Snapshot Philadelphia by Marissa Pina

Snap Shot Philadelphia

ÂŠ Copyright 2015 Temple University Photojournalism Photo Seminar class of 2015 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form, without written permission from the publisher. 4

Contributors Maggie Andresen, Harrison Brink, Yuxuan Jia, Matthew Leister, Robert Kennedy, Matt McGraw, Marissa Nicole Pina, Joe Schaefer, Brianna Spause, Kathryn Stellato, Aaron Windhorst, Ashley Kane, Phylandra McFaddin, Holli Stephens, Jared Whalen, Eddie Durkin, Kelsey Stanger, Kelsey Dubinsky, Emily Ganser.

Table of Contents 9/foreward 74/journey of faces 12/Wherever it takes you 80/f/.8 and be there 20/a city like no other 84/Catching moments 28/That sense of 88/miss one and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s gone adventure 96/Spontaneous 36/your golden 102/Behind the lens opportunity 106/35 frames 44/through my lens 110/hidden among others 48/Capturing culture 116/opening your eyes 58/experiencing broad 124/finding beauty street 128/The streets 66/Life uninterrupted 132/rediscovery 6

Snapshot Philadelphia

Photo by Yuxuan Jia 8

Shooting for the moment “Any picture that I’ve ever done that was really worth anything, I was terrified the entire time I was shooting it.”

-Jay Maisel 9

Snapshot Philadelphia

Wherever It Takes You Maggie Andresen

Snap shooting, contrary to what some definitions may suggest, is not street photography. Snap shooting at its most basic form is capturing what you see, wherever the day takes you. For this particular assignment, our vision was encouraged to feature people, and for those people not to notice our taking of their photograph. This proved much harder than I expected, in fact I was pretty discouraged at points in my shooting because I have gone out to shoot street style on many occasions; never before had I been given the challenge of not having the subject notice me. Shooting from the hip is a pretty dismal option for me, because we were told to capture our subjects without longer telephoto-style lenses I used my 50 mm prime; mine is a manually focused lens and can’t really be trusted to offer me 100% focus. The subjects I picked, therefore, were always focused on other things. They waited for buses, slept, were on lunch breaks or in separate subway cars, played with dogs or children, or just smoked a cigar in the park. I enjoyed experimenting with shooting through glass in three of my final pictures. The first was through a subway car, with the orange light from the tunnel lighting the other car. After that, I followed a woman for a while who was wearing a lovely hat, and wanted to get a picture of her next to a reflective store window so there would be two of her. Finally, I saw a woman eating lunch in a store front-level window, and a woman was outside standing nearby so I wanted to capture both in the frame, though they were separated by glass. The glass method was a bit more artistic and less journalistic, but

this assignment was more about making interesting pictures than hard news value. There were several situations that I really wanted to take pictures of that I ran into, but had I pulled out my camera it would have been totally obvious and ruined the purpose of the assignment. However, in these moments where I had to give up the shot, I felt the phrase from the documentary “If you’re not afraid to loose it, it was never really a great picture,” because those were times when I was afraid and a little angry that I had to give up the shot. I was inspired by Brianna to begin a Tumblr to showcase my photographs, and to begin a following. Joe’s Tumblr is wildly successful, and I want to mirror that. I went pretty minimalist with the whole thing, to be honest I took a ton of pictures and wasn’t a fan of most of them. Of the ones I did post, only two of them are photographs that I am satisfied with. But not every project is inspiring to all involved, and I tried to keep that in mind as I put my final efforts together, even as I was frustrated with my lack of inspiration for this project. However, one thing I was left without a doubt about is that I need to work on being surreptitious as I shoot. Sometimes being a female and toting a camera around is a boon, and other times it can be a dangerous situation. Regardless, in both of those situations the camera is key. This project highlighted my need to start working on covert photography as well as bringing my inspiration with me no matter what. 13

Center City and North Philadelphia.

