For street photography, you should find that the number of photos you take on each outing will reduce over time. Your own experience will tell you what to take and when to take it. You will anticipate situations more easily and begin to read people's minds. You will take photos because your instincts tell you to and you will have more exceptional results. You will never have to "spray and pray", and, even if you do take a number of shots in the same location, you will find that your first shots are often the best shots. Mass deletions will become a thing of the past and your only concern will be the storage of all these masterpieces. 😎
Whhaat up Alan - Great insight here man, and I tend to agree with you. That having been said, sometimes I take fewer higher quality photos, but I have found that some days the frequency of different photo ideas is insane and I end up taking LOADS. You are so right about shooting with our instincts, there is something special when you are not thinking and just reacting. I'm sure there was a quote in TopGun about that ahaha
@@JamesParsons1 Yeah but not thinking and just reacting is an advice from an experienced pilot who has a complex mindset. Maverick gives that advice to young pilots who get too emotional to take decisions faster.
True. Also I remember this quote/advice I believe from one of the Book of Boba Fett episodes : “Persistence without insight will lead you to the same outcome”. So, you can shoot everyday but without any insight you can stay in the same beginner place forever.
Enthusiasm, passion, knowledge, sense and above all fantastic photography. How you don't have more subscribers both baffles me and annoys me 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Eyyyyy Thank you very much my dude! Glad you like the content and believe in the vision! I'm sure at some point my channel will really grow, but for the time being it's heads down and cracking on with creating more and more :) Thanks for leaving a comment again my man!
Spot on info (or lack thereof!) about settings. It is the same in audio; novices focus on the ‘settings’ (parameters for EQ, compression, etc.) for, say, recording a snare drum, as if those settings will apply to all snare drum recordings regardless of the diameter and depth of the shell, the type of skins, the tuning, the mic choice and placement, the sticks, the player, the room, the genre, the never mind have another coffee JP!
It’s partially the creators fault for tapping on about that, as well as gatekeepers telling everyone they need to shoot manual if they wanna be a good photographer
@@JamesParsons1 I fell pretty hard for the “real photographers shoot manual” bollocks. For years I carried around a Sony RX100 MkIII. As a time indicator, it was the latest model when I got it. An amazing little camera then, and still is. Over time I bought into the ‘shoot manual’ thing, spent a lot of time learning etc., and took great pride in shooting *everything* in manual - pleased with the knowledge that I had all the parameters under control. BUT it would take me too long to get a good shot (it’s a fiddly little camera), and often the ‘shot’ was gone by the time I was ready for it. With the Fujifilm X100V, that process changed. To familiarise myself with its general ‘look’ I started out by doing everything in Auto. Then I moved to fully manual. Nowadays, for the street stuff, I use it in Auto because it’s fast but I have set constraints to keep it within ranges I would typically use for my stuff. I shoot mostly street markets in SE Asia at night, with Monochrome film sim, so there are very specific exposure values and so on. I’m getting great results and a much higher success rate. Nowadays that “real photographers shoot manual” mantra seems like rubbish to me. I take a shot in Auto with constraints. If the shot isn’t acceptable I look at the settings the camera choose for that shot, put the appropriate parameter(s) into manual, adjust them as required, and take the shot again - if it’s still there to be taken, LOL! “Real photographers shoot manual” seems like a defensive cry from photographers drawing their own imaginary line in the sand, afraid that smart phones and smarter cameras are eating into their turf…
Alright nice, a street photographer that actually takes proper shots people can learn from! There’s a lot of POV crap out here, but I recognise quality when I see it. You’ve earn yourself a new subscriber just from this 1 video I watched, keep it up man!
I'm a daily street photographer daily, never burst mode, max I take is 100 on a six hour day, most are keepers now and again I nail it, to much emphasis on taking so many and not learning your craft imho
If that works for you, great, but for me, I have so many ideas, want to experiment loads and accelerate my learning process. Perhaps we could learn from each others technique?
Another amazing video, cheers James! Work and rail strikes permitting I'll be visiting South Bank in the near future to check out the scenery and hopefully get some great shots. Love your work!!
Subject separation, and blurry backgrounds, seem to be a thing these days, even in the street photography world. What if this is a fad, and doesn't stand the test of time? What if there was something really special going on within the frame, now totally missed due to a that fuzzy background. Yes, there are times when the subject pop-out look, like a cardboard cut-out, has the look, and the background is not special, or totally crap, but in most cases, true street photography which tells a story, or is a well blended scene of objects and colors, needs some, if not all front to back. It also requires more careful, yet sometimes quick, planning by the photographer to see it all at once, instead of taking the easy way of simply shooting the portrait. Really did enjoy some of those photos you took on this walk, and realize it is doubly hard to present a talk and shoot in the same time -- well done. Thanks for your video, and take care, Loren Schwiderski - Street Photographer on the Central Coast of California
Great thoughts here Loren! I agree with you. I think always having a really blurry background is a little bit cheap and can mask a boring composition etc. Having a smaller aperture forces us as photographers to be more clinical with our photography. thank you for your support
WELCOME to the gang Logan - Thank you for the compliment and your comment dude, I really appreciate it. Is there anything in particular that you would love to learn about?
The settings on a camera are the things that we are in control of. If you don't use these settings wisely, the image that is recorded will not be the image that is intended. Every person that wants to learn how to become a decent photographer will need to care about their chosen settings, and be able to tell when they have achieved success .... and when they haven't.
