A candid photograph is a photograph captured without a posed appearance, it can be spontaneous and done without the subject’s knowledge that the photograph was made.
This can be achieved by:
when the subject is in motion/busy/unaware
avoiding preparation
surprising the subject
distracting the subject while capturing the image
For example:
Candid shots can be in colour and are aye-catching and stand out, many photographers make the decision to create black and white images so that standing out relies less on bright colours and presentation and more on the ability to communicate within the image. Factors such as light, perspective and context are very important in black and white candid photographs.
Street Photography Quotes:
“Photographers mistake the emotion they feel when taking the photo as a judgement that the photo is good” – Garry Winogrand
“To me, photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place… I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them” – Elliott Erwitt
“It is more important to click with people than to click the shutter.”- Alfred Eisenstaedt
“To me, photography is the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, the significance of an event as well as of a precise organization of forms which give that event its proper expression” – Henri Cartier-Bresson
There are many different types and styles of portraits that can be used for example,
Black and white portraits
Contemporary portraits
Historical portraits
Environmental portraits
Color portraits
High/ Low key portraits
Informal/formal portraits
And many more, here are some examples…
When starting a new topic in photography is often found that many photographers will create mood boards before beginning to actually produce images. By creating a mood board before straightening allows for ideas to form and allows the photographer to fully understand the topic. its essentially a way to collecting different creative information in order to be completely prepared for a new project. It is a transition between initial thoughts or meeting and the first draft of your project.
For my response to environmental portraiture i decided to visit the markets throughout town in order to have an open view of someones work environment. Of the images that I took, the ones I liked the most and decided to work back into/ retouch are images 9839, 9843, 9844, 9845, 9847 and 9853.
I decided to stick to light-room for the image editing for these images as I think that the images only really needed light retouching in areas such as exposure adjustments and slight changes to the saturation. I have cropped the images to better fit in line with the golden ratio however the preservation of the background was prioritized over the the rule of thirds as i believe that the background is more important for an effective environmental portrait.
Of the photo-shoot my favorite images are those taken at the fish market as i like the interaction between the workers and the relationship that is shown int the images. I like how the images show how the owners/ workers in the more humble shops/ stalls are so passionate about their jobs and I feel this creates a good sense of community which is shown in the images.
An environmental portrait has the same idea as a standard portrait, but this time the photograph is normally taken where your subject spends most of their time. Often, its somewhere relevant to that particular persons passions and interests in their life. For example if you were to photograph an artist you would capture them whilst in their working environment, i.e. their studio and take picture of them working. In addition there are hundred and hundred of different types of environmental portrait all capture different feelings and different ideas. Although for this to classify as a environmental portrait its essential that the subject is making clear eye contact with the camera whist doing the action of their work. This is a key point for the photograph to count as an environmental portrait. A good portrait should bring out the subjects personality in a stylized way, it should be an exaggeration.
An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings.
Image Credit: Prateek Dubey.
Photoshoot
For this shoot, I have decided upon photographing my dad working in his workshop; in-which he does woodworking as a pass time.
For my environmental portraits I took pictures of my mum who works in an archive. The lighting was overall quite hard to work with as the building doesn’t have much natural lighting due to preserving old letters and artwork. As well as that it was hard at the start to get my mum to make eye contact without smiling or laughing, but the more photos I took the more comfortable she began to felt and it became less awkward in general. Due to the fact that a family member was the person I was taking photos of, I did find it easier to take control of the shoot and achieve the angle and positioning I wanted. I ensured that eye contact was made between my mum and the cameras in my final section of photos as they felt the most effective as an environmental portrait. I felt a natural expression rather than an a faked smile as it seems more fitted to the working environment. In most photos I took it from a level angle, in which the lens was at the same height as my mum’s eyes. On the other hand I took it from an upwards angle in the ones where my mum was on a ladder. I felt that me being lower showed a sense of authority from my mum which worked well as i am the visitor as she is the only one with a key to the store room and she is in them everyday. I wanted to take up an angle which showed a clear sign of territory because like ones work place is very similar to ones home because they are there nearly all day for 5 days, some people spend more time at work then at home. For instance if I was to enter someones home for the first time i would be respectful and sit where i was told, only come round when invited, which is what I wanted to gain from low angle a sense of obdeince and respect towards my mum and her working environment.In this shoot I wanted to break the gender stereotype of man at work and how there are supposed to be the ones who lift heavy objects, this ties in with the photos in the archive store rooms in which my mum has to move documents and art daily. As well as that I wanted to take picture of my mum as her line of work as its less common in a island which is dominated by the finance sector. I have several other family members who I considered for this task but they all work in offices and I wanted to capture a portrait within an environment of work which is scarce in Jersey. Even though Jersey Archive doesn’t have the best lighting for photography sue to its lack of windows it is a very modern building which goes very well in contrast with the extremely old documents, art work and film that my mum repairs.
Image Credit: Prateek Dubey.
