Street Photography Questions, Answered — Tokyo Forgeries
Street Photography Questions, Answered — Tokyo Forgeries
Beginner
Where to start: what the genre is, whether it is legal, the fear, and the kit and settings to go out with.
- What Is Street Photography? (And Does It Need People?) — Street photography is public life you did not arrange.
- Is Street Photography Legal? Do You Need Permission? — In most countries, you can photograph people in public without permission — publishing is where it gets tricky. Coming 2 November.
- Street Photography Laws in Japan: Releases, Deleting Photos and What's Illegal — Japan street photography law in plain English: portrait rights, private property and stations, whether you must delete a photo, and the one thing that is a crime. Coming 4 January.
- How to Overcome the Fear of Photographing Strangers — The fear of photographing strangers doesn't go away — it stops being in charge. Coming 12 October.
- How to Approach Strangers for Street Photography (and What to Say If Confronted) — How to approach a stranger for a street portrait: announce an intention instead of asking permission, stay past the pose, and handle a no — or a confrontation — well. Coming 30 November.
- The Best Camera and Lens for Street Photography: 35mm vs 50mm — Phone, DSLR or mirrorless, 35mm or 50mm: what actually matters when choosing a camera and lens for street photography — and what a Tokyo photographer really carries. Coming 16 November.
- The Best Camera Settings for Street Photography (and Why Not Aperture Priority) — Street photography settings: manual aperture and shutter, auto ISO, exposure compensation. Coming 26 October.
- RAW vs JPEG for Street Photography (and How to Edit) — Shoot RAW for latitude in high-contrast street light, then edit for mood — not clinical perfection. Coming 28 December.
Intermediate
Technique and judgement: focusing, colour, timing, and how to work among people.
- Zone Focusing for Street Photography: Settings, Distances and Where It Breaks — How zone focusing works for street photography: f/8–f/11 at two meters, real depth-of-field numbers for 28, 35 and 50mm, and where the technique breaks down. Coming 5 October.
- Should You Shoot Street Photography in Colour or Black and White? — Colour or black and white for street photography? Coming 11 January.
- How to Anticipate the Decisive Moment in Street Photography — The decisive moment isn't luck — it's a prediction that came true. Coming 9 November.
- Should You Ask Permission or Shoot Candid in Street Photography? — Asking permission and shooting candid don't make the same photograph. Coming 23 November.
- How to Shoot Candid Street Photos Without Being Noticed — You won't be invisible — aim to be uninteresting. Coming 14 December.
- What Makes a Good Street Photograph? — Light, composition and a moment, held together by a clear subject. Coming 25 January.
Advanced
Ethics, bodies of work, style, editing and publishing.
- Where Is the Line Between Street Photography and Exploitation? — Where street photography ends, and exploitation begins: why the law isn't the line, two working tests to use on the street, and what the documentary canon really shows. Coming 19 October.
- How to Turn Good Street Photos Into a Body of Work — Why a pile of good street photos isn't a body of work, how to find your project's question in your own archive, and two tests for whether a set has come together. Coming 7 December.
- How to Develop a Personal Style in Street Photography — A cliché is a composition used in place of a reason. Coming 18 January.
- How to Edit and Cull Thousands of Street Photos — A fast, brutal method for culling street photography: let go at the shutter, bookmark on the way home, edit within 72 hours, and delete what you doubt. Coming 21 December.
- How to Legally Publish, Exhibit and Sell Street Photography of People — Publishing, exhibiting and selling street photos of people: expression versus commerce, Japan's portrait-right test, and what Nussenzweig v. Coming 1 February.
- How to Actually Get Better at Street Photography — Shoot constantly, work in projects, learn one place deeply, use constraints and review ruthlessly. Coming 8 February.
If you would rather learn this on the street than on a screen, that is what the Tokyo Forgeries masterclass is for.