Photo by Alisa Miller 14

Snapshot Philadelphia

Maggie Andresen

Snapshot Philadelphia

Maggie Andresen

A City Like No Other Joe Schaefer

Philadelphia is a city like no other. I always like to describe Philly as a big city with a small neighborhood vibe. As a photographer in this city, everyday is something new. You can be walking through North Philadelphia surrounded by street basketball games and make shift carwashes, make a sharp left turn, and find yourself in the heart of a Spanish culture. Bang another turn and you’ll be walking down Kensington Avenue passing by 50 year old businesses and newly opened Asian Cuisine stores. This assignment came as challenge to me because I’m not use to photographing people without their acknowledgment. I believe street portraits and street photography are more successful with direct acknowledgement with the subject being photographed. While it is interesting to see a photo where the subject is in it’s natural environment with no awareness of the camera, I believe the majority of those photographs aren’t as pivotal as direct acknowledgment with the subject. Having said that, this assignment was challenging and fun to be part of. It created a unique challenge and made me leave my comfort zone. While this isn’t a form of photography I plan on pursuing I will say that I was pleased with some of the images I’ve gotten from this past week of shooting. Words don’t come as easy to me as photos do, that’s why I like to let my work speak for itself. Philadelphia doesn’t need much explanation besides the fact that it’s a city with a tough exterior shell and a constantly changing inner culture.

Joe Schaefer

Snapshot Philadelphia

Joe Schaefer

Kensington and Chinatown.

Snapshot Philadelphia

Joe Schaefer

Snapshot Philadelphia

That Sense of Adventure Kathryn Stellato

“I hate you and I hate you for dragging me out of my warm bed and I’m going to kill you in the dead of night, Kathryn Ann.” “That seems incredibly violent for someone who wanted to see a Philadelphia sunrise, you buttmunch.” “IT IS 30ISH DEGREES. I’M AUSTRALIAN. THIS ISN’T REAL WEATHER.” I have spent the last two years listening to my best friend Pete, who hails from the land down under; complain endlessly about not seeing a Philadelphia sunrise. Despite my various attempts to get him to agree to go see a sunrise with me in October (“OCTOBER LIGHT PETER GABRIEL, ITS AN ACTUAL THING.”) he finally agreed to come out with me to see a sunrise for snap shooting. In January. In the cold. Where I spent a subsequent two hours listening to him complain about the cold. There were some minor regrets. Snap shooting to me was a way to get out and just take pictures of anything that inspired me. I had music going in one ear and Pete complaining in the other, which pretty much summarizes my snap shooting experience. I like to take pictures without any real agenda. If it was up to me, I would have taken about 600 more pictures of various parts of nature but people are important too. It was awesome to walk around and take photos of anything that really caught my attention. It was fun just to go do. In snap shooting, you have no agenda. You go see what you can find what you can. I liked that sense of adventure that came with it. I loved walking around and just shooting. And if I had to buy my best friend a drink at Starbucks to get him to shut up, it was okay. He carried me up the Ben Franklin Bridge via piggyback and then watched a sunrise with me. Not a bad way to start the day. Correction: there were zero regrets.

Old City, and Ambler.

