Tag: streetfotografie

10 Day Photography Challenge – Day 6

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
Dress Dreams |2018

“A Dress” is the task for Day 6 of Cassia’s 10 Day Photography Challenge. Now, this is not exactly a guy’s topic ;-), in a sense that I throw myself into a dress and take a selfie. Although I probably could, as we are approaching the culmination of carnival season here in Germany. But then again, I’m not a carnival guy. And the Significant Other is not big on dresses, so no chance for an impromptu high fashion photo shooting.

So what does a guy street photographer do? He looks for a storefront that features dresses, blends into the background and waits for magic things to happen. I took this photo with my Olympus O-MD E-M1 and the 14-150mm F/4-5.6 travel zoom. Image specs 1/200 sec @ f/5,6 and ISO 150, focal length was 90mm (180mm full frame equivalent).

Check out the blogs of the other participants: Cassia (our host),  Susan,  Gracie, Ariana, Jenna,  Arabella

If you look for more tips and inspirations around photography, be sure to visit my free Learning Center.

Have a great Tuesday!

Marcus

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10 Day Photography Challenge – Day 1

Street Photography Quick Tip 1 – A way to shoot inconspicuously

Instant Inspiration (6) – Storefront Windows

Look at me!

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10 Day Photography Challenge – Day 5

Buy books not gear!

We are on to Day 5 of Cassia Denner’s 10 Day Photography Challenge, with today’s theme being “Something I bought”. I have to admit I had no time to be overly creative today, with the job that pays the bills kept my away from my camera all day. But I decided to enter this quick iPhone shot of one of my photo book shelfs, together with a little message that is important to me.

No new camera will make you a better photographer. It might increase your motivation to go out shoot more for a little while, bring out a temporary boost in creativity, but eventually the thrill of the new gear will wear off. It always does.

Studying the work of the masters will make you a better photographer. Also studying the theoretical and technical aspects of photography.  There is so much to learn and understand about photography.  I’ve bought many pieces of gear that I rarely use, but I  have never regretted investing in photography books. It just is an enriching experience to sit with a photography book and a good cup of coffee, study and reflect on it.

Thinking about this Day 5 task also inspires me to compile a list of my photography books I own and treasure.  I just need a bit time to do it. So look for it on the Streets of Nuremberg and in my free Learning Center, where you find all my tips and inspirations around photography.

Have a great week!

Marcus

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Instant Inspiration (16) – Dusk at the Ocean

Are you a Hunter or a Gatherer ?

Street Photography Quick Tip (6)

Off Topic – Studio Anywhere

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10 Day Photography Challenge – Day 3

Intensity
Intensity | Portland | 2018

Frequent readers know that when I participate to photography challenges on WordPress, I try to enter street photography images to match the theme. Day 3 of of Cassia Denner’s 10 Day Photography Challenge calls for a photograph with “An Instrument”.

Good that I ran across this street musician in Portland to get my image for today. The total intensity of his performance was mind-blowing, and I tried to capture it in this shot I took with my Olympus PEN-F with the 14-150mm F/4-5.6 travel zoom. Image specs 1/80 sec @ f/5,6 and ISO 1600, focal length was 150mm (equals 300mm in full frame equivalent).

Check out the blogs of the other participants: Cassia (our host),  Susan,  Gracie, Ariana, Jenna,  Arabella

I’m back on the ground in Nuremberg, and look very much forward to a four week stint at home before returning to the Pacific Northwest.

Be sure to check out my free Learning Center, if you also look for tips and inspirations around photography.

Wish you all a great and relaxed weekend!

Marcus

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Instant Inspiration (9) – Concert Photography

Music raising to the skies

To pay or not to pay, that is the question

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Music

12

Weekly Photo Challenge: Beloved

Young Love
Young Love | Budapest | 2017

In the midst on being busy with the 10 Day Photography Challenge of fellow blogger Cassia I can’t miss the WPC of this week with the title “Beloved“. All of these photos have been published on this blog before, but the fun part of the challenge is always to come up with a new grouping of the photographs. To see the other entries continue after the jump… Continue reading “Weekly Photo Challenge: Beloved” →

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10 Day Photography Challenge – Day 2

Red Star Rising
Red Star Rising | Amsterdam | 2018

We are on to Day 2 of Cassia Denner’s 10 Day Photography Challenge, with today’s theme being “Something Red”. Well, technically my entry is multicolored, but when walking up to this bar scene I knew I had to get that shot of the bright red star on the green wall while connecting through Amsterdam Shiphol the day before yesterday, already with the challenge topic “red” in mind.

