A wedding photographer or a street photographer in NYC?

Some photographers get confused as to what In am, a street photographer or a wedding photographer? The answer is both…and neither. Confused? Don’t be, photography to me is just photography, I try not to label what I do or how I do it even though you’ll obviously see me calling myself a documentary wedding photographer that’s more so people can get an idea in their heads as to what I do.

Technically I do street photography at weddings, which came first? Street photography, it’s where I learned to be a photographer of people then I started shooting weddings but thought wedding photography was boring (a bit too stiff and contrived for my liking) so I just shot weddings how I shot for myself, how I shoot all my personal work, so it’s street / social documentary at weddings.

Anyway back to the pictures, a few from NYC during a trip just before lockdown. They are literally snapshots, it wasn’t a photography trip but as with everything I wanted to take some pictures along the way, so I did, this time with my rather old and battered xpro1 & 18mm lens.

*Tip - if you click on the first image you get to see them in all their hi-resolution glory (they look bigger and better)

The fujifilm xpro1 for street photography in 2020…why?

I own faster Fujifilm cameras, ones with more megapixels, ones with better focus capability, better everything in fact. Why then do I insist on using the xpro1 for a lot of my personal stuff?

I like it, it’s slow, the evf lags like mad, the buffer is crap but I like it. Why you may ask? As a photographer relying on the latest and greatest technology to capture a moment makes you less of a photographer, if you have to lean on technology to get a picture you’re missing the point of photography, especially something like street photography.

For me it’s all about seeing the moment before I want to take a picture, photography is more about observation, people watching and vision than it is about who’s got the fasted autofocus and can take the most number of pictures per second.

Personally I’m a one shot per scene photographer, while my newer cameras would allow me to take hundreds of pictures a minute, that kind of spray and pray attitude isn’t going to improve my photography a single bit. I’m a big believer in shooting with intention, knowing what you want and seeking it rather than simply taking lots of pictures and hoping there’s something good in there somewhere.

The fujifilm 18mm f2 lens - why?

The Fuji 18mmf2 prime, the only lens I ever need! Anyone who knows anything about how I work will already know I’m a huge fan of fujifilm’s runt of the litter lens the 18mm f2.

I get a lot of questions as to why, given it’s ‘on paper’ shortfalls. It boils down to two main points:

1. I like the FOV (field of view).

2. It’s small and unobtrusive.

That’s it really. I’m not interested in sharpness or af speed or optics or micro contrast one bit. The field of view, photographically for me is the most important element, I can frame pictures in my mind before I’ve lifted my camera, when I’m shooting I don’t need to look at the viewfinder or rear lcd screen because I know exactly where things are going to be already. I guess that’s one of the advantages of focusing on one specific fov, it becomes second nature.

For me, being unobtrusive is key to the way I work, sure the Fuji 16mm is sharper and faster at focusing and gathers more light, but they aren’t as important to the way I photograph as size. The 16 is bigger and heavier and while for some photographers the other benefits are worthy compromises, they aren’t as high up the priority list for me. I mean jees I use an xpro 1 for my personal work ffs, if I wanted speed I’m certainly barking up toe wrong tree!

If you would like to inquire about my availability to photograph your wedding day, please use the form below to get in touch.