Snapshot Philadelphia

Kathryn Stellato

Your Golden Opportunity Matt McGraw

Every day, the streets of Philadelphia are packed with people. People going to work or headed to school or making a trip to the store. Some have lived in Philly their entire lives while others may just be visiting for the day. Regardless of their reasons and motivations, these individuals are all a part of this city, and each have their own stories to capture in a photograph. Street photography is the one medium where these stories can be expressed in a way that doesn’t use a single word. One picture can tell an entire story all by itself, and that’s what makes it so beautiful. Anything can tell a tale, from a man playing a xylophone for money, to a child happily chasing after a bouncing ball. Even inanimate objects such as a person’s vehicle or an old abandoned church can display a story. The difficulty isn’t in finding a story to tell; after all, stories surround us. The difficulty comes in capturing the true essence of a story in a photograph. When shooting on the street, you need to be observant. You need to be quick on your feet. You need to be able to visualize your shot and react in a second or you’ll miss your golden opportunity and you won’t get it back. Snap shooting is the art of being able to capture a photo not of a stationary, posing subject, but one that is in motion—one that is living and breathing and doing. Getting the right angle and the right moment isn’t easy, but when you can pull it off, it’s always worth the effort. For this particular photo shoot, I went to Rittenhouse Square in South Philadelphia, and also walked east up Girard Street from Broad to Parrish and explored that region of the city. The culmination of my efforts resulted in a nice mixture 36 36

of still photographs with a range of topics from people to animals to buildings. Every picture tells a completely separate tale of its very own and when put together, all these accounts give one a greater sense of the city of brotherly love. There is a quote from street photographer Elliot Erwitt in which he stated that, “photography is an art of observation. It’s about finding something interesting in an ordinary place… I’ve found it has little to do with the things you see and everything to do with the way you see them.” Erwitt, a master at finding the beauty in the mundane, shares this lesson with prospective street photographers in the hope that they too can capture the diamond in the rough, and just maybe tell someone’s tale while doing so.

Matt McGraw

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Snapshot Philadelphia

Matt McGraw

Rittenhouse and Girard.

Snapshot Philadelphia

Through My Lens Kelsey Stanger

The idea of capturing people on the street in genuine real moments is quite terrifying. While walking around the city there is so much life to take in. Everyone is in their own world going about their own lives. To go out with the intention of capturing this without their knowledge or permission feels intrusive and a bit like stealing. While observing the continuous motion of the city around me everything seemed to flow as one giant picture with everyone having their own part to play. I than began to focus on individual people. While walking through city hall I sat for a few minutes and watched the ice skaters at the new Rothman Ice Rink at Dilworth Park. I watched couples, families, and single skaters as they made their way around the rink over and over again. Every one of them was there for the same reason, but each with a completely different story.

the most real and genuine look into the time and place of the image. It is truly an accurate representation on the moment in which it was taken. While I personally donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think snap shooting produces the most pleasing photos to look at, it definitely produces the most real.

I found the most inspiration in the many pairs of couples sharing the experience together. From young to old it was clear that the joy on their faces wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t so much the fun of ice skating, but the excitement of sharing it with their loved one. Through my lens I watched as they laughed, held hands, and grabbed onto each other in an attempt to stay on their feet. I focused on the way they looked at each other and attempted the see the rest of the world in the same way as I continued shooting. While many of my shots were ruined at the last moment due to subjects noticing my attempt at capturing them in a photograph, I enjoyed observing people as they naturally are. Snap shooting is 45

Snapshot Philadelphia

Kelsey Stanger

Capturing Cultures Marissa Nicole Pina

Philadelphia is a city that is known for its diverse and various neighborhoods. Each neighborhood is distinct in its own way and has a magical way of transporting its visitors or residents to another place and time. Walking through two separate neighborhoods such as Kensington and Chinatown, camera in hand, posed an interesting challenge. I wanted to capture life the way I see it, as someone who is not a resident of either area. I found similarities in two separate areas in the city, which most people might glance over. Chinatown and Kensington could not be more opposite of each other, yet each neighborhood is alive and rich with its own culture. Kensington, an area most known for being wrought with crime and disparity between its neighbors, is often overlooked. Most people, even photographers, do their best to stay clear of the Avenue and all that comes along with a neighborhood once widely known as the Badlands. Yes, there is trash that lines the street and graffiti that covers the walls and businesses but if you were to look deeper you’d see something beautiful. There’s an interesting way the light falls onto Kensington Avenue through the cracks and beams supporting the El. The sunlight skips across sections of the street and is sprayed across different porches, steps, and people. On a grey day, the colors of each person’s clothes, an empty bottle, even the blue paint on the El stand out and pop against the washed out buildings. To me, Kensington is one of the most photogenic areas in Philadelphia. Most people warn me to be careful each time I venture past 10th Street, but I know that people 48

