not a pleasing shot, but it does say a lot. I think if it wasn't for the big jar of Nutella balancing out her behind it wouldn't have been nearly as strong. Great as part of a series, slightly weaker on its own.
 
Nun kissing a Priest:
It's definitely interesting, I didn't know they do that. It's unexpected or unthought of usually which makes it interesting. I would maybe crop it a bit tighter, really emphasise that. Again as part of a series it would be a good complimentary shot. I would also crush those blacks, they'd really pop off that light wall. I like how the other two are looking away they're almost uncomfortable with it. lol
 
Boy playing violin:
Probably my favourite shot of all. Nice and strong, contrast is solid. The face... is the best! And his caretaker or mother actually makes the shot because her smile is in direct contrast to his face further emphasising the situation. He's not a slave, let's relax about that. But kids hate going to their music lessons etc, so this tells a strong story.
 
Some nice shots Paul, interesting post. Again just my view and opinion. Thanks

You see Paul, how not having any context puts your photos in a very interesting 'frame' of reference. Some photos I take because they have a certain meaning for me, but some I take because I think that alone with no reference they will tell an, perhaps even more, interesting story. Thats what I love about photography, a moment can be interpreted in many ways. It's quite fascinating.

Stefan, I'm not sure if this one fits your idea of aesthetics... the lines are all there... just 3 teenagers hanging out in town.  It was the girl's boots that attracted me to take the photo

Young Italians by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

They all fall into many categories, the first three might be aesthetic, but also street, architecture, even possibly a bit abstract.... different things to different people.  We all see the world in different ways, which means we all produce images that are very different to each other... except in camera clubs, where sadly many people can end up shooting the same photos as everybody else.  I feel a bit of a fraud posting images here, because I was a photoreporter for 23 years, and my photos were used in newspapers all over the world, but hopefully I can encourage younger photographers to think and use their brains when they take photos.... you don't seem to need that encouragement, Stefan   You're doing great.

You see Paul, how not having any context puts your photos in a very interesting 'frame' of reference. Some photos I take because they have a certain meaning for me, but some I take because I think that alone with no reference they will tell an, perhaps even more, interesting story. Thats what I love about photography, a moment can be interpreted in many ways. It's quite fascinating.

Nice work Stefan

I have a few, but aesthetics isn't really what I go looking for... but here are are a few.... you may find others on my Flickr page or website.

Loggia del Consiglio Verona by Paul Crespel, on Flickr
 
@ by Paul Crespel, on Flickr
 
Innsbruck Shopping Mall by Paul Crespel, on Flickr
 
Night Train by Paul Crespel, on Flickr

Hello Everyone,
 
Thanks for reading my post.
 
I see a lot of regular street shots that tell a story or that have an interesting subject but so often at the cost of composition or aesthetics. I decided to go out one morning and focus on aesthetics, using colour, light subjects, objects and angles. Taking a note from Cartier. 
 
Please share with me your thoughts, and please share some of your more aesthetically orientated street shots, I love to see them.
 
Thanks again.
 

Hi Stefan, thanks for your comments
 
Finally somebody has thought about the images!
 
Ok, here's my reply:
 
The 4 guys behind the bench were not posed. 
 
None of my photos are ever posed, nor are they cropped, straightened or manipulated in any way.
 
Those guys were sheltering from the snow under a tree, behind a bench.  I had passed that bench hundreds of times and never seen the graffiti, because there were always people sitting there.  I saw the guys from 50 metres away, and as I drew level I turned, went down on one knee, and shot... and at that moment I saw the graffiti for the first time.  The graffiti is a protest against the metal bars Verona has placed on all benches to stop homeless people sleeping on them.
 
The bus and the wheelchair.... the bus won, the driver refused to move to one side, and the pavements were too narrow for Cristian to mount, so he had to turn around and exit the road with the bus following.  At that point, to add insult to injury, a police woman on point duty, held her hand up and made him stop to give way to traffic coming the other way.... I have that photo too
 
The old man sitting in the street was not a performer.
He was very still, and the people didn't understand, and they believed he was dead.... so the photo shows human reaction... instead of trying to help, they all just stared at him with disgust / horror / fear.
 
Dumitru, shaving in the park, is Romanian.  He comes to Italy for 6 months every year.  He has a nice house and family in Romania, but he chooses to live rough in Italy for 6 months and busk with his guitar and send the money he earns home, where it keeps his family in luxury, and where it will support him when he returns for the winter.  Those buskers earn between 100 and 200 euros a day.
 
