Real Street Photography!

Now here is some real street photography. I took this shot with the Nikon P-300 from the seventh floor of the multi-story parking complex across the street from the New Orleans Convention Center. I was getting into my car and happened to notice the excellent mural on the building below. The café at the corner just added to the ambiance of the scene that begged to be photographed.

I have been reading more and more magazine articles lately about what you can legally shoot and publish (on the web or elsewhere) without infringing on copyright laws or personal freedoms of individuals on the street so another consideration in this shot is the fact that there are no recognizable persons in it. The two individuals sitting at the table on the corner and the people in the cars are legally considered “incidental” or background scenery in this case.

In the “old days” these things were not a concern. Either no one cared or we just ignored it. Of course, before the internet and social media any photos I took were very unlikely to be seen by anyone other than a few friends and family. Naturally, if a photo was taken for publication (in those days that meant a book, magazine or newspaper) a proper model release would be gotten. 

If you decide to get involved in street photography, and I hope you do, keep this in mind and if you have recognizable people in your photos be sure to ask permission to photograph them. Frequently an offer to email a copy of the picture is all the incentive they need to readily agree to be in your photograph. Of course if you’re out there with six cameras, two tripods and looking like a pro shooting on location they may hold out for a “bigger score.”  That’s another advantage to using the P-300. In spite of some pretty serious capabilities it looks like just another cheap point & shoot digital camera.