here have a different disposition to them. I enjoy spending my time talking to the people who make their home in an area most people run from. This is the one part of snapshooting I did not like. I do not like taking pictures of people without getting an understanding of their story. Inevitably I still enjoyed taking photos of the characters who make up Kensington. Chinatown in itself seems to be a selforganized, self-sustaining community apart from the rest of Philadelphia. Walking down Race Street, the minute you hit 10th Street the businesses begin to make a notable change, the dynamic of people feels different, and each sign is written in two languages: English and Chinese. Photographically, it is a wonder on its own. The culture of Chinatown never ceases to captivate me each time I go there. The elegance and splendor of the restaurants leave me craving each meal offered at every new place. Cooked ducks hang from windows. Residents clean the streets in neon vests and straw hats typically seen in rice fields. These things alone make Chinatown easily beautiful without even trying. Being captivated by these cultures is what keeps my job as a photographer interesting. There’s something about these places that keep me wandering through them, camera in hand. I think there’s something to be said about taking photos as you are left astounded by something. We all view the city in a different way, and these photos are my Philadelphia.

Marissa Nicole Pina

Chinatown and Kensington

Snapshot Philadelphia

Marissa Nicole Pina

Snapshot Philadelphia

Marissa Nicole Pina

Snapshot Philadelphia

Marissa Nicole Pina

Snapshot Philadelphia

Experiencing Broad Street Jared Whalen

The best subjects for photography are often discovered rather than pursued. If you have everything figured out before you step out of the door, you are already limiting your creative possibilities. It is sometimes best to let the environment speak to you. Go in without an agenda and let the story unravel before your eyes. On Monday, I walked up on Broad Street from City Hall to Temple University. Along the way, I found various examples of discovered stories. These stories, while simple, were fun to witness, especially in the setting of the approaching snowstorm. I saw children enjoying the first flurries of impending storm, businessmen and businesswomen rushing across crowed walkways to make it to work and families braving the winter weather. I saw people entering the frigid air out of necessity and those happily welcoming it. For me, the strongest takeaways were: one, shoot with an open mind and two, look for the pictures within pictures. When shooting for assignment, I often take portrait shots. While they may not necessarily be posed, they are thought out in my head before I take the photo. For this assignment, however, everything was on the spot. The most planning I could do was set myself up for an approaching subject in the few seconds before I have to take the shot. This form of snap shooting made think less and react more. Rather than over analyzing the shot, I just acted on instinct. While it is still a technique I need to develop, I found that after the first few shots I started to get the hang of it. I ended up really impressing myself with several of my images. Additionally, this type of shooting taught me the Jared Whalen

importance of shooting wide and looking for photos within photos. Rather than wasting time trying to frame the shot perfectly, I expose for a deep depth of focus, allowing me to crop more liberally. This is not a technique that applies to all forms of photojournalism, but it is a useful skill to understand and know how to use when needed. Overall, I really enjoyed this assignment. I liked being by myself with a camera in the midst of a crowd of people all unaware of my presence.

Broad Street from Temple to City Hall.

Snapshot Philadelphia

Jared Whalen

Snapshot Philadelphia

life uninterrupted Brianna Spause Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the human psyche is the tendency to alter oneself when others are watching. We pack on layers, and master the art of public deceit. Perhaps even more intriguing is the ability of a landscape to write its own narrative. Unabridged honesty reveals the true spirit of the city, and it is the goal of a street photographer to capture it. Welcome to a view of Philadelphia - Life, Uninterrupted. I have found that blending in with the streets is a pivotal exercise in capturing the essence of the city. To melt into the hustle is the ability to lose the intimidation factor that is presented by a camera. The point? By sly, be observant and be as unobtrusive as possible. A fly on the wall does not bother, they shoot. Essentially, we all seek to blend in. It is the things that naturally stand out that posses the most beauty. Simple things, such as the juxtaposition of color, or the way the light falls on a friendly face are what catch my eye. It was a refreshing exercise to venture out into the wild without an agenda, to capture what there was to be seen and share with the world what I may dare to see. 66