This is one of the examples where everything comes together, colors (green and red are complimentary, sitting on opposite sides of the color wheel) and a multi element composition (rule of thirds, leading lines, and you could argue to see a Fibonacci spiral from the black star to the wall red star to the counter top red star curving on the bottom up to the guest sitting leaning over to the bar top).

Image specs are 140 sec @ f/2,8 and ISO 200, shot in P-Mode with my Ricoh GR II.

Today at 1:20 pm my flight back to Amsterdam and eventually Nuremberg takes to the sky again, after exactly 50 hours on the ground in the Rose City. I should be back home in time for a late Saturday breakfast.

I wish you all a great Friday!

Marcus

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9

10 Day Photography Challenge – Day 1

You serious?

I’ve made it safely to Portland, and for this of you who read yesterday’s post, I got into my hotel by 10 pm, which made it a 27 hour travel and work day. But after a sound 6 hours sleep (which is good, considering the jet lag effects) I’m ready to tackle today’s challenges. Talking about challenges, today is Day 1 of Cassia’s 10 Day Photography Challenge.  Today’s topic is “A portrait”.

Well , that’s not overly difficult for a street photographer. Take the camera, walk up to the first interesting looking person and ask if I can make her portrait. This young lady is a visitor from Korea. Sure she was initially puzzled by the question from a total stranger, but then I got the (almost always) usual answer “yes, why not?”, and while starting to talk I snapped away. I don’t exactly remember at what point she gave me that surprised look, but it is the photo I liked the most, as I always try to capture some emotions in the faces, like a thoughtful stare into the distance, a funny face or, like here, an expression of surprise.

Check out the blogs of the other participants: Cassia (our host),  Susan, Ariana, Jenna, Gracie, Arabella

Tomorrow’s topic is “Something Red”. I already have something my mind 😉

Be sure to check out my free Learning Center, if you also look for tips and inspirations around photography.

Have a great Thursday!

Marcus

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28

Lensbaby Streetshot

Determination is a Lensbaby Street Shot
Determination | Nuremberg | 2018

I’m still experimenting with the Lensbaby I got for my birthday. Street Photography might not be the perfect playground for this lens, but on Saturday I have attached it onto my Olympus PEN-F and took it to the Streets of Nuremberg. The result is this Lensbaby Streetshot.

Lensbaby lenses are unique, creative tools designed for photographers who want to experiment with selective focus and artistic effects. These lenses feature a flexible, bendable design that allows for the control of focus points, creating a distinct “sweet spot” of sharp focus surrounded by blur. Popular for their ability to produce a dreamy, otherworldly look, Lensbaby lenses are favored by those who enjoy capturing photos with a sense of movement, abstraction, or enhanced creativity. They offer a variety of lens models, from simple to more complex systems, catering to both beginners and professional photographers.

This photograph was taken at 1/30 sec and ISO 80. The fixed aperture of the manual focus lens is f/3,5, focal length 28mm. The color combination certainly works here. I like the soft touches the Lensbaby gave to this image. It is a lens that needs to be “worked”, but this is also the fun of it. I just wish I had more time to explore it. To get another Lensbaby Streetshot.

Wish you all a good week!

Marcus

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Be creative today

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14

When life is grey make it colorful

Wordless
Wordless | Nuremberg | 2018

Yesterday afternoon the significant other and myself headed into downtown for some shopping, where I brought my GR II to at least get a few snapshosts of Nuremberg street life. It was a really grey and drizzly day, so a good opportunity to turn on the vivid color program on the Ricoh and snap away at colorful shop windows. I shot in P-Mode, resulting in shutter speeds between 1/40 and 1/60 sec, an aperture of f/3,2 and ISO 100.

Shopper's Geometry
Shopper’s Geometry | Nuremberg | 2018

Casual Observations
Casual Observations | Nuremberg | 2018

Storefront windows are aways a good background to capture passing shoppers. Especially when they are decorated with bright colors, then it is up to you to just stand there and waiting for the right things to happen.

