Street Portraits Inspiration

IN-DEPTH GUIDE TO...

STREET PORTRAITS
For many street photographers, capturing candid images of other people is the highest expression of their art. Not only can you take some beautiful pictures, but its also a lot of fun. Whats more all you need to get going is a camera and some photographic know-how as famously, there are no rules...
HIT THE STREETS WITH THE PORTFOLIO OF MICHAEL ADE

10 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER August 2011

Street Portraits Inspiration

August 2011 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER 11

Street Portraits Inspiration

12 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER August 2011

Street Portraits Inspiration

August 2011 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER 13

Street Portraits Inspiration

14 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER August 2011

Street Portraits Inspiration

August 2011 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER 15

Street Portraits Inspiration

MICHAEL ADE
WORDS CHARLOTTE GRIFFITHS PICTURES MICHAEL ADE

Better known to many as from-a2b on Flickr, Michaels beautiful street photography takes him all over his adopted home town of London

Location: London Last photo on current memory card: Rain shots from the rst time Ive purposely been out shooting in the rain for well over a year

riginally from Manchester, street photographer Michael Ade has now lived in London for over 25 years and considers the capital his home. I have no intention of moving, he says. Its now my home town, and as a capital city it has a diverse population. Its the people that are important for my pictures, rather than the city itself. Michaels rst brush with photography in his teens was cut short when his rst camera, a Zenith EM, was stolen. At the time I would say I was more interested in the developing and printing than in the actual act of taking photographs we had a darkroom at home but I soon got interested in music and so for years forgot about photography. He only rekindled his love of the hobby when asked to take some pictures while on a work conference overseas. I really enjoyed myself so I decided to buy a camera, he says. I opted for the Canon because I liked the ergonomics and they have a great range of lenses. My rst was a Canon EOS 40D purchased on eBay from the Canon outlet and Im now very lucky to own a Canon EOS 5D MkII, which I bought at the start of 2010. Michaels new camera enables him to shoot at night or in low light levels, making it ideal for the changeable light situations presented by the city streets. With my old 40D the maximum ISO I could go up to without the noise making it unusable was ISO 1600, but with the 5D I often shoot at 3200 and above with negligible noise, he says. And the image quality is unbelievable I still nd it pretty amazing that in, say, 1/2500 of a second you can get a photograph where you can zoom in and see individual specks of dust on someones coat or hat. Its that detailed. The knowledge When Michael rst started taking pictures of his fellow Londoners, he used to walk around and shoot on the move, grabbing shots whilst he wove in and out of the crowds. As I got more interested in light and reected light I found that I would stop

I know its a bit touristy but I love Oxford Circus its always busy, whatever the time of day or night, and if you wait around long enough some interesting characters will pass through

more and look at how the light bounced off windows or created areas of light and shadow, and what effects were created as people moved through those areas, he explains. Once Michael has found one of these spots, hell return time and time again until he has the picture he wants. There is also a lot of street furniture in London and when I started I ended up ditching loads of shots because there were lampposts or signs coming out of peoples heads so these days Ill pick an area where I know that the light is good and build my picture from the back, working out just where I want the subject sans furniture. Then its a case of waiting... and waiting. I did a shot outside a caf in Portobello that took me over a month to get. Id worked out the light just had to get the right subjects. This intensive studying of his environment has left Michael equipped with his own photographic version of what the London cabbies call The Knowledge. I have whole routes planned out depending upon the time of day, he says.If Im on my way home I will usually start off by Marble Arch, then as the light changes Ill move from place to place, ending a few hours later at Tottenham Court Road having walked the entire length of Oxford Street. I know its a bit touristy but I love Oxford Circus its always busy whatever the time of day or night and if you wait around long enough there will always be some interesting and colourful characters passing through.

