10 - Creative shock therapy, aspect ratios, my workflow, street portraits - and why Lisbon?
London can make you feel like you have lost your eye. You walk for days, you chase the same old 'street moments', and somehow the city gives you nothing back. We talk candidly about that exact feeling and why it is not just a bad patch, it can be a sign that your work needs a real change. The big question I keep returning to is simple: if you do what you have always done, will you get what you've always got?
To jolt the creativity back into motion, Imake a serious commitment: from 1 July I am shooting black and white only, on a 28mm lens only, for at least six months. No colour. No swapping focal lengths. Just one tight creative constraint designed to change how I really notice light, shape, gesture and composition. If you have been stuck with street photography, documentary photography, or your personal projects, this is a practical experiment you can borrow.
I also answer listener questions with a no-nonsense post-shoot workflow: importing and culling fast in Photo Mechanic, embedding copyright and keyword metadata for archiving and SEO, then doing only basic darkroom-style edits in Adobe Camera Raw or Photoshop.
From there we jump into one of my favourite photo books, Sergio Larrain’s 'London 1959', I share thoughts on cropping and aspect ratios and I have a big rant about empty street portraits made without purpose. Finally, we head to Lisbon with a detailed street photography guide covering light, neighbourhoods and how to get around.
Thanks for tuning into the StreetSnappers Street Photography Podcast. Do subscribe for the next show, share this with a photographer who feels stuck, and, if it resonates, leave a review so more people can find the podcast.
LINKS:
Sergio Larrain's book 'London 1959' - here
Subscribe to Brian's street photography newsletter - here
Book a street photography workshop with Brian - www.streetsnappers.com
