Retrospective

In the autumn of 2021 I completed an online course by Magnum Learn called “Curiosity in Practice”. In this course photographer Jonas Bendiksen shares lessons learned over his 20+ year career.

After I finished listening to 6.5 hours long material, I began to understand why I wasn't happy about my approach to street photography.

In this retrospective I will first analyse what went wrong during recent years that frustrated me and what could be done better in the future to address these issues.

Fastidiousness

What went wrong

For me everything had to be perfect geometrically, all objects should be in the frame, there should be no or little perspective distortions, no overexposed regions. To achieve this I turned on gauge, grid, clipping and histogram controls in my camera’s live display settings. This fastidious approach created stress and slowed me down. I ended up missing opportunities and my throughput suffered. During a day’s shoot out I could produce 100+ pictures, this number should be 1,000+ in order to grow my skill level.

What can be done better

A skewed horizon can add movement. Wide angle distortions add depth. Overblown regions will disappear gradually by experience as you take more pictures. The solution is to turn off gauge, grid, clipping and histogram controls in live display settings. Don’t pay too much attention to distortion and skewness. Focus on the story and clarity of the image, shoot rapidly, each time change your angle and position. This will increase your chance of getting one good picture.

Clutter

It is worthwhile to define what clutter in photography is. Clutter is unrelated group of objects in the frame overlaid in a confusing way, stealing attention from the story and causing dissonance. Sometimes partially visible objects cut by the frame cause dissonance and they too should be classified as clutter. Occasionally though partially visible objects can add mystery to the story, in those cases they are acceptable.

What went wrong

As an indirect result of fastidiousness I ended up in pictures with no distortion, and no overexposed regions but I failed to pay attention to other factors, notably I failed in preventing clutter.

What can be done better

Use your time in taking more pictures. Ten-fold your throughput. Pay prime attention to eliminating clutter. If there is clutter try changing your or camera’s position many times and shoot more pictures at different angles.

Zoom

Zoom in wildlife, portrait and commercial photography can be useful and acceptable, however it produces problems in street photography.

What went wrong

Analog or digital zoom kills street stories by removing depth. It is depth that makes storytelling more impactful and dramatic. In street photography occasionally I used a zoom camera to compensate for inability to approach subjects. However my zoomed pictures lacked the impact wide angle lens can provide.

What can be done better

Zoom should not be used as a tool to mimic approaching subjects or to remove clutter around frame borders. Focus on the glory of using a wide angle lens and capture meaningful elements in your frame. Approach your subjects, change your or camera’s position to eliminate clutter around frame borders. A wide angle lens will add drama and enrich your story-telling. Get closer to your subjects by practising more. Always shoot in 28mm.

Approaching to people

What went wrong

In street photography I struggled to approach people. Often I tried to conceal my intention. My hesitant behaviour irritated people further, made me more nervous and eliminated any chance of approaching them.

What can be done better

Do not hide yourself or your camera. People notice. Honesty is a virtue, take ownership of your photography. People should realise you are there to take pictures. If you are relaxed they will be and they will turn their attention away from you. Ironically the more visible you are the more invisible you will become. This is easier said than done, but with practice it will improve.

Layers of nature

 When we look at a landscape like this from the top of a hill, we see nature unfolding its wonders in layers; the green hill itself where we stood, the sandy beach, the rocky beach, the rock-pool, the ocean, the land far apart, the clouds and the sky. 

From a distance humans on the beach look like harmless ants moving around slowly. Yet we are the only species that brought life at the brink of a climate-induced collapse, and we alone are the sole species that can prevent a catastrophe.

Boats on a tree

 I must admit sometimes I take pictures casually with a glimpse of instinct, without knowing why, contrary to intent-based photography.

This is one of them. The composition is harshly divided into two in the middle, by an old ill-groomed cypress tree, there is a scaffolding on the left, there is another tree on the right, and the harbour is hardly visible. 

Yet something in this picture resonates. 

Is it the small boats leaning on the tree or the fat canopy of the tree, or combination of everything? 

My brother told me this picture reminded him paintings of surrealist painters René Magritte and Max Ernst. 

Yes, I think the keyword here is “surrealism”.

The tree is in a way upside down, the boats look as if they are floating in the air. Add the unfinished renovations, the gull on the roof, and the little mermaid in the corner.

Then I found this picture of Max Ernst on the Internet: Solitary and Conjugal Trees.

After seeing the painting and I looked closely, I found strange faces hidden on the tree.  

