Tag: black & white photography

Be curious

Car driver reading a letter while parked
1/100 sec | f/5.6 | ISO 125 | 85mm

Curious about the story unfolding in this image? This is exactly why Street Photography captivates me —it’s all about reading between the lines. What was my subject doing in the moment that I captured with my lens? This shot illustrates it perfectly. What is this taxi driver reading? A personal letter? A handwritten deal? Just some quick notes? In an era where everyone is glued to LCD screens, this feels refreshingly different. Be curious. Look at life happening in front of your eyes.

Next time you’re out in your city, challenge yourself to capture a moment that sparks curiosity. You don’t need a fancy camera—your smartphone will do just fine. Keep an eye out for those intriguing scenes that happen everywhere in every moment. Whether at the grocery store or on a busy street. Even when you don’t have a camera in hand, you can train your eye. Look for that one shot that makes people stop and wonder about the story behind it.

If you are looking for more tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center.

Have a great Monday!

Marcus

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10

Apocalypse Wow

Barefoot girl in a white dress wearing a gas mask singing in the streets of Tokyo - Apocalypse Wow
Apocalypse Wow | Tokyo | 2017

Sometimes it is worth going back in the Lightroom Library and re-visiting old street images. In this case from my Around The World Trip back in 2017. I came across this photo from a barefoot girl in a white dress wearing a gas mask. Singing in the streets of Tokyo. Back then I thought this apocalyptic masquerade was a bit over the top, even though she was singing great. I remember thinking “wow – what a voice”. Looking at the political turmoil shaking our world in these days, this street photograph from 8 years ago is kind of symbolic – Apocalypse Wow. And a certain similarity with Francis Ford Coppola’s famous movie with almost the same name.

Diving back into my old image archives feels like flipping through the pages of a forgotten book. Rediscovering moments I once captured but never truly appreciated. Sometimes, a fresh perspective or newly honed editing skills breathe new life into those hidden gems.

What once seemed like an average shot now reveals a composition or emotion I previously overlooked. And then there’s that deeply satisfying moment when I stumble upon an old frame that suddenly clicks with me in a way it never did before—like the image was just waiting for the right time and mindset to be brought to life. Like this of the apocalyptic street musician in Tokyo.

Taken with my Olympus PEN-F and the mZuiko 12mm F/2 prime lens (24mm full frame equivalent). Image specs 1/60 sec @ f/2 and ISO 800.

If you are looking for tips and inspiration around street photography, check out my free Learning Center.

Have a great Sunday!

Marcus

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Another weekend – another photo exhibition

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White Giant

White Giant - a stuffed white Tiger in Genoa's Museum of Natural History
White Giant | Genoa | 2025

There is more from the last weekend’s visit to Genoa’s Museum of Natural History. In my last post I have mentioned juxtaposition as compositional element. Now how about this juxtaposition? This white tiger was by far the largest tiger I ever saw, dead or alive. Crazy big. The card in the display said the animal died in 1758 in a Circus, was subsequently stuffed and eventually ended up in the museum for everyone to simply admire. The Tiger was huge by my standards. How must that little girl feel looking up to this white giant?

A street photographer can apply many compositional elements to the images to generate a viewers interest. Leading lines guide the eye through the image, creating a sense of depth and direction. The rule of thirds divides the frame into a grid, helping to position subjects in a way that feels balanced and engaging. And, like in this example, Juxtaposition places contrasting subjects or elements side by side to create visual tension or highlight differences. Like the white giant and the little girl.

Taken with my Nikon ZF and the Nikkor Z 40mm 1:2 SE, image specs 1/125 sec @ f/5.6 and ISO 6400, 40mm focal length. Jpg out of camera using the Zf’s default black & white mode that can be quick-selected by a dial on top of the camera.

If you are looking for more tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center. 

Have a great Thursday

Marcus 

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17

Ghosting

Skeletons looking over the shoulders of museum visitors doing Ghosting
Ghosting | Genoa | 2025

Another one from the last weekend’s visit to Genoa’s Museum of Natural History. Wouldn’t these scene be considered ghosting? Maybe the skeletons noticed the Street Photographer behind the glass of a display with stuffed primates. Musesums or exhibitions are great places for some inconspicuous “street” shooting, as people with cameras (or smartphones) would not stand out much. And there are always funny juxtapositions to be captured.

Taken with my Nikon ZF and the Nikkor Z 40mm 1:2 SE, image specs 1/800 sec @ f/2 and ISO 6400, 40mm focal length. Jpg out of camera using the Zf’s default black&white mode that can be quick-selected by a dial on top of the camera.

If you are looking for more tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center. 

Have a great Tuesday

Marcus 

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Casual Observation

Mom looking into a stroller in front of a museum showcase of skeletons seemingly on a casual observation
Casual Observation | Genoa | 2025

Regular readers should know that I have a hang for street photography in museums. And that where I run across skeletons on display, try my best to have them “interact” with the visitors in front of the displays. Like in this snapshot taken yesterday, when The Signifcant Other and I visited Genoa’s Museum of Natural History. Creepy? No, not really. Come one, after all they are just a bunch of skeletons on a casual observation of people passing in front of the glass cases. Or not? Well, as long as it is not yet Night in the Museum 😉

Taken with my Nikon ZF and the Nikkor Z 40mm 1:2 SE, image specs 1/30 sec @ f/13 and ISO 6400, 40mm focal length. Some post-processing (mainly cropping) in Lightroom Classic.

If you are looking for tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center. 