Hey - thanks for leaving your comment. I’ll be completely transparent and say I’ve not actually thought of it this way. I’ve usually seen it as a crutch for beginners to get stuck on trying to replicate other photographers and not understanding the full circumstances WHY the settings were used. However, your comment about the image recorded might not be as intended has changed my mind. Do you think a video discussing settings and a deep dive into shutter speed, aperture and ISO would be of value? Thanks dude
Great video JP, some cracking images you got there. 5 Broadgate, my fav modern architecture in London to shoot, that building is just awesome. Totally agree with your words on settings too
Yes Julian - Thank you man! I've got some potentially bad news. Apparently they've put TV screens in front of the big 5.... Had someone reply to my story saying they've changed it all last week. I'll go back and see for myself though, I almost don't believe them ahah
Found the channel looking for Fuji cameras, stayed for the amazing photography. You and Teo Crawford changed my whole outlook on street photography, cheers from the US.
Jacob - My man. Really appreciate your commenting and complimenting my videos/ images. In what way would you say we've changed your outlook on Street Photography? Plenty more videos en route 😎
@@JamesParsons1 I had always thought about street photography as taking pictures of people/scenes to show "life as it was"; something completely valuable but not something I ever found much interest in. I know others have done "abstract" or geometric photography but your use of light, subject, and color has been really inspiring as I see now how much variety there is in street photography. Light created a really interesting shadow on some abstract structure and the final output looks like it belongs in an art gallery, or light hit someone in just the right way and the photo looks like it was staged for a magazine. Regarding subject; landscape photography often needs a dynamic interesting landscape, but you are able to take a subject as mundane as a shoe or a street cone and make it interesting. Teo does similar things like taking a photo of a utility pole and making it seem like a piece of abstract fine art. Beyond that I really enjoy the colors in your photos. Everything feels true to life but there's still a film like quality where colors are soft but still vibrant. Appreciate the content!
I've said it for a while now, but you are one of my favourite photographers. I think the key point you get across is something more akin to a Bob Ross more than other channels - it's calming, it's inspirational but it also informative. You don't touch on one thing though - your use of negative space. I play with negative space a lot (when not photographing a dog!), and you master it so well, I'm not sure if you haven't considered it but definitely go over your shots in the last 6 months and you'll see something about it. Anyway, sorry for the long message, keep going James!
@@JamesParsons1 ah thanks mate. I think a video about "the magic of negative space" - better titles are available - (let's go negative ?) Would be great. Why the 1) subject 2) contrast 3) negative space is almost the perfect magic triangle. How does this work with shots that you take, or want to take. Why negative space is not always needed or when it shouldn't be used. What does it add to a picture and what does it take away. All questions that I think would talk about the taxonomy of taking photos.
Again - great video and contribution. Thank you for taking us along! As for achieving a larger number of "hits", two thoughts, perhaps, if I may. (1) You mentioned it yourself briefly near the beginning: Limit the number of free degrees and you can more easily focus on what comes along (great composition, great posture, colours, ...) You gave the example of setting up in a location and "work it". (2) Something I recently read from another photographer. Tried it, and it works. Set yourself "triggers" for making a photograph. (A more circumstantial "game-of-the-mind-way" of limiting degrees of freedom.) The way he described it is: Choose a trigger - a colour, hand movements, light & shadow, ... which automatically puts you in "pull the trigger mode". You may miss out on other opportunities, but you're primed. Funny, really. (I believe you veered into this area a few videos ago when you told us about "theme of the day". Triggers can be much simpler than a theme.) Then, again, there are outings where total freedom is the word.
Yo yo yo Christine - Thank you for your insights again! Yes- was it Mike Chudley's video? Triggers are so interesting and definitely a topic I've loosely thought about previously, but that video really made triggers front of my mind. I think my triggers are interesting light, moments/expressions, and patterns. What would you say are your triggers?
@@JamesParsons1 Yes, Mike Chudley took up this idea, too, and had a number of photographers explaining their triggers. I think I first encountered this idea in a book by Jay Maisel ... My personal standard triggers certainly include "shapes that stand out" and "people gesticulating". That doesn't mean that I automatically make a photograph in those trigger moments but rather they make me look and look closer. I'm not exactly quick on the trigger itself (bad pun).
Great images again James. If you see that glitch in the Matrix walk past again, can you follow him, I’m dying to find out 1. Where he was going ? 2. What’s in the bag? Also I liked the advice about number of photos taken Vs Keepers for the video. Cheers.
@8:32 he always wears fantastic clothes and works in the area, I live nearby. Saw you a month ago at Oxford circus by the way with a few others. Was going to say hello but didn't.
HI James yes your right I enjoyed this latest I think for me it’s difficult to actually choose my favourite shot they are all VERY good !! You like being by the Thames it certainly is a place for photographic opportunities > Enjoy James it certainly shows your enthusiasm for street photography. Have a great Day Mike
@@JamesParsons1 thanks for the love James I need some of that now. I love your stuff as you know only wish that I could travel a bit and capture what I have in my mind at times. You make up for it fir me. Thanks James
You have provided very insightful commentaries. I noticed that you never asked for permission to take a photo, but, did you ask the couple in the beautiful kissing scene?
