‘Ask the Street Photographer’ - Les Telford
In this regular feature I ask you, the street photographer, 10 questions. This month it’s Les Telford, from Kendal, in the hot seat . . .
How did you get started as a street photographer - and why? I bought my first camera (an Instamatic 50) in 1965 for a day trip to France with my primary school class. I then got more serious on starting my degree in 1974 (via a Zenith E and a couple of 35mm compacts), culminating in buying an Olympus OM-1 (I still have it!) in January 1976. Although I photographed anything and everything at that stage and had certainly never heard the term “street photography”, I was clearly drawn in particular towards candid shots of people and situations. A lively university city certainly provided more opportunities than a sleepy Sussex village. The first of my photos featured here, a dad who overestimated the thickness of the ice on a paddling pool, was taken the day after buying the OM-1.
What part does street photography play in your life today? Street photography (shooting, editing and post-processing, reading, watching YouTube videos) is my main activity, having dispensed with the inconvenience of work a couple of years ago. I get rather restless if I haven’t had a day out somewhere for a while. Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow and Edinburgh can all be reached from my home in Kendal within a couple of hours or so, and Blackpool is not too far down the road. Although Kendal is small and doesn’t offer the wealth of opportunities found in larger cities, I still carry a camera with me whenever I’m out.
How would you describe your photographic style? Although I enjoy the diversity of styles that I see from other street photographers, including StreetSnappers, I am definitely a paid-up member of the “moment” school (so “Observed” incidentally very much appeals to me). I enjoy trying to find humorous or absurd moments, often involving the juxtaposition of people and words (I blame a career as a linguist!).
What’s the worst experience you’ve had on the streets? At the Whitby Goth Weekend one year a conventionally dressed man was less than happy that I’d photographed him plus his wife and daughter (both in full-on goth). A quick glance at the LCD showed it wouldn’t survive the first cull when back at home anyway, so it was no loss to delete the image. Given the huge number of photographers that this event always attracts, the man probably had a thoroughly miserable day.
What single thing would improve your street photography? Learning to stand still more often and let things come to me! I seem to cover a lot of miles during a day’s street photography, convinced that the next prize-winning shot is just around the corner. But what if it’s behind me and I just need to wait and let it overtake me?
What are your views on analogue / film photography? Do you shoot film - or do you plan to? If not, why not? People are welcome to photograph in whatever way they wish to – digital, film, mobile phone, pinhole, 10x8 plate camera... I still, very occasionally, shoot film, with a slightly newer OM-1 than the one referred to above. But it’s an expensive luxury. And life’s too short to listen to people trying to tell me that film is, of course, the better and, indeed, the only proper way.
If you could spend the day shooting with one photographer, dead or alive, who would it be? Joel Meyerowitz and Matt Stuart would both certainly be high on my wishlist, though Bruce Gilden wouldn’t. However, I would choose to spend a day with Tony Ray-Jones, in part because it would be a privilege to share a whole day of TRJ’s regrettably short life.
Black & white or colour? Both. I seem to go in phases without any discernible rhyme or reason, a benefit of digital photography that is simultaneously a drawback. One solution, of course, would be to buy a Leica Monochrom…
What gear do you use - and why? I have a Leica M-P with 35mm and 50mm lenses. Shortly before Covid I added a Leica Q2 with autofocus (for ageing eyes 😕) and a fixed 28mm lens, a focal length that seemed ridiculously wide just three months later! Why Leica? Once my mortgage was paid off, I decided I could indulge myself! And, for someone with my background (I was a freelance German-English technical translator for almost all of my working life, though Leica was sadly never a customer), Leica was the obvious choice. 35mm is my favourite lens, though the 50mm lens has seen more use since the start of the pandemic. I also have a Ricoh GRIIIx with a 40mm-equivalent lens that I won in the Street Photography International Awards 2022. It won’t replace my Leicas, but it’s a very practical little camera that slips neatly into a pocket, ideal for those just-in-case occasions.
What does the next 12 months hold for you? Continuing to make the most of the opportunities – and time! - that retirement offers. More snapping, mostly solitary as that tends to be the nature of the street photography beast, but also including occasional days out with other StreetSnappers. A zine or two, I hope. Walking, cycling and a few trips away in our campervan.
Here’s how you can contact Les:
Instagram: @les.telford
Twitter: @les_telford
Flickr: flickr.com/fotospike