Though he considers his backgrounds and locations very carefully, the actual act of taking a picture is still razor quick. Honestly the whole process is very fast, he says. I will have spotted someone from a distance, moved to be in the right place and as they walk into frame Ill half raise the camera. If they see me I smile or wave, and depending upon their reaction I will either take a shot or not. If Im fast, the subject may not even be aware that I have taken their picture. Its four or ve seconds max. Shooting hand-held in aperture-priority, Michael switches between continuous and single shots depending on how fast his subjects are moving. The dash home at the end of the day will be continuous, or a leisurely stroll around the shops on a Saturday will be in single shot, he says. As for most street photographers, focusing can be a big issue, especially as Michaels style demands a shallow depthof-eld so he has to get his focus point spot on. Generally I try to zone focus, as that way the AF has less work to do really important with low light shots and there is more chance of getting a sharp image. To keep his longer shots sharp, Michael will use a tripod or monopod though points out that with this conspicuous bit of kit, the police can stop you for causing an obstruction. If you are a street photographer you are bound to get into a few tricky situations, he says. My advice is to always be polite, courteous and honest. Try and explain what you are doing and why have a business card to hand or some of your shots on your phone. If after that, you still havent disarmed the situation, its best to try and walk away or just delete the shot. There will be something else to shoot around the next corner. Getting closer As Michaels approach has become more considered, the number of shots he takes in a session has decreased. In the past it would be hundreds and hundreds of pictures if I was out shooting all day, but last Saturday I was out most of the day and came back with 70 of which I may keep one or two. If I can get one single

16 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER August 2011

Street Portraits Inspiration

THE STORIES BEHIND THE PICTURES

TIME AND MOTION THE NUMBER 7 GHOST BUS Click and hope so much is down to chance with these type of shots. Got very wet and cold, and caught the u

ALICE IN WONDERLAND MARK II Night shooting on Londons Oxford Street. Yet another cold and damp evening.
Canon EOS 5D MkII, EF85mm f/1.8 USM, 1/160sec at f/1.8, ISO 2500

photograph from a days shooting, then Im a happy man and its been a good day. Michaels self-stated objective for his photography is to document the London that he sees, and tries to alternate between shots of men and shots of women in order to keep his project balanced. He also changes between lenses on a daily basis. I switch between a 50mm f/1.4 USM and an 85mm f/1.8 USM. I much prefer using fast primes rather than zooms. If I had to pick one, it would have to be the 50mm f/1.4 USM. For one it makes you get close to your subjects, which is part of the thrill of street photography for me. Sometimes its a dare to see just how close you can get. But at the end of the day, they are candid pictures there is no opportunity to retake the shot, you either got it or you didnt. No point beating yourself up over it. Interestingly, this street photographers not a fan of shooting from the hip. I dont understand hip shots, he says. I dont believe that you can take a shot without looking through the viewnder I do, however, like the waist high point of view. I have my eye on an old Hasselblad 500 but only for fun. Digital will always come rst for me, though if I am honest I would quite like if they did away with the LCD. It drove me nuts when shooting at night as after each shot the LCD would power up. That extra bit of light was a dead giveaway that you had taken someones photograph. In addition to the unique technical challenges, it is the unpredictable nature of street photography that keeps Michael fascinated by this genre. You cant go out saying, Today I am going to get x, because most probably you will get everything but x, he explains. I am trying to portray the inhabitants of London and the beauty of colour all around us and to have fun, he says. Fashions change, the mix of nations who reside in London subtly changes, as does the use of different areas within the city. There will always be something for me to shoot. CONTACT:
http://ickr.com/photos/from-a2b http://www.from-a2b.co.uk

Canon EOS 40D, EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM at 40mm, 2.5sec at f/7.1, ISO 100

MENTHOL South Molton Street, London. Taken not long after I had quit smoking.
Canon EOS 5D MkII, EF85mm f/1.8 USM, 1/250sec at f/2, ISO 3200

CHASING LIGHT SUNSET STRIP Oxford Circus, London. One of the rst outings with the Canon 24-70mm.
Canon EOS 5D MkII, EF24-70mm f/2.8L USM at 70mm, 1/320sec at f/2.8, ISO 100

INTERMISSION COMMUTERS Notting Hill station, Circle and District Line. Heavily processed must return at dusk for better light.
Canon EOS 5D MkII, EF24105mm f/4L IS USM at 24mm, 1/125sec at f/4, ISO 200

TECHNO *%*? Oxford Street, London, early evening the golden hour. Its the best time to shoot, in my opinion.
Canon EOS 5D MkII, EF50mm f/1.4 USM, 1/4000 sec at f/1.4, ISO Speed 100

BALLOON New Bond Street, London. This ones been processed as the balloon was originally orange and re-coloured to go with the red jacket.
Canon EOS 5D MkII, EF135mm f/2L USM, 1/160sec at f/2, ISO 2500

August 2011 ADVANCED PHOTOGRAPHER 17