Last week the “Streets of Nuremberg” had their second blogaversary. My little blog has grown to almost four thousand followers in those two years. This is the 323rd post. So I guess the concept is right. Thanks to all of my readers and followers for a great journey, the interaction with all of you and the many (virtual) friendships that came out of this is the best part of my blogging!

I wish everyone a happy and colorful Sunday!

Marcus

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Street Photography Quick Tip (14)

Like my hair
Like my hair | Berlin | 2017

Street Photography Quick Tip 14 – Shoot upwards and tilted for more dynamic street portraits

After a race across the nightsky (our flight arrived a whopping 70 minutes ahead of schedule) I’m back in Europe at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport and waiting to board the plane for the last leg of this trip back to Nuremberg.

But as we came in early, this gives me time for episode 14 of my popular Street Photography Quick Tips, my short, easy to read and easy to use tips that I think could help you while shooting in the streets.

Most people shoot their portraits from eye-level. And if you get the eyes sharp, have the subjects turn their heads slightly upwards and to the side, you should get great results. But if you want to get your street portraits a more eye catching touch, shoot from a lower angle, and you can even tilt your camera a bit to give your image even more dynamic.

Talk to your subjects, ask them an open question, like what they wanted to become when they were a child, or what would be the destination of their dream, vacation. When the start talking, they relax, which can give you the opportunity to take great candid shots.

Obviously, this tip applies not only to street portraits.

For more Street Photography Quick Tips and inspirations around photography in general check out my free Learning Center.

I wish you all a great weekend!

Marcus

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Merry Christmas from the Streets of Nuremberg

Christmas
Christmas under the Castle | Nuremberg | 2017

To everyone out there, but particularly to all the many wonderful people I’ve had the blessings to meet (at least virtually) during my first two years of blogging on the “Streets of Nuremberg”, I wish a peaceful Christmas and much love and laughters together with your family and friends.

Merry Christmas from the Streets of Nuremberg

Marcus

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Weekly Photo Challenge: 2017 Favorites

Fetish Designer

For all my free tips and inspirations around Street Photography visit my Learning Center

The last WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge (WPC) of 2017 was probably also the hardest one for this year . At least for me it was. With the title “2017 Favorites” it calls to post your most meaningful photo of 2017.

Now we all are passionate about our photography, and I’m quite sure, that when you look at your archives of this year, there are at least a dozen great images looking at you, screaming “I deserve to be in the 2017 Favorites!!!” And aren’t all those beautiful photographs, that each mean so much to you, your creative children? And don’t you want to treat all your children equal? So you are tempted to post not only your most favorite landscape photo, but also your best macro shot, portrait, street photo, monochrome image, and the one image you are most emotionally attached to and you just can’t leave out. After all, this is a great opportunity to show off a small selection of your best work. And Ben Huberman even left the door open for us to post several photos, if we can’t decide which is the absolute best (or meaningful) image of 2017.

When I joined a street photography workshop with Eric Kim back in November, one of the lessons I took away is that as photographer you need to be able to “kill your babies”. In order to distill out your best work. And to make you hungry again to take more photos, and make you better.

So even if it hurt, as I think I had great year where I really advanced my photography and got many pictures that I think are really good, I took the challenge by the word and post only my most meaningful photo of 2017.

This is my best image from the mentioned workshop. And it was the image that broke the spell around “interactive” street photography for me, where I discovered how much fun it actually is to walk up to interesting looking people in the streets and ask if I could make their portrait. So this is my photography of the year 2017!

Have a great Thursday!

Marcus

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33

The Magic Cook

Cooking Magic
Cooking Magic | Portland | 2017

Street Photography captures life as it happens. Or as it not really happens. Like me making me a cook for a moment. In front of a Chinese restaurant in Portland.

I wonder what the cook must have thought, seeing the strange guy with a camera in front of his window, crouched down, inching his way sideways, upwards, downwards, in a desperate attempt to put his head on top of another body.  But the opportunity to become a cook for a moment was just to good to pass up.

In case you wonder why the cam is not at the photographer’s eye? Thanks to the rotatable LCD screen of my PEN-F.

Taken with my Olympus PEN-F and the 12mm F/2 prime lens. Image specs 1/60 sec @ f/2 and ISO 1600.

Have a great Wednesday!

Marcus

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