Thank you dude! No need to ask in the UK, our laws state that if you are in public, you are able to be photographed. The two kissing were definitely too distracted to notice me taking a photo of them ahaha. Thanks for commenting my man
Stellar content, great photos! Congrats with the 3 k subs, you deserve far faaaaaaaaar more :) Keep it up! And GREAT point about NOT sharing your settings. So many run after the proclaimed gold at the end of the rainbow, sure its a nice solid chase but.. Learn the basics. What shutter speed do I need to freeze motion, what shutter speed do I need to create motion and HOW does my F stopp affect the depth of field and my shutter speed :) And take photos, alot of them :)
Thank you very much dude! Yes - I should have made it more clear, I added the frosted glass effect in photoshop. There's lots of tutorials on UA-cam for Frosted Glass effect if you wanted to learn :) I enjoy playing around with design elements to add to the story
this is the difference be,tween the old masters like henri cartier bresson and the " streetmachinegunshooters"... henri took a few rolls of film and made good pics, todays photographers make 1000 photos and luckily there are good ones in between....😉
Ahaha thats an interesting take with some truth to it. But a question for you. Why was Henri so good? Like what do you think made him able to take good photos vs photographers now?
@@JamesParsons1 ..well, i think there are something different...: back in time there were less people on the streets, less photographers...maybe the people in the streets were more interested in photography, today they are afraid- to much Smartphones...henri was a trained artist, studied painting...had talend to know or see what comes in scenes...had always the perfect composition in mind...he was assist in making films, and of course there were just film....so he knew a roll had 24/36 pics..not more...no chance to make 1000 pics in one shooting...he MUST open the eyes and the mind....to find a storytelling scene... Greets BM
Yesss my dude! I was so happy with that frame. It was quite funny as I was next to them for quite a while trying to use my 35mm like a telephoto lol and the kid was so scared of the canons going off. The boat was there for 20 minutes and didn't fire a single canon ahaha So I was super happy to get a good capture of how the lil dude was feeling
How is that focus on a Fujifilm camera, as in single point focus, I assume being used? Are there more than one or two miss-focused each shoot? One more question, do you ever use 50mm equivalent field of view? Take care, Loren
Yeah I think that the single point is pretty good, not perfect but you get better at knowing what the camera is gonna do so you can adapt to it. I miss shots from time to time but it’s not the end of the world :) I am really tempted to shoot with a fixed 50mm for an extended period of time, I find I crop my images quite hard. Buuuttt that being said, maybe shooting at 35mm allows me to crop to 50mm with ease? Do you recommend it?
Yes yes yes - At the time of recording I am not going to lie, I couldn't remember the Gothenburg's name ahah. A truly graceful ship that I am very glad I got to see it IRL
I don’t share the camera settings I use because they change depending on light and editing can completely change the look of an image. That having been said, I have free presets at my buymeacoffee.com link in the description. Feel free to download them :)
Whats up Kevin - Yep, I use the Classic Chrome and Acros (+R) Simulation as my base simulation for most of what I do :) I've got free presets at the BuyMeACoffee.com link if you wanted to use them yourself! Don't feel the need to get me a coffee, download the presets and have a play!
Duuuuuude thank you so much for the coffees! Appreciate it man!! Complete agree with you about using Acros to seeeeeee light. Being able to change the EVF to see in B&W was soooo eye opening for me
really curious about this: did you censored the face of that woman in front of the number 5? was it for some reason? you didn't seem to do the same for anyone else, photo or video
What’s up dude - great question. I was playing around in Lightroom with the frosted glass effect and thought it looked really cool over her face giving a sort of spy vibe. My only motivator was to make the image to look cooler not about hiding identity or anything :)
At 11:47 you say that if there is a large distance between subject and background, background will be blurry even at narrow aperture. Isn’t the point of a narrow aperture so that doesn’t happen?
Hey dude - Great thinking and question. You are right a narrower aperture or larger F-stop will give us more depth of field, but the distance between our subject relative to our sensor and the background can also affect the depth of field. With your camera, set your aperture wide open and take 2 photos. One at close to the minimum focusing distance, and one at something far away. You'll notice that there is a wider area of whats in focus when your camera is focussing on something in the distance. When might we want to use a small aperture and still have a narrow depth of field? When we have a subject that we want to be in full focus and they are close to us, but the background might be distracting. This could be product photography, when we want our product to be sharp and to take up the whole frame (which means we need it to be close to us) and our models face to be slightly obscured. Or it could be street photography when we have an interesting subject walking towards us and we want to create seperation between them and the background. Essentially, the closer we focus towards our camera, the shallower depth of field we get. And this explains why macro lenses that are used to focus on things SUPER close have crazy small apertures (like f40+) to get what ever they are photographing sharp
Though there are other renowned brands which people have been clicking street photography, why Fujifilm comes first, whenever I seek photos clicked in street photography! This is not today, whenever I search photos clicked in street, always Fujifilm comes first. I think UA-cam is doing partiality! by showing Fujifilm, giving less importance to other brands. Am i wrong, or fir street photography, Fujifilm is the emperor. Please, kindly answer.
Great question. I think there is a couple of reasons. - Fuji cameras are designed for street photographers, they are smaller, lighter and don't look as intimidating compared to a big Sony/ Canon. Therefore the people who are into street are more likely to use these products. - I'd say Leica is MORE street photography orientated, buuuut as these cameras are photo only and no video ability, it means they probably aren't as likely to shoot videos. - There is a lot of overlap within the fuji community, people who watch my videos also watch mainly other fuji shooters. So if you click on one of our videos and watch it, YT suggests more. let me know if this makes sense :)
@@JamesParsons1 that's crazy! some of your photos look dreamy! I'd love to see a video covering Film sims you like, or run an gun settings. As always Love the content, keeping sharing your art!
