Teresa Pilcher“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. ”― Steve Jobs
Dogma is a principle or set of principles laid down by an authority as incontrovertibly true. There seems to be a Dogma associated with Street Photography, it should always contain a subject and be candid, not set up or posed.. However it is such a wide genre, it can be many things to many people..It can be purely decorative or documentary, or somewhere in between, it can be about the urban landscape or the people, or both. I do know that if you ask 100 people you will get 100 different answers. But this is exactly why I like it so much. Each image can say just as much about the photographer as it does about the subjects. The type of subjects chosen, candid or posed, the backdrops whether they are minimal or more complex.
Personally, I like a human element in my images but there was a time, when I travelled and I purposely liked to have an empty street, my emotion was captured by the shadows and light, the curves and lines of the architecture. The human element for me was my mind or vision. So my vision developed or evolved into a completely different area of street. I do not believe there is one genre at street, but there are millions of sub genres that each add to the beauty of the whole. Some Street Photography Communities do have guidelines that say it is essential to include a human element, this rule is created by a community but if you like empty streets just find a different community to post to. The Masters of Street Photography often broke ‘the rules’ to find their own voice.
This image is more about the Dog then the Dogma. I really like his attitude, as if he owns the street. This image was taken with permission of the owner, I enjoy that the human and the dogs stance mirror each other.
This image is more about the stories that have been left behind, the Artist on the Street has left his mark.
This final image I enjoy the invisible line of sight, as the dog is looking up at his owner, who remains anonymous. The strong shadows and composition of this image works for me.
“And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary..” ― Steve Jobs
So create your own Sub Genre and don’t be afraid to be unique.
T
Any thoughts?
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