Street Photography: Finding Miracles and Capturing Them

“The marvels of daily life are exciting; no movie director can arrange the unexpected that you find in the street.” – Robert Doisneau

What do we mean by street photography? It’s not only the bustle of actual roads and urban streets, it could be what you discover on a country lane, in a foreign land, on a hike or a stroll through the woods. What’s the common thread? Street photography is about the candid, the spontaneous, that random, fleeting moment when your eye says, “That’s it!” and your mind and camera are primed to capture it. It most often includes people. Most of all, street photography is about the observer who moves through the scene all but unnoticed and captures authentic moments without staging, without directing subjects.

“I think good street photography is a little like surfing, in that sense that you make yourself available for something to happen. And when it does happen, you have to be ready to ride the wave for as long as you can.” Geoff Dyer

In three sessions we’ll cover all the basics about the glorious, inspired, spontaneous art of street photography. Lesson one will meet at ProPhoto Supply where we’ll start with camera set-up. There are specific settings regarding aperture, shutter speed, ways of focusing, both auto and manual, all of which affect the final result. Some lenses and focal lengths are better than others and we’ll cover that as well. None of this is overly advanced – I promise! With the right settings you can then, as they say, ‘Set it and forget it.’ But your camera will be ready for the instant.

“Photography has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.” Elliot Erwitt

• For lesson one, we’ll briefly cover composition, then we’ll move on to the more conceptual part of the lesson. We'll discuss the difference between ‘hunting’ and ‘fishing,’ meaning snapping away almost at random, as some street photographers do, and finding a place, dropping the line, and waiting for the right elements to come along to complete the shot, which is the chosen method for other photographers. Most of us will do a combination of the two. All this will be covered with the help of dozens of street photos that can show just how all the camera settings affect the result. And we’ll show many examples of how "hunting" and "fishing" function out in the wild.
• Lesson two will meet outdoors. We’ll check camera settings and spend the first hour or so experimenting with slow and fast shutter speeds, see how aperture settings affect depth of field, and discuss when and how to use them. We’ll try both manual and auto focus, and talk about compositional styles, like the rule of thirds, finding interesting foregrounds and backgrounds – and how light is the essential element of all photography. The remaining time we’ll roam together, I’ll be available for consultation but you’ll be free to experiment on your own.
• For lesson three will meet back at ProPhoto Supply. We’ll go over the photos you took on our outing (plus others you care to share from your archive). We’ll examine what works, what doesn’t and why, so that, with time, you’ll come home with better and better results. And, crucially, we’ll discuss how to find and develop your own style. Finally, we’ll also look at a selection of photos from many of the most respected street photographers to see how they went about it and why their photos resonate through the years.

“The camera is a remarkable instrument. Saturate yourself with your subject and the camera will all but take you by the hand and point the way.” – Margaret Bourke-White

ABOUT GERALD SELIGMAN

Gerald Seligman has been a photographer for over 50 years, with photos published in newspapers, magazines, featured in galleries, and on album covers for Universal/Verve, EMI Hemisphere, Rounder, Rykodisc, and elsewhere. He spent most of his career working in the international music industry and has lived in Rio de Janeiro, London, and Berlin. He has taught photo courses at the McSilver Institute for Poverty, Policy and Research, New York University; for the Josephine Herrick Project; and locally at art schools and libraries. He currently lives in Portland, Oregon. Check out Gerald's work HERE!

Artist statement:

"In photography, I try to find order in chaos, compassion in random encounters, and the human spirit in the day-to-day. I wander and attempt to capture the moment, alternating among abstracts, geometry, and the human face and form. To some degree, I allow the setting to determine the sort of photography I engage in, looking for some fleeting essence that will set the style of what I am seeking -- ‘finding photos,’ I like to call it."

REVIEWS FROM PREVIOUS ATTENDEES

“I signed up with the goal of learning how to be a bit more thoughtful about what I am capturing when taking photos and I feel like the class has helped me with this a lot. After your class, I am taking more time to compose the photos I am taking. I am also excited to look at more photos with the intention of reflecting on what makes them work. Thank you for modeling this for us and creating space to do this in class.” Ryan

“Gerald has a thoughtful approach to teaching – supporting and challenging students to figuratively and/or literally change their focus - to be more attentive to framing and the structural elements of an image. Gerald made wonderful use of his own work, and the photos of others, to illustrate a point or a concept. His observations about the people he photographed, and the ways he interacted with them, were most instructive. Gerald’s composition course is helpful for both beginning photographers as well as more experienced photographers.” Suzanne

“I feel this was a very comprehensive course. Since the students had a variety of cameras -- it would not have been beneficial to discuss camera use although you did give some pointers and more important you set time aside after class to help individual students with their cameras. The quotes you emailed us about photography were very useful. It is obvious that you prepared a great deal for the class with the many slides and illustrations you provided and the examples given of various ways to frame a photo, zoom in, etc. You provided the students with various resources and links for online editing and processing sites. Actually having a "lab" to take photos outside was very helpful. I think if the course was longer-at least 5 sessions--then 3 could be on composition and the other two on camera use or settings or even a session when students bring their computers to learn how to connect to editing sites. In summary it was an excellent, thoughtful and well planned course.” Franny A.

“I really enjoyed your class. I knew nothing about photography when I started, and now I feel I have a handle on the basics of composition. My favorite part was looking at the art photography you shared and critiquing it. I'm grateful for what I learned, and for having a new way of seeing the world around me.” Lauren L

“I found the class most helpful. Gerald is a great teacher... he made the course stimulating and challenging. Hope he’ll be teaching another class in the future.” Sophie

“Ireally enjoyed how Gerald used his photographs to illustrate the various concepts - in particular I felt the comparative shots that he shared to illustrate foreground, middle ground, background were interesting (this was the concept that I think about less when taking photos). I also really enjoyed seeing the participants' work and hearing Gerald's thoughts on how they could be improved (mine included!). Spread kindness like confetti.”

“I thoroughly enjoyed the class and learned so much. 10 out of 10!” Barb

ABOUT REGISTRATION

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This multi-part class is limited to 15 spots with a minimum of 5 registered attendees needed. In the event the minimum isn't met, the session will be canceled and registered attendees will receive full refunds.

This event has limited space, as a result, registration is required for each attendee. If you are on the waitlist for this event, you will receive a notification, via email, if a space becomes available for you.

PRICING, FEES & REFUNDS

In the event of a refund, Eventbrite Fees are not refundable. Eventbrite fees are only refunded if an event is canceled.

Refunds will be considered until 48 hours before the first session of this workshop.

Refunds are unavailable post-event date.