Dude thank you so much! I always drop the texture, clarity and dehaze in allllllll of my photos which creates this effect. I then like adding back in contrast with the contrast slider! I've got free presets at the BuyMeACoffee.com link if you wanted to use them yourself! Don't feel the need to get me a coffee, download the presets and have a play!
I use auto single servo and spam the shutter button lol, I've found that generally gives me the photos I am looking for I also prefer using the larger spot area vs zone or wide. Just gives me that little bit more control :)
For example… 1:11 … a professional would’ve taken the photo of the boy on his dad’s head looking straight into the lens instead of a photo of people taking photos with their phones. The way to avoid that is to learn to see yourself in everything around you, instead of taking photos for a style and empty your head when you’re shooting. You shouldn’t be thinking about anything. If you find yourself thinking a lot about shots to get for likes on Instagram then you’re fucked. But most people do that anyway. The juxtaposition shot. The frame within a frame shot. The person walking in front of a graffiti wall shot. Etc etc. all the cliches.
You are exactly right, in hindsight and with the super wide angle GoPro it’s kinda obvious what I was shooting. No one is the perfect photographer and we all miss great opportunities. The goal is to miss less and less
Hey John - thanks for your comment. No worries if you’d rather watch the videos for free, there is 0 obligation to buy me a coffee. That having been said over 100 people have bought me a coffee as a thank you for creating these videos, which take about 18+ hours of dedicated time per video to create. Hope you have a dope day 🙌
Loved creating this video - Thank you all so much for the kind words
really the images that capture my eyes, are really good, i wonder if the photo straight out of the camera of being processed
For street photography, you should find that the number of photos you take on each outing will reduce over time. Your own experience will tell you what to take and when to take it. You will anticipate situations more easily and begin to read people's minds. You will take photos because your instincts tell you to and you will have more exceptional results. You will never have to "spray and pray", and, even if you do take a number of shots in the same location, you will find that your first shots are often the best shots. Mass deletions will become a thing of the past and your only concern will be the storage of all these masterpieces. 😎
Spot on. Except for the masterpieces hyperbole, at least for me. Very well put 👏
Whhaat up Alan - Great insight here man, and I tend to agree with you.
That having been said, sometimes I take fewer higher quality photos, but I have found that some days the frequency of different photo ideas is insane and I end up taking LOADS. You are so right about shooting with our instincts, there is something special when you are not thinking and just reacting. I'm sure there was a quote in TopGun about that ahaha
@@JamesParsons1 More likely in Hot Shots: Part Deux!
@@JamesParsons1 Yeah but not thinking and just reacting is an advice from an experienced pilot who has a complex mindset. Maverick gives that advice to young pilots who get too emotional to take decisions faster.
True. Also I remember this quote/advice I believe from one of the Book of Boba Fett episodes : “Persistence without insight will lead you to the same outcome”. So, you can shoot everyday but without any insight you can stay in the same beginner place forever.
Our guy so humble he said he looks up to Faizal yet he shoots way better than him. He is the real legend.
That shot with the guy in the window with the umbrella was AH-Maze-ING!
THANK YOU PAULA - That means a lot to me :) Glad you liked the images so much
Великолепная подача материала! Смотрел с удовольствием!
Glad you enjoyed the video so much!
Enthusiasm, passion, knowledge, sense and above all fantastic photography. How you don't have more subscribers both baffles me and annoys me 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️
Eyyyyy Thank you very much my dude! Glad you like the content and believe in the vision! I'm sure at some point my channel will really grow, but for the time being it's heads down and cracking on with creating more and more :) Thanks for leaving a comment again my man!
Spot on about sharing photo settings
Glad you agree Joe!!
I love your videos, it brings me joy :)
Thank you so much! Glad you love the videos so much :) big love my dude
Spot on info (or lack thereof!) about settings. It is the same in audio; novices focus on the ‘settings’ (parameters for EQ, compression, etc.) for, say, recording a snare drum, as if those settings will apply to all snare drum recordings regardless of the diameter and depth of the shell, the type of skins, the tuning, the mic choice and placement, the sticks, the player, the room, the genre, the never mind have another coffee JP!
It’s partially the creators fault for tapping on about that, as well as gatekeepers telling everyone they need to shoot manual if they wanna be a good photographer
@@JamesParsons1 I fell pretty hard for the “real photographers shoot manual” bollocks. For years I carried around a Sony RX100 MkIII. As a time indicator, it was the latest model when I got it. An amazing little camera then, and still is. Over time I bought into the ‘shoot manual’ thing, spent a lot of time learning etc., and took great pride in shooting *everything* in manual - pleased with the knowledge that I had all the parameters under control. BUT it would take me too long to get a good shot (it’s a fiddly little camera), and often the ‘shot’ was gone by the time I was ready for it.
With the Fujifilm X100V, that process changed. To familiarise myself with its general ‘look’ I started out by doing everything in Auto. Then I moved to fully manual. Nowadays, for the street stuff, I use it in Auto because it’s fast but I have set constraints to keep it within ranges I would typically use for my stuff. I shoot mostly street markets in SE Asia at night, with Monochrome film sim, so there are very specific exposure values and so on. I’m getting great results and a much higher success rate. Nowadays that “real photographers shoot manual” mantra seems like rubbish to me. I take a shot in Auto with constraints. If the shot isn’t acceptable I look at the settings the camera choose for that shot, put the appropriate parameter(s) into manual, adjust them as required, and take the shot again - if it’s still there to be taken, LOL! “Real photographers shoot manual” seems like a defensive cry from photographers drawing their own imaginary line in the sand, afraid that smart phones and smarter cameras are eating into their turf…
Loving your edits mate!