The key is sometimes when we look at a picture it is our interpretation that makes it meaningful and interesting to look at, not that there is universal beauty associated with it.

Social Distancing

Social distancing, a term that was nearly absent became a collective gauge in fighting against the pandemic.

Social distancing in a way is an oxymoron as you cannot be social by distancing yourself. But we know the term is re-coined to mean a different thing, a strategy to deal with the covid-19 pandemic.

I took this photograph during lunch break in my first day in the office after 11 months.

tap/click to enlarge

Previously in this area there were bigger wooden tables arranged by a cafe. You could sit next to a stranger after exchanging a brief “may I, sure”. Regrettably the cafe went bankrupt and the mall management came up with this arrangement.

I like this picture because it shows our species’ sorry state in a satirical way. There is nothing remotely social about it. People are sitting on single chair tables, looking at their mobile devices, as if they belong to an alternative universe. A scene that would fit to a dystopian movie.

Rubber plant

 I saw this rubber plant in the veranda of a Victorian terrace house. It made me stop. 

I hesitated to take the picture. I asked “Isn’t this an ordinary plant, a low hanging fruit, easy to photograph?”. At first it was my little Instagram devil whispering my ear. 

Then I thought, “If it made me stop, it’s got to be good”. This was my Artist mentor whispering my ear.

A good story can be everywhere. You need to relax and allow it to pour into your soul through your eyes. That’s when a good photograph can be taken.

There are huge merits in slow intent-based photography. 

Something that makes you stop is worth to look at closely. Ask “What makes this thing drawing my attention?”. Study its expression in relation to surroundings. This object is part of a bigger whole, yet it stands out. Ask “What makes it to stand out, what is its story?”

For me a rubber plant reminds me my upbringing. Many city dwellings in Turkey had one. It is the most robust indoor plant, easy to grow in living rooms. 

But it is not solely the rubber plant. It brings back sounds, smells and memories. An object like this serves as a memory trigger. With it I hear the sound of coffee pot (cezve) from the kitchen, my mom’s voice asking if I want a cup. The shades and light beams pouring between gaps of gently moving white sheers, the breeze and sounds coming from outside, the unmistakable smell of Turkish coffee.

Then, it is the stance of the plant captivated my attention. It was healthy, lavish green, no trace of yellow leaves yet, at the top of its game. It has this grandeur presence of a living being, commanding respect. 

I am glad that I let it to speak to me. I realised, the plant was talking to me, that was what made me stop.

As a photographer, next time something stops you, listen to what story it is telling you. Slow down, and absorb its presence in solitude. Be gentle in your approach and in your thinking. Be a giver, be generous in your attention that it demands.

Human landscape in Manly beach

Australians finally started to enjoy the orderliness of covid-19 response the nation demonstrated throughout the year 2020. 

Majority of population understood rationale of epidemic and consequently played by the rules. That alone underlined our success story. 

Leaving political divisions aside the federal and local governments maintained public trust in the way they managed the epidemic.  Mistakes were made but dealt with. Divisions emerged but common sense prevailed. 

This was a nation not in disarray but in unity.

Public safety came first.

In these pictures we see small groups of Australian public, from friends to families, enjoying fine weekend weather in Manly beach in January 2021.

North Head fire

Significant damage to North Head bushland was inflicted by a hazard reduction burn that jumped containment lines on Saturday 17th October 2020.

Around 50 firefighters battled the blaze in Sydney Harbour National Park on Saturday after it got away from them when the weather changed.

I captured these images in January 2021. 

Seeing life blooming in the midst of darkness never fails to amaze me. 

Push your comfort zone

 I took this picture on the second day of January 2021. 

This year we had a cooler and rainier December in Sydney. It rained almost daily.

Drizzled days provide opportunities to capture deep landscape pictures. Clouds and uniform mist in the air create an infinitely deep natural light filter by forming a fine smooth fog all the way to the horizon.

Leica Q-P’s excellent Summilux f1.7 lens captures every bit of light with great precision in DNG mode. All you are left to do is to apply minor Lightroom magic 🪄 to expose the depth of field and spread the tones on the histogram.

My Leica Q-P is not weather protected, but it can tolerate occasional drizzle. Thanks to Semra holding the big umbrella I could take interesting landscape pictures on this rainy day.  

💡Tip of the day: keep a decent size dry e-cloth in your bag handy. Dry your camera immediately in case it is exposed to water.