No matter which country you go to in the world, from the largest metropolises to the smallest cities, you can encounter a unique work of art in an unexpected corner. Street art appears at the most unexpected moment. The branch of photography that photographers who immortalize street art are interested in is known as street art photography. Street art photography artists follow the art found on the streets at all times and try to make this art permanent and immortal wherever they find it.

It is really difficult to photograph the art and works of art you can see on the streets. These works of art may appear unexpectedly in the most difficult situations. However, as long as you keep in mind the tips I will offer you, you can achieve results quickly in these moments.

What are Street Arts and Where to find them?

In order to do street art photography, you must first understand what street art is. Street art is any work of art that you can see in a public space. In other words, murals and graffiti that you can see especially on walls or floors in different cities of the world can be called street art. In fact, works such as sculptures, video broadcasts and digital works that you can see in cities represent street art.

Street art is a type of art that security forces have tried to prevent in many countries around the world in the recent past, and which people stubbornly continue to do despite facing very harsh consequences. However, today, people who own public property, local governments and security forces create areas for young people to engage in street art at certain points in cities. While street art adds color to a city, it creates great works of art, whether with political messages, musical works, or just aesthetic concerns or imagination.

To do street art photography, you also need to know where to find street art. Even though works such as graffiti have served as a backdrop for street photography hundreds of times before, you can create much more impressive and enjoyable photos with your mastery. You can search on Google where you can find street art in the cities you will visit. You can wander around the streets and examine the walls of old buildings, train stations or walls in neighbourhoods.

What is required for Street Art Photography?

Nowadays, in order to do street art photography perfectly, it is not necessary to use dozens of different equipment and have a very good camera. If you want to join this trend, you can even benefit from a high-quality and high-quality smartphone camera today. But if you definitely want to use a camera, you can shoot with a DSLR, that is, a digital camera you own.

If you want to use a smartphone for street photography, you can take advantage of many of today’s smartphones that are developing in terms of cameras. For example, you can take advantage of the opportunity to switch between different lenses on iPhone models, or use different camera applications on Android smartphones and even shoot in 4K quality.

People who are professionally interested in street art photography generally prefer to use a professional DSLR camera or film camera for best results. In this way, lens selection can be easily made, aperture settings can be made, depth, shutter and light settings can be made to provide a fully controlled photo shoot. You can achieve a better result by choosing the right lens for the photographs you will take, depending on the size of the background or the work.

When you generally use a 50 mm lens in this type of shooting, it will be possible to photograph many street art works in urban areas. However, of course, if you are going to work on much larger works, you can also use a wide-angle lens. When we look at the additional needs for street art photographers, we can of course talk about daily needs in accordance with your city and climate.

Since you will have a fast-paced and tiring day of photography, wearing it comfortably will be of great help to you. In other words, depending on the climate, it will be beneficial to go shooting with comfortable shoes and clothes, and enough food and water to be able to shoot in sunlight, especially on a day when there is no rain or snow. While it would be beneficial to have a tripod with you for day or night shooting, a sturdy backpack to carry your equipment will also be really necessary.

Top Tips for Street Art Photography

In general terms, when photographing moving or still objects in photography, it is necessary to make certain planning in both indoor and outdoor areas. In other words, every point should be emphasized, such as where the light comes from, what the angle is, which camera should be used, what the lens should be, how the work should be used or what the background should be. Therefore, in a much more sensitive field such as street art photography, it is necessary to follow a good path to create the best photo, often in a busy part of the city or sometimes in a dark spot under a bridge.

Prepare a Good Plan

To do street art photography, you must first determine the route you will shoot and look for the most suitable time of day for this route, the best time for light, and the most reliable moment for shooting. Because wherever you are in the world, the points where you can find street art can sometimes cause security problems. Sometimes, more than one street art piece, that is, graffiti, can form a jumbled background in your area. You can create a shooting schedule by meeting the necessary needs in order to make the best use of your fund in order to shoot in the right weather conditions at the best light time of the day.

Examine the Work from Different Perspectives

Street art works may not produce the desired aesthetic result when photographed from a single point. In other words, when you stand in front of a graffiti and take a straight photo when there is good light, you may pass by the work without capturing many small details. You can get more spectacular images from different angles by photographing this work, sometimes from a very close and sometimes very distant point, from the top of a building, behind a tree or from the edge of a window.

Use Different Elements

In order to obtain colourful and more beautiful images in street horse photography, the artist makes the photograph more special by taking advantage of changing elements. For example, you can add a small object to this frame that can make a wall photo you see much more meaningful.

You can sometimes use a person in front of the backdrop, sometimes use different objects, combine a car with a street art backdrop, or use a stand-alone backdrop. When you bring together a person dressed appropriately for street art with this work, you can put forward a message.

Using different elements and actually combining this work with different objects allows you to express your personal idea and purpose. In some works, people may not have noticed the message or aesthetics in the work for years. However, with this detail you add, people can make this street art in your photos much more meaningful.

Respect Street Art

Street art works that you can use and enjoy in your photographs with endless alternatives not only provide you with a space but also give pleasure to people. When working in such areas, you should not take photographs that will disturb people and harm the public for a very long time. When taking a portrait, a background shot or a natural shot in such areas, it is important to continue your work while respecting the environment and without damaging the work.

These are the works of the artist who creates works such as street arts and graffiti, with a certain idea and to give a message. If you want to generate income by creating a photograph with this work, you should be able to present a new idea beyond the artist’s idea by creating your own compositions. In this way, you can present your artwork to people with confidence.

Use Correct Shooting Techniques

You can shoot using HDR technology on your cameras to improve the light at the most important point. Nowadays, this technology is also included in phones; it takes several quick shots in a row and helps you choose among better photos. You can capture much better photographs when you capture the correct aperture by paying particular attention to the aperture settings on professional cameras.

Street art photography is a challenging field and the conditions are more complex than studio photography or nature photography. Therefore, it is necessary to be patient and be prepared at all times, especially to capture spontaneous shots. You will also have the chance to capture different castles as you can find a new work for street photography at any time during your trips to different cities of the world.

See you in the next post,

Anil UZUN