Yooo thank you very much man 🙌 appreciate that
3k + videos hit different - this felt like your best yet!
They be hitting reaaaaall different. I feel like this is one of my best too :) Something about it just clicked
Amazing as always James boi!
That B&W at 6.53 is absolutely banger mate 👏🔥
Yes Glen!! Glad you liked it as an OG subscriber!!
Thank you dude - real proud of nailing that one ahaha 😂
Every photo that you take tells story ,I learn a lot from your video Thanks !
Glad you like them! Means a lot to hear you say that
such beautiful captures from a day.
Thank you dude! I was definitely blessed by the gods to have such incredible light 🙌 thanks for leaving a comment and supporting the channel
Alright nice, a street photographer that actually takes proper shots people can learn from! There’s a lot of POV crap out here, but I recognise quality when I see it. You’ve earn yourself a new subscriber just from this 1 video I watched, keep it up man!
Thank you dude! 🙌 appreciate that. Glad you’ve enjoyed this video so much, plenty more on the way
Love the way you explain photography. Thanks a LOT !
So nice of you to say that Gary! Thank you so much for leaving a comment and supporting the channel
I'm a daily street photographer daily, never burst mode, max I take is 100 on a six hour day, most are keepers now and again I nail it, to much emphasis on taking so many and not learning your craft imho
If that works for you, great, but for me, I have so many ideas, want to experiment loads and accelerate my learning process. Perhaps we could learn from each others technique?
Impressive work. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks you for watching and taking the time to leave a comment Ken. Your support genuinely means a lot - Thank you
Another amazing video, cheers James! Work and rail strikes permitting I'll be visiting South Bank in the near future to check out the scenery and hopefully get some great shots. Love your work!!
Thank you Peregrine! Appreciate the love
Great photos and message. I’m surprised how little subscribers you got, with such a good content.
My man
Just found you and subbed. Love your energy, commentary, notes and style. Cheers!
Yooo Thank you so much Joel! Glad you love the content man. Thank you for commenting I really appreciate it :)
Amazing work as always mate. Enjoyed watching and learning from your examples. 📸
Thank you very much my dude! Glad you found it helpful and enjoyable ❤️
Subject separation, and blurry backgrounds, seem to be a thing these days, even in the street photography world. What if this is a fad, and doesn't stand the test of time? What if there was something really special going on within the frame, now totally missed due to a that fuzzy background. Yes, there are times when the subject pop-out look, like a cardboard cut-out, has the look, and the background is not special, or totally crap, but in most cases, true street photography which tells a story, or is a well blended scene of objects and colors, needs some, if not all front to back. It also requires more careful, yet sometimes quick, planning by the photographer to see it all at once, instead of taking the easy way of simply shooting the portrait. Really did enjoy some of those photos you took on this walk, and realize it is doubly hard to present a talk and shoot in the same time -- well done. Thanks for your video, and take care, Loren Schwiderski - Street Photographer on the Central Coast of California
Great thoughts here Loren! I agree with you.
I think always having a really blurry background is a little bit cheap and can mask a boring composition etc. Having a smaller aperture forces us as photographers to be more clinical with our photography.
thank you for your support
@@JamesParsons1 If you search my name, you will see my images. Got to run now to get out a shoot -- everyday it seems :)
Great video! How about a video how you edit those photos? They all look amazing.
i’m so glad i found your channel! i’ve been trying to find more photographers and love the vibe!!
WELCOME to the gang Logan - Thank you for the compliment and your comment dude, I really appreciate it. Is there anything in particular that you would love to learn about?
The settings on a camera are the things that we are in control of.
If you don't use these settings wisely, the image that is recorded will not be the image that is intended.
Every person that wants to learn how to become a decent photographer will need to care about their chosen settings, and be able to tell when they have achieved success .... and when they haven't.
Hey - thanks for leaving your comment. I’ll be completely transparent and say I’ve not actually thought of it this way. I’ve usually seen it as a crutch for beginners to get stuck on trying to replicate other photographers and not understanding the full circumstances WHY the settings were used.
However, your comment about the image recorded might not be as intended has changed my mind.
Do you think a video discussing settings and a deep dive into shutter speed, aperture and ISO would be of value?
Thanks dude
Great video JP, some cracking images you got there. 5 Broadgate, my fav modern architecture in London to shoot, that building is just awesome. Totally agree with your words on settings too
Yes Julian - Thank you man! I've got some potentially bad news. Apparently they've put TV screens in front of the big 5.... Had someone reply to my story saying they've changed it all last week. I'll go back and see for myself though, I almost don't believe them ahah
Appreciate the tutorial style here. Enjoying these videos a lot
Yes Alex - thank you man! Glad you enjoy these types of videos, means a lot to me. Thank you for the comment, I appreciate it ❤️
Nice to walk with you, beautiful photos you've got !
Glad you could join me! Thanks for the support
amazing content! Its hard to find a x100v here in Guatemala but after watching this video I feel more confident to pay the price to get one haha.