Snapshot Philadelphia

Brianna Spause

Snapshot Philadelphia

Brianna Spause

Old City,

Snapshot Philadelphia

Brianna Spause

Snapshot Philadelphia

journey of faces Matthew Leister

Winter Storm Juno was a let down. This is the mantra that we all have been hearing the last few days.Everybody seems almost angry that the storm didn’t materialize in this area. It wasn’t like the storm was fictitious. New England got rocked and the wind prevented it from hitting us as hard as it could have. However, any sailors who were out in the ocean surely had a hard time. Luckily, meteorologists were wrong about the accumulation in our area and I was able to go out and shoot from the hip. On January 26, 2015 I went into the night with Matt McGraw in search of snow B-Roll for our other weekly assignment. On the way, I decided to grab my point-and-shoot Nikon Cool Pix and shoot some candids. I took every shot from the hip except for one. As we walked around Center City we came to realize that we will not be seeing snow any time soon. In true irresponsible student form we took a visit to Oscar’s Tavern on the corner of Sansom and 16th streets. We each had a single beer (but if you have been to Oscar’s you know that this is no small feat). A dive bar with true character provided plenty of characters to shoot. Unfortunately, what it lacked in was light. The next day, I woke up at 6 a.m. in order to shoot our Whiteout assignment with Jared. This is an early day for me, and I am not a morning person. Not at all. The hate I feel for early mornings can not be measured. Upon returning home several hours later I got myself ready for work and once again grabbed my Nikon Cool Pix. Another subway ride, and yet another journey full of diverse interesting people and more importantly, faces. Capturing the expressions that people make without realizing they are being watched is a joy. It was a pleasure. Matthew Leister

Broad Street Line and Center City.

Snapshot Philadelphia

Matthew Leister

f/.8 and be there Aaron Windhorst

Snap shooting is where we all begin. On the first day that we get our hands on a camera, we might learn a little about the science of the endeavor – the brilliant collaboration between chemistry, physics, technology. We might even attempt to familiarize ourselves with some of the giants of the medium – the framing of Cartier-Bresson, the colors of Eggleston, the intensity of Capa – but when we first go out to shoot, we’re inevitably infantilized by the enigmatic experience of photographing things. I t is with the innocence of an infant that we begin our approach to photography; with no agenda, with no biases, and with no preconceptions, simply aiming to capture light in a frame; attempting to document the beauty of every day life as it occurs within a fraction of a second. This is “snap shooting,” the simplest expression of photography, often diminished and used as a pejorative phrase to delineate the fine line between subjective values. “That one is just a snap shot,” critics might say as they shrug their shoulders and wave their hands dismissively, “but this one is a real photograph.” But snap shooting isn’t only where we all begin – it’s where we end up. Arthur Fellig, more commonly known as Weegee, famously coined the semisardonic photographic mantra of “f/8 and be there,” a photographer’s answer to Woody Allen’s oftquoted quip, “Eighty percent of success is showing up.” Forget about the science, quit trying to emulate Garry Winogrand, and stop fumbling around with the dials on your DSLR; “f/8 and be there” distills the photographic experience into just that – an experience – and commands that a photographer is 80

only as good as the moment being photographed. Not the shallow depth of field, not the perfectlycalibrated technique, just the moment. Snap shooting forces the photographer to leave their comfort zone, it forces the photographer to get out into the real world – to actively seek out that moment. Every photographer should attempt to shoot without an agenda, to engage with the environment directly, and to experience life as it happens – not through a view finder, but as a participant – and when the photographer finds the moment, be ready. It might not always happen, but sometimes it will. And, after all, to capture the moment, you have to be there.