Have a great Monday

Marcus 

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15

The End is Near

a skeleton in the middle of people - the end is near
1/60 sec | f/2.8| ISO 6400 | 70mm

No, the world will not end tomorrow. Also the reaper is (hopefully) not looking over my shoulder. Nothing nearly as dramatic. But there is change ahead, after (yet another) big emotional disappointment. I’m really loyal to the brands I use. But there are limits. And I don’t like to be taken for a fool. So the end is near.

Image taken with the Leica SL2-S and the Vario-Elmarit-SL 1:2.8/24-70 ASPH. Post-processing in Lightroom Classic.

Have a great Saturday

Marcus

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7

Divine Observation

Under divine bbservation are visitors to Palazzo Angelo Giovanni Spinola in Genoas Via Garibaldi
1/8 sec | f/5.3 | ISO 1600 | 70mm

Visitors of Palazzo Angelo Giovanni Spinola are under divine observation by this antique marble statue of a roman god. The palace of a Genovese noble man was completed in 1576 and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage, together with the other magnificent palaces in Genoa’s Via Garibaldi.

I took this street photograph with the Fuji X-T2 and the Fujinon XF18-135mm F3.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR. RAW processing and conversion to high contrast monochrome in Lightroom Classic. 

If you are looking for tips and inspirations around street photography, check out my free Learning Center. 

Have a great Sunday

Marcus

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With the Fuji in the Centro Storico

Christmas Decorations in Via San Lorenzo in Genoa's Centro Storico
1/50 sec | f/4.5 | ISO 3200 | 41mm

The Significant Other and I are spending the first days of the year in our “Southern Home” in Genoa. Yesterday afternoon we walked from our place into the historic center to see the exhibition of Genoa born photographer Lisetta Carmi in the Palazzo Ducale (will do a separate post about the exhibition). Her black & white street photography work is really inspiring, and as I was with the Fuji in the Centro Storico, I dialed in the ACROS film simulation for some monochrome shooting of my own. For the resulting images (all jpgs out of the camera) continue after the jump….

Continue reading “With the Fuji in the Centro Storico” →
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Portraits at the market

Monochrome street portrait of an unknown girl
1/15 sec | f/5.6 | ISO 3200 | 135mm

Finally on Christmas break. And finally some time for photography. The Significant Other and I headed into Nuremberg’s Old Town this evening. Main event was the performance of the wife’s trombone choir on the stage of the Christkindlesmarket in the main square. But I brought my (almost) vintage Fuji X-T2 together with the much less vintage Fujinon XF18-135mm F3.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR. I did recently acquire a used copy of this zoom lens, as I wanted to have a bit more focal length on my X-mount Fuji. And 135mm where there was only 55mm before makes a lot of difference.

And the buzzing market provided plenty opportunity for some 135mm (about 200mm full frame equivalent) street portraits shot through the passing crowd.

Fore the second image click below…

Continue reading “Portraits at the market” →
12

Late

Late - Two ladies in dresses running up the marble stairs to a church
Late | Genoa | 2024

Whether these two ladies, running up the marble stairs of Genoa’s wonderful Basilica della Santissima Annunziata del Vastato, are late for mass, is pure speculation. But it is one of these wonderful stories that make street photography so worthwhile.

Snapshot taken with my iPhone, cropping and monochrome conversion in Lightroom Classic.

Have a great Saturday

Marcus

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4

Nightwalkers

Couple walking side by side through Genoa's Via Pré by night, backlit by an approaching car.
Nightwalkers | Genoa | 2024

There is always something going on in Via Pré, in Genoa’s medieval Centro Storico. In daytime buzzing with live between all those little shops, but also during night. While this street photograph seems very cluttered, I still like it a lot. First of all, Via Pré is normally very cluttered, and then there is a lot going on in the moment I captured that shot around 10:30pm on a sizzling hot August night when walking home with The Significant Other after a nice dinner in the old center. A lot of little stories of the street are told here, each of those nightwalkers going about their daily lives.

Taken with the Fuji X-T2 and the Fujinon XF 1:2.8-4/18-55mm R LM OIS, image specs 1/50 sec @ f/4, ISO 3200 and 40mm focal length (60mm full frame equivalent). Monochrome conversion in Lightroom Classic.

Talking about LCR, I didn’t manage fixing that corrupted catalogue file, so I had to restore from my last June 2nd backup. I lost about two months worth of editing, but as I didn’t photograph much it was overseeable damage. And a good reminder to regularly BACK UP MY DATA. Especially as Lightroom kindly reminds me every week. Only that I typically click that reminder away. Not any more. Promised to myself.

Have a great Wednesday

Marcus

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12

Phoning Home

Man sitting under a picture of Jesus phoning home
Phoning Home | Genoa | 2024

Thought I throw in a monochrome street photo from last weekend’s walk through Genoa’s Centro Storico. The guy thought I was a funny break in whatever conversation he was having, maybe he was phoning home? A snapshot talken with my iPhone, converted to monochrome in Lightroom Classic.

Talking about LRC, I’m having troubles with my catalogue (have I mentioned there are almost 200.000 images stored there?). After upgrading to version 13.4. I was asked also to upgrade the catalogue. Initially it worked fine, then somehow it became corrupt. It opens and closes fine, it shows the images in the library, but does not take any commands. I’ve been browsing through forums and help advice, tried everything suggested, so far without any success. The last backup works fine, so the catalogue must have taken a hit. Too bad my last backup was done beginning of June, my bad. Make sure you all do your weekly backups, that’s my learning from this. I’m not ready to give up yet on two months worth of editing…

Have a great Tuesday

Marcus

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