Yooo Thank you Hugo - Big love for the support and taking the time to comment. I can't recommend this camera enough. You'll love it.
Loved the fav of the day with the umbrella!📸🙌
Yessss thank you man! Definitely my favourite from the day 🙌
Some really nice images here! Great video - thanks for sharing 🤘
Subscribed
Thanks for the sub! Glad you enjoy the content enough to subscribe :) means a lot Joe
Found the channel looking for Fuji cameras, stayed for the amazing photography. You and Teo Crawford changed my whole outlook on street photography, cheers from the US.
Jacob - My man. Really appreciate your commenting and complimenting my videos/ images.
In what way would you say we've changed your outlook on Street Photography?
Plenty more videos en route 😎
@@JamesParsons1 I had always thought about street photography as taking pictures of people/scenes to show "life as it was"; something completely valuable but not something I ever found much interest in. I know others have done "abstract" or geometric photography but your use of light, subject, and color has been really inspiring as I see now how much variety there is in street photography. Light created a really interesting shadow on some abstract structure and the final output looks like it belongs in an art gallery, or light hit someone in just the right way and the photo looks like it was staged for a magazine. Regarding subject; landscape photography often needs a dynamic interesting landscape, but you are able to take a subject as mundane as a shoe or a street cone and make it interesting. Teo does similar things like taking a photo of a utility pole and making it seem like a piece of abstract fine art. Beyond that I really enjoy the colors in your photos. Everything feels true to life but there's still a film like quality where colors are soft but still vibrant. Appreciate the content!
I've said it for a while now, but you are one of my favourite photographers. I think the key point you get across is something more akin to a Bob Ross more than other channels - it's calming, it's inspirational but it also informative. You don't touch on one thing though - your use of negative space. I play with negative space a lot (when not photographing a dog!), and you master it so well, I'm not sure if you haven't considered it but definitely go over your shots in the last 6 months and you'll see something about it. Anyway, sorry for the long message, keep going James!
Gino - What a wonderful comment
@@JamesParsons1 ah thanks mate.
I think a video about "the magic of negative space" - better titles are available - (let's go negative ?) Would be great. Why the 1) subject 2) contrast 3) negative space is almost the perfect magic triangle. How does this work with shots that you take, or want to take. Why negative space is not always needed or when it shouldn't be used. What does it add to a picture and what does it take away. All questions that I think would talk about the taxonomy of taking photos.
Amazing idea - let me see what I can do 😎
Great video and great photos
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for leaving a comment and supporting the channel
Wow really good series of pictures. Keep posting! 👌🏻
Thank you so much for your kind words and for commenting! Plenty more videos to come :)
So true about why your settings are of no use to anyone else.
Thank you dude - It kinda frustrates me how lots of photographers share them knowing they aren't helpful. It's a real beginner trap IMO
Cracking job JP - great content so keep the vids a rollin' in.
Yooo thank you my dude 🙌 appreciate that! Many more vids to come
Again - great video and contribution. Thank you for taking us along!
As for achieving a larger number of "hits", two thoughts, perhaps, if I may.
(1) You mentioned it yourself briefly near the beginning: Limit the number of free degrees and you can more easily focus on what comes along (great composition, great posture, colours, ...) You gave the example of setting up in a location and "work it".
(2) Something I recently read from another photographer. Tried it, and it works. Set yourself "triggers" for making a photograph. (A more circumstantial "game-of-the-mind-way" of limiting degrees of freedom.) The way he described it is: Choose a trigger - a colour, hand movements, light & shadow, ... which automatically puts you in "pull the trigger mode". You may miss out on other opportunities, but you're primed. Funny, really. (I believe you veered into this area a few videos ago when you told us about "theme of the day". Triggers can be much simpler than a theme.)
Then, again, there are outings where total freedom is the word.
Yo yo yo Christine - Thank you for your insights again!
Yes- was it Mike Chudley's video? Triggers are so interesting and definitely a topic I've loosely thought about previously, but that video really made triggers front of my mind. I think my triggers are interesting light, moments/expressions, and patterns.
What would you say are your triggers?
@@JamesParsons1 Yes, Mike Chudley took up this idea, too, and had a number of photographers explaining their triggers. I think I first encountered this idea in a book by Jay Maisel ... My personal standard triggers certainly include "shapes that stand out" and "people gesticulating". That doesn't mean that I automatically make a photograph in those trigger moments but rather they make me look and look closer. I'm not exactly quick on the trigger itself (bad pun).
Fuji Gang Fuji Gang Fuji Gang
FUJI GANG FUJI GANG FUJI GANG Welcome my dude!!
Very nice video! Enjoyed the flow of it.
Thank you my dude! I try to work on the flow of my videos so that means a lot to me :) appreciate the comment and your support 🙌🙌
Great images again James. If you see that glitch in the Matrix walk past again, can you follow him, I’m dying to find out 1. Where he was going ? 2. What’s in the bag?
Also I liked the advice about number of photos taken Vs Keepers for the video.
Cheers.
Ahah thank you my dude
Thanks for a great video, James!
Glad you enjoyed it Peter! Thanks for commenting my dude
Very nice content. I enjoy watching street photographers work their craft. Living in a rural area, street photography is very rare for me.
Thank you very much my dude
@8:32 he always wears fantastic clothes and works in the area, I live nearby. Saw you a month ago at Oxford circus by the way with a few others. Was going to say hello but didn't.
