If you ask ten different photographers to define street photography you will probably get ten different answers. I used to shoot street photography many years ago and when I became too busy with my fashion work I just kind of let it go.  I am once again discovering the joys of this particular art form.

When one thinks of street photography, there are a few names that jump to the forefront.  Henri Cartier-Bresson is usually the first as he well should be. Mr. Cartier-Bresson is considered to be the father of street photography. His work has inspired generations of great photographers. Another of the greats who continues to inspire me is Jay Maisel, I have been following his work for forty years. 

You ought to Google these names and take a look at their work.  Now I could go on and on here but I will only name one other knowing full well that for every one I name there are a great many just as good.

My brother in law George Wieser who is an incredible still and motion picture photographer had the privilege to study with Roy Decarava who is another icon of street photography, well photography in general for that matter.  If you look up these people you will have days’ worth of wonderful photographs to experience. I would urge that you do so if you are at all interested in photography.

Street photography is a great training ground, it is tough, it forces you to be on your game and stay to alert.  A photograph is there and then it is gone just as quickly. I still have the images in my head of missed photographs.  This fast, gritty experiential type of photography will help train you to be a better all-around photographer. It forces you to get outside your comfort zone to capture the images you see. It trains your eye and your shutter finger.  One can easily see where it may help Photo Journalism but I think the same can be said for Weddings, Portraits, Fashion, Travel, Lifestyle well any form of photography you may choose to do.

I hesitated to post my photographs in the same article where I have mentioned the above names, but if I rightly think of my photography as a work in progress, a striving for improvement and realize the greats of photography are the ideal (of course they would not have thought so, they were working on getting better also) then I can post my meager attempts in the same article with the names of a few of the greats.

Street Photography is about shooting for the love of shooting and experiencing your world on a different level and hopefully allowing others to catch a glimpse of the world you see through your lens.