Through The Lens: Pioneering Street Photography in Balboa Park

We are doing street photography in Balboa Park experiment to mimic the style of Vivian Maier. I will be shooting from waist-level with the camera on the monopod. Vivian Maier’s photos were Black & White, and her camera used a square format, just as Instagram does by default.

The camera lenses used for street photography vary by personal preference of how close you want to be to the subject. I am using the Sony FE 55 mm f/1.8 Prime Lens and will have to be close to the subjects. Mathilda joins me for our walk, going through Balboa Park. It was a lovely day and lots of people are out enjoying the day.

The Challenges

The challenge in street photography is to take candid photos of people out and about in public without them knowing or if they see you not caring that you are taken their photograph. Todd refers struggle in this regard differently; some enjoy the challenge and enjoy the interaction with people, while others are introverted and would prefer not to have any confrontations with people.

Some photographers will gladly go out and ask permission or just smile and may ask permission, but others will use a long lens and be further away, almost hiding from their subjects. Either way works well, you just must be comfortable with what you are doing.

Today’s Method

For today’s project we will use the Sony A7iii camera, the 55 mm lens, the monopod, and have the camera’s display plate horizontal to the ground at waist level. This way I can look down quickly and frame my photo and click the shutter when ready. By not taking the camera up to my eye level, the subject will often not even see the camera, they will be looking at you instead. In addition, I will have Mathilda walking with me, and when there are two people, it’s even more likely that they will miss the camera in plain sight.

Street Photography

I got my camera kit assembled and off we went. We just slowly walked around Balboa Park and I would take photos here and there. I had my display plate horizontal, so I could quickly look down to frame the shot, click the shutter, and look back up at the subject. I got caught taking the photos forty percent of the time. The expressions of the people that noticed varied. Most were indifferent about the camera, especially with the prevalence of mobile phones and selfies everywhere.

A handful of the people seemed angry, but today no one confronted me or asked me not to take their photo. If a person asks me not to take a photo, I will gladly comply and just move on. The easiest photos were ones of the vendors, most did not mind. One thing a photographer must look out for is the performers that want to be paid when you take their photos. I have a mixed mode for this – sometimes I will give them a dollar and take one or more photos, or just walk on without taking a photo of them. Just depends on how interesting the subject is or how generous I am feeling that day.

Museum of Photographic Arts

While we are walking through the park, we see the Museum of Photographic Arts and decide to enter. The entrance fee is whatever amount you wish to donate and then you can go in. One of their ongoing displays contains photos taken and edited by high school students. By the look of the work be these students, the future of photography seems sound.

The Results

We finished up walking and taking photos, and we sit down at the bar in the Prado Restaurant and relax over a couple of cocktails. What a fun day in Balboa Park, now the only thing left is to review and edit the photos for display on Social Media and in the blog. Cheers!