HI James yes your right I enjoyed this latest I think for me it’s difficult to actually choose my favourite shot they are all VERY good !! You like being by the Thames it certainly is a place for photographic opportunities > Enjoy James it certainly shows your enthusiasm for street photography. Have a great Day Mike
Big love Mike
@@JamesParsons1 thanks for the love James I need some of that now.
I love your stuff as you know only wish that I could travel a bit and capture what I have in my mind at times. You make up for it fir me. Thanks James
You have provided very insightful commentaries. I noticed that you never asked for permission to take a photo, but, did you ask the couple in the beautiful kissing scene?
Thank you dude! No need to ask in the UK, our laws state that if you are in public, you are able to be photographed. The two kissing were definitely too distracted to notice me taking a photo of them ahaha. Thanks for commenting my man
dunno if im gonna buy this but your pics look amazing
Congrats on the 3K dude! You deserve it. And yes your favourite is my favourite too!
Thank you my man
@@JamesParsons1 When I saw that shot in the beginning, I just had to stop the vid and comment!
Dayyyum - Thats the best compliment on an image ahah
Great video! Quick question, how did and what did you use to blur out the lady’s face at 1:50?
Thank you dude! Great question - I used the frosted glass effect in photoshop. Lots of easy 2 minute tutorials on UA-cam about how to do it :)
Stellar content, great photos! Congrats with the 3 k subs, you deserve far faaaaaaaaar more :)
Keep it up! And GREAT point about NOT sharing your settings. So many run after the proclaimed gold at the end of the rainbow, sure its a nice solid chase but..
Learn the basics. What shutter speed do I need to freeze motion, what shutter speed do I need to create motion and HOW does my F stopp affect the depth of field and my shutter speed :)
And take photos, alot of them :)
You really are a Day 1 - supporting me since I was a teeny lil UA-camr. I'm genuinely so grateful for your consistent support
nice shots man amazing
Thank you very much dude
Great images. Question regarding the image at 1:49 Is that frosted glass in front of the eyes photo shopped ?
Thank you very much dude! Yes - I should have made it more clear, I added the frosted glass effect in photoshop. There's lots of tutorials on UA-cam for Frosted Glass effect if you wanted to learn :) I enjoy playing around with design elements to add to the story
LOL at the Matrix joke haha. Love this video, keep it up!
Ahahaha glad you liked it 😎 The computers controlling the world did me a big solid generating him ahaha. Appreciate the love
this is the difference be,tween the old masters like henri cartier bresson and the " streetmachinegunshooters"... henri took a few rolls of film and made good pics, todays photographers make 1000 photos and luckily there are good ones in between....😉
Ahaha thats an interesting take with some truth to it. But a question for you. Why was Henri so good? Like what do you think made him able to take good photos vs photographers now?
@@JamesParsons1 ..well, i think there are something different...: back in time there were less people on the streets, less photographers...maybe the people in the streets were more interested in photography, today they are afraid- to much Smartphones...henri was a trained artist, studied painting...had talend to know or see what comes in scenes...had always the perfect composition in mind...he was assist in making films, and of course there were just film....so he knew a roll had 24/36 pics..not more...no chance to make 1000 pics in one shooting...he MUST open the eyes and the mind....to find a storytelling scene...
Greets BM
Great thoughts- I agree with most of it! Thanks for sharing 🙌
Bravo! 👏
Merci Pablo
So much ”story” in 01:37! Good catch!
Yesss my dude! I was so happy with that frame. It was quite funny as I was next to them for quite a while trying to use my 35mm like a telephoto lol and the kid was so scared of the canons going off. The boat was there for 20 minutes and didn't fire a single canon ahaha
So I was super happy to get a good capture of how the lil dude was feeling
Bro the shot at 0:18 is 🔥🔥🔥
Myyy man - Hope you enjoyed that image when it came back around later in the video ;)
When is the
X100VI coming out?
No idea - not for a few years I imagine!!
How is that focus on a Fujifilm camera, as in single point focus, I assume being used? Are there more than one or two miss-focused each shoot?
One more question, do you ever use 50mm equivalent field of view? Take care, Loren
Yeah I think that the single point is pretty good, not perfect but you get better at knowing what the camera is gonna do so you can adapt to it.
I miss shots from time to time but it’s not the end of the world :)
I am really tempted to shoot with a fixed 50mm for an extended period of time, I find I crop my images quite hard. Buuuttt that being said, maybe shooting at 35mm allows me to crop to 50mm with ease?
Do you recommend it?
So you captured the Swedish ship Gothenburg on its way to China ;D
Yes yes yes - At the time of recording I am not going to lie, I couldn't remember the Gothenburg's name ahah. A truly graceful ship that I am very glad I got to see it IRL
Are you shooting with fuji recipes or do you edit raw photos coming out the camera?
I edit all of my photos RAW. Although I love what some people can achieve SOOC, I prefer to have the additional creative control over my work :)
what settings do you used for this video sir thank you!!
Quality than Quantity
Thank you Jizehl! I appreciate the love. Do you mean for the simulation or for the camera?
@@JamesParsons1 both of them please
I don’t share the camera settings I use because they change depending on light and editing can completely change the look of an image.
That having been said, I have free presets at my buymeacoffee.com link in the description. Feel free to download them :)
Does it matter where you go in London. Every corner there is a click.
Just spoilt for choice in that city. 👍
EVERYWHERE there is something to shoot. We are definitely very spoilt to be able to wander around and capture so much right on our doorstep
Not in regards to exposure settings, but do you use a particular film simulation as a starting point?
