Ybor City offers colorful portraits of life

My recent Street Photography workshop for the Sun City Camera Club included a photography field trip to Ybor City. Ybor City is the perfect back drop for shooting street photography. It’s colorful, architecturally interesting and full of life. Murals dot the landscape. The businesses there are varied, from a cigar rolling business, to eclectic restaurants to art stores. The people are a mix of ages, attitudes and ideas. Most are open to visitors and willing to talk with strangers. They were also willing to have their photos taken.

The students in the workshop did an excellent job of finding scenes that told stories and drew the viewer in. I had a class of about 10 students and we all stayed on the same street, yet the photos were all varied, even when they came back with the same subjects. The styles of photography were all different as well.

One student, Christina, brought back portraits of people she met. But before she showed her portraits to the class she really worked on them in Photoshop, turning them into works of art. They were beautiful and intriguing. They were not “journalistic” but they could be considered a form of documentary photography because the faces were as she saw them.

Others used the city’s architecture to draw the viewer into their photos with scenes of everyday life. Others used humor, contrast or comparisons to highlight the people of Ybor City. The city’s art work, including murals and statutes made for great ways to showcase people. The posters, furniture and tiles made for great standalone photos. Workers in the city made sure there was always plenty of action.

The workshop participants surprised themselves with some of the photos they captured — a woman resting comfortably near a 2-hour parking sign and a man looking closely at a mural where the priest in the painting seemed to have his finger on the nose of the subject. It’s always fun to see what comes out in a photo.

The most gratifying part of the workshop was hearing what the students took away. A couple of them were stretching themselves when they signed up for the class. They admitted they didn’t like having people in their photos and that they were uncomfortable approaching strangers. But they did it anyway. Bob, one of the participants who was reluctant to talk to people, said the field trip got him excited about street photography and interested in doing it again. Others loved learning something new about Tampa. One student called the exercise “beneficial, surprising and freeing.”

To me, street photography is all of those things. It is also a great way to make connections, to see people as they are and to appreciate their differences. It was fun, too, to relive a slice of my days as a journalist.

Street Photography draws attention to every day public life

I’m leading a workshop on street photography this month and as part of my preparation to the class, I went through some old feature photos I took during my 30 years at the local newspaper. it has been a fun trip through memory lane. It’s also been eye-opening to see the things that have changed in the landscape over the years.

“Street Photography,” has a close relationship to documentary photography and photojournalism, It should tell a story, evoke an emotion and freeze a moment. It defines place and time. As I look at the street photography I have done before and since I left the newspaper, my favorite photos are the ones that tell a story in one frame.

First I should start with what I am talking about as “Street Photography” in this class. There are different kinds of street photography, but for me, it’s simply what I did as a photojournalist, to document every day life. It’s the stuff everybody sees, but don’t always pay attention to and a good photograph can make people stop and take notice.

Much of my more recent street photography has come from traveling. But you don’t have to travel to get great photos. Actually, by shooting photos locally, I have an intimate connection with where I live. Documenting local people and places can be eye-opening and Florida’s towns and its people have as much to offer in the way of storytelling as any other place in the world. Don’t miss out.

The things that make this type of photography interesting are universal. The first thing is people: their faces, their eyes, their actions. I love people-watching. We are interesting creatures. I also enjoy seeing people interact. Those moments tell stories and if you watch long enough, you are sure to see a story unfold.

The environment also is an important part of street photography — whether it’s the other people or animals around the action, or the colors, or the textures, the statues and art or the weather — these different elements add to the story telling and can make the viewer interpret what they see. I will admit I was surprised about what the photographers in my workshop saw in the photos and the questions they asked about each moment.

There is so much to consider when taking a photograph, that the more you take your time to watch, the better your photo will be. For me it is key to visualize, anticipate what could happen, and prepare for that moment. It all takes practice. But that’s the fun (and sometimes frustrating) part. The more you get out there and take photos the better your stories will be and the easier it will be to visualize and then anticipate your shots.

Also it is important to blend in with the crowd. If you want true documentary photos, sometimes you have to be part of the crowd that everyone sees but largely ignores. The more you go unnoticed the more you can catch people being themselves.

I believe It is ok to go up to people and introduce yourself and tell your subjects that you are working on a street photography project, especially if there are certain photos you want to get. Most people are flattered that you find them interesting. Yes sometimes you will get posed photos, but most times, people will eventually be themselves, even though you are there. Also if someone says they really don’t want you to take their photo, I would be respectful of their wishes.

I’ll be heading up to Ybor City with my workshop students and they’re going to test out my advice, and as always, if you have any tips or great locations for street photography, please feel free to share them in the comment section below.