Aaron Windhorst

Snapshot Philadelphia

Aaron Windhorst

Snapshot Philadelphia

Catching Moments Ashley Kane

The reason I love photography is because it captures life. I really enjoy portraiture photography because it captures people in specific seasons of life. Snap shooting, however, is on the completely different spectrum of photography from subjects, to approach. With all street photography, you don’t pick you subject; you shoot what is in front of you. This is neat in a number of ways: what you see and what you shoot is specific to the exact location that you are in at that very second. When the shutter clicks, that is it. That was a moment that will never happen again. Street photography is exciting because it is unplanned - you never know what you’re going to see; you can’t go in with an agenda. Snap shooting is equally as exciting, but sometimes more frustrating. To hold your camera in awkward positions by your hip where people will be less likely to run from fear for the thought of a lens being pointed at them, and to inconspicuously snap the photo at the correct time, is not the easiest. People are either walking into or walking out of the frame in most of my photos, leaving a lot of empty space and half of a person. Some shots have just a shadow. This kind of photography is a skill to be acquired; but it is also a good teacher. With photography, some of the best shots are from the hardest situations. In most of my time spent outside, I did not want to shoot at all. I thought it was awkward and feared people’s reaction. Moving past yourself is a hard thing to do, but it is a must for all aspiring photographers. Getting over myself is something that I have been learning as I walk through life as a Christian. Ashley Kane

I have been to many different places, where faces were living examples of this; I have read many verses in the Bible, describing Christian life as such for the sake of loving others; but I never expected to learn this in the area of photography. Photography captures people in fleeting moments. In order to get the picture, you must move past your feelings in order to achieve it. I’m learning life is all about others, all the time.

Temple University

Snapshot Philadelphia

Miss One and it’s Gone Eddie Durkin

The people of Philadelphia are a diverse crowd. They exist at every intersection of race, ethnicity, nationality, socioeconomic status, and religion. Each face adds some new spice to the mix. Each is a unique flavor among thousands of fellow Philadelphians. It’s easy to step outside into this city and be overwhelmed by its size and complexity. The sheer volume of human beings, animals, cars, bikes and buildings are intimidating enough to force one’s eyes to the ground in an effort to maintain some anonymity. To point a camera at fellow city goers is to forfeit that anonymity. But something interesting happened when it came time to document the people around me. The camera made me see things I wouldn’t normally take the time to look at. Small details jump out as I itch to click the shutter. A famous photographer once talked about the importance of “the definitive moment.” He stressed that “life is only once, forever.” As I watch the faces of these other Philadelphians pass me by, I begin to notice how each action is articulated by a particular moment. The moment someone gestures mid-sentence to make his point. The moment a man presses a cigarette to his lips, and the moment he releases a huge cloud of smoke. A finger pressed to the metal of a parking meter as a coin is inserted. The moment a man presses his pen to a pad of paper. The moment a woman steps in front of her stroller and leans in to comfort her baby. These are the small details that define every day life. They occur in the split second. Miss one 88

and it’s gone. Hands at his sides, the gesture is gone. The blackened cigarette is pressed into the sidewalk. The woman walks away from the meter. The man drawing lifts his hand. The woman checking on her baby is across the street and on her way home. Time stops for nothing, it crashes forward like a train with no regard for its embattled passengers. The moments that define us are there, and then they’re gone. Only once, forever. The purpose of a photograph is to capture these moments. Human beings have always sought out a way to hold on to the important moments of their lives as they pass. Working with just a fraction of a second, the job of the photographer is to seek out these moments and record them. This way, one moment becomes forever.

Eddie Durkin

Snapshot Philadelphia

Eddie Durkin

Walnut Street.

