Paul Brown
| Street Photography |
Retrospective
Paul Brown |
Street Photography | Retrospective
All photographs and texts Š Copyright 2017 Paul Brown Published in 2017 by Charnwood Arts - Design: Natalie Chabaud ISBN 978-1-903947-36-4 Charnwood Arts is a private company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales ~ Company No: 07477378 ~ Registered Charity No: 1143163 ~ Registered Office: 27 Granby Street, Loughborough, Leics LE11 3DU Charnwood Arts acknowledges core funding from Arts Council England and Charnwood Borough Council All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any other information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written permission from the publisher.
Early Years In the early years I started taking photographs in the street using a small compact camera, members of my local camera club told me that I had ‘an eye’ for street photography and I was encouraged to submit photographs in club competitions where I started to develop my photography and style. Over the years I have gone from using compact cameras to DSLRs and now I am back to using a compact camera (Ricoh GR) which suits my style of photography and is with me everywhere I go. When I first started out I would take up to 500 photographs at any one time and not get one that I liked or was happy with, but then the next time I could take a couple of excellent images which makes it all worth while, and that’s still the case today.
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My style I am drawn to city streets. There is more opportunity for my style of photography, and being Midlands based I am most drawn to Nottingham for its blend of the multi-cultural and fashionability. I look for unusual people, people that stick out from the crowd as well as the ‘hidden people’. People who may look ordinary and be unnoticed until you look more closely. I try to focus on more than one thing in an image, what happens in the background or to the side of the main subject is important. I look for all the funny and quirky things around me… something that captures the moment.
Inspirational Photographers Henri Cartier Bresson Willy Ronis Gary Winogrand Helen Levitt Vivian Maier
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Enjoy Photography There is no set style or formula for photographing in the street, as you progress over time you will become more comfortable with what you are doing and start to develop your own style. The most important part of your photography is enjoying what you are doing, whether you are photographing with a DSLR, compact camera or camera phone, just enjoy.
Tips Travel light. Always have your camera switched on at all times ready to capture that ‘magic’ moment. Try to blend in with the environment you’re in, don’t stand out from the crowd. Start off photographing events, most people will have cameras and you will feel less intimidated. Look for good backgrounds where people pass all the time, and be patient. Make sure you have extra cards and batteries. When starting out set your camera to auto, let your camera make all the decisions leaving you to concentrate on capturing the image.
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7 65
Street
Portraits
83 99
Graffiti
Protest
113 127
Chalk Drawings Palermo
All images taken between 2005 - 2016
Thanks Charnwood Arts Many thanks to Charnwood Arts for all your help over the years. A special thank you to Natalie Chabaud, Kevin Ryan and James Chantry for making this book possible. I would like to give a special thanks to my good friend Gary Foulds for his support in the preparation and writing of this book. 6
Paul Brown
Street
I became interested in street photography because I like the emotional and artistic value of the street. I photograph people to show the different emotions in their faces and actions. There is so much happening in the street, it’s like an Aladin’s cave to me. I love the interaction with people, even though they’re not always aware that I’m there. Street photography is my absolute passion, I read books from the great street photographers past and present. Looking at their images fills me with awe and gives me inspiration to get out there whatever the weather and enjoy the life on the street.
If you’re new to street photography and feel a little uneasy standing around with your camera, try starting out photographing events. You will find lots of people there with cameras, which will make you feel more at ease. If you’re playing around too much with the camera settings you could be missing that important shot. Most modern cameras are more than capable of taking good images in auto mode. When photographing in the street look for the unusual, always be aware of what’s going on around you. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t capture what you’re looking for, it’s not the end of the world, there’s always next time.
Look for interesting backgrounds like unusual buildings, graffiti, posters etc, then wait for someone to come along or something to happen to add to the image. I’ve waited many hours to capture this type of image, sometimes in vain, but when it happens it’s all worthwhile. The most important thing to remember is “enjoy what you’re doing”.
