Blog Post #28

Look out, it’s behind you

In street photography (and photography in general), we are always on the lookout for a situation where a good shot is possible. We are constantly scanning the view in front of us for opportunities or places to set up and go “fishing” for a good photo. But what about behind you? It could be that the best shot is right behind you and you haven’t considered turning around. This has happened to me a number of times.

The story behind this photo is that I was walking along a narrow precinct area in Derby and I stopped to look in a shop window. As I was looking at what was on show in the shop I noticed the reflection in the window of the scene behind me. I waited until they were in a good pose and then I spun around 180° and grabbed the shot.

They were a bit bemused as to why I would want to take a photograph of them, but the pose suited the shop title and I think it works.

To be honest I never spotted the opportunity as I walked towards the shop but as soon as I saw the reflection of what was behind me it fell into place.

Walking along the street in Nottingham one day I looked behind me and saw this girl with amazing hair. I waited until she got closer and when she was just behind me she exclaimed “Oh My God!” in a loud voice. At that point I spun around and got my shot of her staring at her phone.

These are just a couple of the examples I have of making sure to take a 360° view of your surroundings and not what is just in front of your nose.

Another approach I often take when photographing events or street theatre etc is not to photograph the centre of a attraction, or performer but instead point your camera at the audience and capture characters and reactions. These can often make the best photos. Whilst everyone is engaged with the event or performance you will become invisible to them and can get some great shots. Unfortunately though in more recent years, taking pictures of watchers is usually spoiled be a majority of people holding up mobile phones taking photos or video. You just need to look for characters and find a good spot to capture their expressions and reactions.

Covent Garden in London is always a good place for people watching and photography. Whist everyone is watching the performers I tend to prefer to watch the audience. These characters were just whiling away the day sitting watching the performers so I took the opportunity to grab a few shots of them. I also took some shots of them from the back looking towards the performers. They were totally oblivious to my presence which made things easier.

This is Covent Garden again. These kids and adults were totally engrossed with the performer and unaware of my presence. The expressions and enthusiasm of the kids was in response to some dance moves the entertainer was encouraging. I dont have any photos of the entertainer, I find the crowds more interesting.

So next time you are out and about with your camera looking for photo opportunities, make sure you look around you and not just straight ahead. Also consider an alternative angle and capture reactions to events rather than the event itself. This is something I have learned over the years and I still practice today

I hope you have enjoyed my stories and thank you for reading this blog post. I’m sorry but I don’t include a “Like/Dislike” button. If you want to comment on this blog post please do so below or you can contact me by using the “Contact Me” facility in the website header.

Peter Degnan