Snapshot Philadelphia

Eddie Durkin

Snapshot Philadelphia

Spontaneous Harrison Brink

I am not much of a street photographer, to be honest. There is an art in being able to find beauty in the mundane and remaining forever vigilant in order to capture the captivating but commonplace moments of everyday life. The photographers that go out and record the everyday, relatable activities of the public are something to be celebrated. They show the art and beauty in what is normal, commonplace and, more often than not, overlooked. There is a story to be told in everything and those gifted in telling these stories that are so easily lost in the hustle and bustle of life are doing the world a service by sharing what they see. It takes a certain brashness to be able to take really great street snapshots, a brashness that I cannot boast, and this kind of confidence in oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own vision is something to be admired. Most people use the phrase â&#x20AC;&#x153;taking a photoâ&#x20AC;? in terms of photography, but many people are actually given the photo by their subject, so to speak. The subject knows that they are being photographed and put forth a show of sorts to satisfy the photographer shooting them. Street photographers, however, truly do take their photographs. They see that which they like out in their worlds and they take it and share it. The result is truly unique and organic frames of life that have been immortalized for people to appreciate. Street photography, in this sense, is something that must be spontaneous. It cannot be faked, it cannot be duplicated. It is one of the most real and sincere forms of photography that somebody can practice.

This being said, this kind of photography is not for everybody. It requires that the photographer be fully aware of their surroundings and engaged. As far as the technical practice of the photography, the best way to remain unseen by your subject is by refraining from lifting the camera to your face, though, and this takes a lot of practice to do well. It is something worth practicing to become better at and to be able to see the world in a new light.

Snapshot Philadelphia

Harrison Brink

Vine Street and Center City,

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Snapshot Philadelphia

Behind the Lens Holli Stephens

You never realize how hard it is to capture people in natural interactions until you’re behind the lens. I ventured out twice with different cameras and realized because of that, my results greatly varied. On my first attempt I brought my Nikon D5200 and tried to disclose it in my jacket, only having the lens peep out through the sides. Not only did this make it really frustrating to walk, I kept missing my ideal shots. I would see an interaction happening, adjust my camera, and by the time I saw looked up ready to take the photo, my subjects were either staring at me or had parted ways. I had been shooting around city hall for the past 20 minutes so I figured a change in scenery would help me get out of my funk. I started walking down the Southern part of Broad Street and up and down side streets. Though the bulkiness of my camera was still a present problem, I felt more at ease in shooting people and would predict an action, adjust and just as it was happening, would be ready to shoot. I wasn’t exceedingly happy with my results but I figured I’d try again the next day, this time more prepared of what I was getting myself into. I set out on the same route because I had an interview in the area in an hour and this time brought my Canon Powershot SD790 IS, a compact point and shoot camera. This alone boosted my confidence in my shooting because it gave me that element of surprise. I could walk openly with it at my hip and glance into the viewfinder every now and then to make sure I wasn’t cutting off a subject’s head. It had started snowing that day and there weren’t as many people on the street so that was probably my biggest obstacle but I tried to make do. 102

The best shots I realized came when I was in the biggest hurry aka the walk to my interview where I reared off onto the wrong street and started running to get there on time. I wish I had gotten closer to my subjects and I’m realizing that the less fear you have in capturing a moment, the more of a chance you have of capturing what you intended to. You need to be mindful of your surroundings at all time so you’re able to predict what a person may do depending on where they are. Lastly, your body language has to remain as cool as possible. If you make it look like you’re not taking a picture, you will see the true nature of people.