Street | 7
Milan, Italy
8 | Street
Krakow, Poland
Street | 9
Havana, Cuba
10 | Street
Havana, Cuba
Street | 11
Leicester, UK
12 | Street
Rhodes, Greece
Street | 13
Krakow, Poland
14 | Street
Oxford, UK
Street | 15
Havana, Cuba
16 | Street
Havana, Cuba
Street | 17
New York, USA
18 | Street
Havana, Cuba
Street | 19
Derby, UK
20 | Street
Nottingham, UK
Street | 21
San Francisco, USA
22 | Street
Nottingham, UK
Street | 23
Krakow, Poland
24 | Street
Nottingham, UK
Street | 25
Matlock, UK
26 | Street
Nottingham, UK
Street | 27
Nottingham, UK
28 | Street
Appleby, UK
Street | 29
Krakow, Poland
30 | Street
Havana, Cuba
Street | 31
Leicester, Uk
32 | Street
Cuba
Loughborough, Uk
Sorento, Italy
Street | 33
Krakow Poland
34 | Street
Bath, UK
Street | 35
Leicester, Uk
36 | Street
Derby, Uk
Rhodes, Greece
Street | 37
Sheffield, UK
38 | Street
Lucca, Italy
Street | 39
Palma, Majorca - Spain
40 | Street
Leicester, Uk
Rhodes, Greece
Street | 41
Milan, Italy
42 | Street
London, UK
Street | 43
Nottingham, UK
44 | Street
Cuba
Street | 45
Isle of White, UK
46 | Street
Leicester, UK
Street | 47
Malaga, Spain
48 | Street
Rhodes, Greece
Street | 49
Leicester, UK
50 | Street
London, UK
Street | 51
Venice, Italy
52 | Street
Granada, Spain
Street | 53
London, UK
54 | Street
Krakow, Poland
Street | 55
San Francisco, USA
56 | Street
Nottingham, UK
Street | 57
Milan, Italy
58 | Street
Krakow, Poland
Street | 59
Krakow, Poland
60 | Street
Pisa, Italy
Street | 61
Lucca, Italy
62 | Street
Rhodes, Greece
Street | 63
Venice, Italy
64 | Street
I started out taking street portraits by photographing people that were unaware that they were being photographed. I would find a location with a good backdrop and wait, watching for the right moment to happen. Sometimes I would get lucky, other times nothing, but I just learned to persevere.
Portraits
As my photography progressed I started to find multiple locations within one area, constantly moving between each location. Most of my portraits are natural and unposed, but as I got more confidence I started to interact with people more and ask if I could photograph them, the willing ones always enjoyed this and I found that their personalities shone through, making for fantastic photographs. I always offer a copy of the photograph to every person that I ask to pose for me, either by email or printed. Build up your confidence first before approaching people to take their photograph. While photographing in Bath, I started talking to a very interesting guy selling the ‘Big Issue’, who agreed to have his photograph taken. I offered to send him a copy and he asked for it to be sent to the homeless shelter where he was staying, the manager of the shelter later sent me a letter thanking me on his behalf, saying he was really pleased with the photograph. Sometimes you will come across a famous personality in the street or on location, try your luck, ask to take their photograph, that’s part of the enjoyment. Bath, UK
Portrait | 65
Nottingham, UK
66 | Portrait
Krakow, Poland
Malaga, Spain
Portrait | 67
Leicester, UK
68 | Portrait
Krakow, Poland
Cuba
San Francisco, USA
Portrait | 69
Krakow, Poland
70 | Portrait
Krakow, Poland
Portrait | 71
Nottingham, UK
72 | Portrait
Nottingham, UK
Portrait | 73
74 | Portrait
Nottingham, UK
Loughborough, UK
Portrait | 75
Krakow, Poland
76 | Portrait
Krakow, Poland
Krakow, Poland
Portrait | 77
Bath, UK
78 | Portrait
Leicester, UK
Portrait | 79
Nottingham, UK
80 | Portrait
Palma, Majorca - Spain
Portrait | 81
82 | Portrait
Nerja, Spain
Graffiti I first became interested in photographing graffiti after reading a book by Banksy ‘Wall and Piece'. ( ISBN 978-1-84413787-9) Graffiti can be found all over the world, not just in obvious places but also off the beaten track, it consists of emotional,or artistic expression or just pure vandalism. Each piece of graffiti carries a message not always understood by everyone. It may not be something that will stand the test of time but photographing it will help prolong its life long after it has been removed from its location. I photograph graffiti that is artistic or emotional, I try to capture the thoughts of the ‘graffiti artist’, and the power of the message. I look for graffiti that can interact with everyday people. The following images show both the emotional, the artistic and the interactive.