Nutella.  Cause and effect.  Instead of selling the fried donuts, she was eating them. 
 
Nun kissing priest, full on the lips, for over 10 seconds - very early on a Sunday morning, very few people around, two other priests seemingly looking out for them.
 
The boy playing the violin.... Patrizio.... 9 years old.  I asked his "minder" why he wasn't at school, and she told me that he has to work because he is clever, and can earn more money than she can.  They are Rom.  He was capable of playing 40 seconds of one classical work, and then demanding money.  It was slave labour.  I spoke to both of them, the woman was proud of what she was doing, but Patrizio wasn't happy.
 
In this series, the only truly homeless person is the lady with the blankets.  It was taken on a Christmas eve morning, very early, in Verona.  I didn't speak her language, and she didn't speak any of mine, but she enjoyed a good breakfast, and hopefully had a better Christmas than she was expecting.
 
It's nice to finally see people think about the images, thank you

Hi Paul,
 
Great shots. I don't want to detract from general feedback but I just want to make mention of the following; I don't think that anything here was taken in an untasteful manner. As a street photographer you're documenting life as it happens. Homeless people are part of life. If you only took of homeless people, never engaging with them to tell their story or share their plight with the world then that is different. But you clearly engaged with the lady and your showing a very specific slice of life. Dorothea Lange, Robert Frank etc .Okay enough about that, every can calm down now.
 
I'd also like to mention that of course everyone is entitled to their own opinion I'm merely sharing my point of few and my opinion. My comments are based on my beliefs, views and aesthetic tastes.
 
4 Guys by the bench:
Since you were posing them, I would have liked to see 1 guy alone on the bench sitting between the two words. As if he were defying or breaking the boundary. Or guys only on the 'Colored' side, with nobody on the 'white' side so as to imply that perhaps all that is left now is this bench but those 'whites' are not around any more etc. However the viewer wanted to interpret the arrangement.
 
Chasing kids with cane:
It's cool, it tells a story. Old man, old city, old traditions with new new kids having no respect or are unappreciative and this angers the old generation. What does it hold for the future of this old beautiful place.
 
Old lady with blanket:
LOVE it. Very photo journalistic, she is roughing it on the streets but that hint of a smile lets you know she's okay. This is me and I'm okay, it's not easy and I'm old, but I have my things and I'm okay.
 
Bus and motorised Wheel chair:
It's cool, it tells a story. Who wins? The bus is bigger but he has the handicap card. I like how he almost seems to be rubbing his head as if to say 'mmmm now what? Are you gonna move?"
 
Old Man street performer:
This one is not my favourite, I think because I can't tell whats going on. Is he real? What was he performing? Why do the viewers look so perplexed? All of these questions are not good questions for me, I leave unsatisfied. The sense of mystery is not a good mystery.
 
Guy peeing in the corner:
Slice of life. Maybe he doesn't like those shows? (lol) I like how he put his packet down and then shyly went into the corner as far as possible and hunched up hiding himself as much as is possible.  Not my favourite shot, but as part of a series it says something.
 
Old man in the park shaving:
Love this shot! Slice of life but so interesting. He must be homeless? But with such a sense of pride. This is me, I'm going to sit here and shave now on this nice sunny day. Life is good right now. Very cool.
 
Big Lady at the Stall:
Aesthetically not a pleasing shot, but it does say a lot. I think if it wasn't for the big jar of Nutella balancing out her behind it wouldn't have been nearly as strong. Great as part of a series, slightly weaker on its own.
 
Nun kissing a Priest:
It's definitely interesting, I didn't know they do that. It's unexpected or unthought of usually which makes it interesting. I would maybe crop it a bit tighter, really emphasise that. Again as part of a series it would be a good complimentary shot. I would also crush those blacks, they'd really pop off that light wall. I like how the other two are looking away they're almost uncomfortable with it. lol
 
Boy playing violin:
Probably my favourite shot of all. Nice and strong, contrast is solid. The face... is the best! And his caretaker or mother actually makes the shot because her smile is in direct contrast to his face further emphasising the situation. He's not a slave, let's relax about that. But kids hate going to their music lessons etc, so this tells a strong story.
 
Some nice shots Paul, interesting post. Again just my view and opinion. Thanks

Apples, Watermelons,  Grapes and a Peach