Whats up Kevin - Yep, I use the Classic Chrome and Acros (+R) Simulation as my base simulation for most of what I do :) I've got free presets at the BuyMeACoffee.com link if you wanted to use them yourself! Don't feel the need to get me a coffee, download the presets and have a play!
@@JamesParsons1 I had a feeling on the Acros! BW really shows the light the best when using the screen/EVF. Coffee incoming!
Duuuuuude thank you so much for the coffees! Appreciate it man!! Complete agree with you about using Acros to seeeeeee light. Being able to change the EVF to see in B&W was soooo eye opening for me
really curious about this: did you censored the face of that woman in front of the number 5? was it for some reason? you didn't seem to do the same for anyone else, photo or video
What’s up dude - great question. I was playing around in Lightroom with the frosted glass effect and thought it looked really cool over her face giving a sort of spy vibe. My only motivator was to make the image to look cooler not about hiding identity or anything :)
@@JamesParsons1 oh ok, that was really confusing for me 😅
Ahh my apologies - next time i'll make it clearer
At 11:47 you say that if there is a large distance between subject and background, background will be blurry even at narrow aperture. Isn’t the point of a narrow aperture so that doesn’t happen?
Hey dude - Great thinking and question. You are right a narrower aperture or larger F-stop will give us more depth of field, but the distance between our subject relative to our sensor and the background can also affect the depth of field.
With your camera, set your aperture wide open and take 2 photos. One at close to the minimum focusing distance, and one at something far away. You'll notice that there is a wider area of whats in focus when your camera is focussing on something in the distance.
When might we want to use a small aperture and still have a narrow depth of field? When we have a subject that we want to be in full focus and they are close to us, but the background might be distracting. This could be product photography, when we want our product to be sharp and to take up the whole frame (which means we need it to be close to us) and our models face to be slightly obscured. Or it could be street photography when we have an interesting subject walking towards us and we want to create seperation between them and the background.
Essentially, the closer we focus towards our camera, the shallower depth of field we get.
And this explains why macro lenses that are used to focus on things SUPER close have crazy small apertures (like f40+) to get what ever they are photographing sharp
@@JamesParsons1 Thanks for taking the time to give such a thorough answer. Much appreciated!
No worries dude! Always happy to help, feel free to ask more questions as they pop up :)
what film simulation do you use?
I use Acros as a base and then play around with the edit in post :) would you find an editing video useful?
Are you a full time photographer or do you have another job to make the bills?
Full time photographer / videographer my dude :) got to be super organised to try squeeze in YT between shoots
Though there are other renowned brands which people have been clicking street photography, why Fujifilm comes first, whenever I seek photos clicked in street photography!
This is not today, whenever I search photos clicked in street, always Fujifilm comes first. I think UA-cam is doing partiality! by showing Fujifilm, giving less importance to other brands.
Am i wrong, or fir street photography, Fujifilm is the emperor.
Please, kindly answer.
Great question. I think there is a couple of reasons.
- Fuji cameras are designed for street photographers, they are smaller, lighter and don't look as intimidating compared to a big Sony/ Canon. Therefore the people who are into street are more likely to use these products.
- I'd say Leica is MORE street photography orientated, buuuut as these cameras are photo only and no video ability, it means they probably aren't as likely to shoot videos.
- There is a lot of overlap within the fuji community, people who watch my videos also watch mainly other fuji shooters. So if you click on one of our videos and watch it, YT suggests more.
let me know if this makes sense :)
do you use a diffusion filter?
Yo dude - Nope. I have 0 accessories for the X100V other than adding a wrist strap :) I've considered getting one but never got round to it
@@JamesParsons1 that's crazy! some of your photos look dreamy! I'd love to see a video covering Film sims you like, or run an gun settings. As always Love the content, keeping sharing your art!
Dude thank you so much! I always drop the texture, clarity and dehaze in allllllll of my photos which creates this effect. I then like adding back in contrast with the contrast slider!
I've got free presets at the BuyMeACoffee.com link if you wanted to use them yourself! Don't feel the need to get me a coffee, download the presets and have a play!
What's your favourite focusing technique?
I use auto single servo and spam the shutter button lol, I've found that generally gives me the photos I am looking for
I also prefer using the larger spot area vs zone or wide. Just gives me that little bit more control :)
Are you professor?
Not yet my friend! Maybe one day :)
For example… 1:11 … a professional would’ve taken the photo of the boy on his dad’s head looking straight into the lens instead of a photo of people taking photos with their phones.
The way to avoid that is to learn to see yourself in everything around you, instead of taking photos for a style and empty your head when you’re shooting. You shouldn’t be thinking about anything.
If you find yourself thinking a lot about shots to get for likes on Instagram then you’re fucked. But most people do that anyway.
The juxtaposition shot. The frame within a frame shot. The person walking in front of a graffiti wall shot. Etc etc. all the cliches.
You are exactly right, in hindsight and with the super wide angle GoPro it’s kinda obvious what I was shooting.
No one is the perfect photographer and we all miss great opportunities. The goal is to miss less and less
Buy you a coffee. Are you kidding me?
Hey John - thanks for your comment. No worries if you’d rather watch the videos for free, there is 0 obligation to buy me a coffee.
That having been said over 100 people have bought me a coffee as a thank you for creating these videos, which take about 18+ hours of dedicated time per video to create.
Hope you have a dope day 🙌