Krakow, Poland
Graffiti | 83
Palermo, Sicily
84 | Graffiti
Palermo, Sicily
Graffiti | 85
Malaga, Spain
86 | Graffiti
Malaga, Spain
Graffiti | 87
Valencia, Spain
88 | Graffiti
Malaga, Spain
Palma, Majorca - Spain
San Francisco, USA
Graffiti | 89
Malaga, Spain
90 | Graffiti
Cuba
Graffiti | 91
Granada, Spain
92 | Graffiti
San Francisco, USA
Graffiti | 93
Cuba
94 | Graffiti
Krakow, Poland
Lucca, Italy
Graffiti | 95
Malaga, Spain
96 | Graffiti
London, UK
Graffiti | 97
98 | Graffiti
San Francisco, USA
Malaga, Spain
Protest
The following set of images are from various locations. I had not planned to be there for the demonstrations but just stumbled upon them. I don’t photograph every demonstration I come across, only the demonstrations that I have a strong feeling about and empathise with. I find that if the empathy is not there the images just don’t work. If you are interested in this kind of photography it is easy to find the locations through social media or press releases. Protest | 99
Nottingham, UK
100 | Protest
London, UK
Protest | 101
Nottingham, UK
102 | Protest
London, UK
Protest | 103
Nottingham, UK
104 | Protest
Nottingham, UK
Protest | 105
Oxford, UK
106 | Protest
London, UK
London, UK
Protest | 107
Oxford, UK
108 | Protest
London, UK
Protest | 109
Nottingham, UK
110 | Protest
London, UK
Protest | 111
Leicester, UK
112 | Protest
Chalk Drawings I became interested in chalk drawings after reading a book by Helen Levitt: ‘In the Street: Chalk Drawings and Messages, New York City 1938–1948’ (ISBN 0-8223-0771-5)
The following set of images were taken during a visit to Krakow Poland. I came across a play area where children had been drawing on the ground earier in the day, as storm clouds were gathering overhead I quickly started to photograph the drawings. Once finished I made my way to back to the hotel for shelter, I returned the next day to find all the drawings had been washed away by the rain, the only record of them ever existing was on my memory card.
Chalk Drawings | 113
114 | Chalk Drawings
Chalk Drawings | 115
116 | Chalk Drawings
Chalk Drawings | 117
118 | Chalk Drawings
Chalk Drawings | 119
120 | Chalk Drawings
Chalk Drawings | 121
122 | Chalk Drawings
Chalk Drawings | 123
124 | Chalk Drawings
Chalk Drawings | 125
126 | Chalk Drawings
Whilst on holiday in Sicily I visited Palermo (the capital of Sicily). In Palermo I found Ballaro’ market which is the oldest market in the city. The market was buzzing with hundreds of local people going about their daily routines. The atmosphere was very friendly, and I was drawn to the rawness of the place and the people. I visited the market to photograph the people and the market traders each day over 5 days. I really enjoyed photographing the people of Ballero’ so much that I have arranged another visit to take more photographs around the area and take copies of photographs from my original visit to give to the people I met. The images on the following pages are from Ballaro’ market and form part of a exhibition at Loughborough Leisure Centre titled ‘In the Street - Palermo’ which was put together and arranged by Charnwood Arts.
Palermo Palermo | 127
128 | Palermo
Palermo | 129
130 | Palermo
Palermo | 131
132 | Palermo
Palermo | 133
134 | Palermo
Palermo | 135
136 | Palermo
Palermo | 137
138 | Palermo
Palermo | 139
140 | Palermo
Palermo | 141
142 | Palermo
Palermo | 143
144 | Palermo
Palermo | 145
146 | Palermo
Palermo | 147
148 | Palermo
Palermo | 149
150 | Palermo
Palermo | 151
Paul Brown |
Street Photography
| Retrospective
Achievements - Exhibitions Paul Brown is an Associate Member of the Royal Photographic Society (2009) Pixel & Grain Gallery, City Gallery Leicester, New Walk Museum Leicester, Nottingham Castle Gallery email: paul.brown407@ntlworld.com
My name is Paul Brown, I was born on the 1st of February 1947 in Loughborough, Leicestershire and have lived there all my life. I began my interest in photography in 2005 and quickly became fascinated by street photography, a passion that has taken me to places as diverse as The Bronx, Krakow, the streets of Copenhagen, Palermo and all around the UK. The aim of this book is to show how enjoyable taking photographs in the street can be, it is not just about street photography it is about what you can photograph in the street. All the images that you see in this book are exactly as they were taken, the only editing I will ever do to my images is to crop, I never add or take anything else from the image. I hope I inspire you to get out there with your camera and have a go.