Holli Stephens

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Holli Stephens

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35 frames

Phylandra McFaddin Snap shooting can be considered as amateur photography. You shoot what you see with no regards of following basic photography rules such as the rules of thirds, leading lines, depth of field, balancing elements, and many others. However, if you manage to capture a quick shoot that includes one of those rules, that’s even better! The main goal of snap shooting is taking a photo of someone without them noticing. Being in Philadelphia, there are many interesting subjects to shoot. Being able to shoot them without them knowing can be difficult, believe it or not. It’s best not to bring your DSLR up to your eye, because everyone will notice that you’re taking a picture. So my plan was to use my smaller camera, Canon Sure Shot 35mm., which happens to be a very old film camera.

be in good lightning in order to get a good shot. I often forgot that lightening was crucial, so some of my images on the train turned out darker. Overall, I do enjoy the outcome of some of my images. My only issue is that because I chose film the images are quite grainy. However, stylistically I kind of like the grain. I wish I could have been more comfortable with snap shooting close up’s of people. I was disappointed in myself that I had to let more than a couple of good shoots go, because of my nervousness. Nonetheless, snap shooting brings about a spontaneous freedom that I do enjoy.

I have never actually used this camera before, so I decided to test it out. I felt a lot more comfortable shooting with a smaller camera, because it made me less noticeable. It also was easier for me to take pictures on public transportation, because the shutter sound wasn’t as loud as my DSLR. After a couple of shots, I got more comfortable of just actually bringing the camera up to my eye, as soon as my subject was in the frame. After I got the shoot, I just swiftly walked away, smiling. Since I was using a film camera, not being able to look at my images right away was frustrating in the beginning. However, I decided to just trust my eye and my hands. My film was a 400 speed, so I had to 107

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Phylandra McFaddin

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Hidden among others Jessica Jia

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As one of the most famous cities in the world, New York City is always packed with people from all over, especially on the weekend. You can see all kinds of people there. Some of them you can tell are tourists with even one look; some of them remain unimpressed when walking through the cityand you can tell they live in there. It is always fun to observe people, because there are no animals on earth are more complicated than human beings. Also, one of the skills that people should have is to read other peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s faces. New York City is one of the best places to do that; there is no other place in the US more packed with people than here. The camera will help a lot to record it, and because the city has seen so many cameras, no one will say anything to me as a snap photos. And this is one of the reasons why I love New York City. Snapshot Philadelphia

Yuxuan Jia

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Yuxuan Jia

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Snapshot Philadelphia

Opening your eyes Edward Newton

I was very pleased upon receiving this assignment. As it stood, I would be given the opportunity to capture Philly as I saw it, left with nothing but my camera, my eye and granted the freedom of its presentation. I was able to look for what I wanted and I was able to do what I love best: just get out there and shoot. Although this assignment was presented in a seemingly simple fashion, it proved anything but. It was only after my first few discouraging sessions did an actual strategy come into place: to assume complete control of the camera and hope for the best. Often, I pass through these streets with tunnel vision: my next destination is more times than not the only thing concerning me. From home to work to home to school to work and back to home again, sometimes I forget about the previous generations that once navigated through these same shadowy, concrete arteries. Their stone structures that cast these shadows are their legacy, a gift to those of us in the future. With less longevity than streets they occupy, these buildings are an ode to their period. Some prove to withstand the test of time, but once theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve outlived their function, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll only exist as they do in photographs. 117

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Edward Newton

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Snapshot Philadelphia

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Snapshot Philadelphia

Edward Newton

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Finding Beauty Kelsey Dubinsky

I had been very excited to work on this project in New York City because there are so many people all the time. However, with the snow storm (that actually somewhat hit NYC) there was actually very few people around. This came to me as a bit of a challenge because I was more noticeable while photographing, and had fewer subjects than I was hoping for. I decided to hit Broadway near Time Square in hopes to catch people doing everyday activities as well as some tourists. I tried to fit in as much as possible and only brought my camera up right as I saw something happening. If I thought that the people would notice me shooting, I made sure to keep my camera low and not at my face. Overall the idea of snap shooting is really inspiring to me. I like that you do not have any plan when going out to shoot. It feels free and allows me to capture everyday beauty that I believe that most people would just look past. It really made me examine each and everything that came into my eyesight.

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Kelsey Dubinsky

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Snapshot Philadelphia

The Streets Robert Kennedy

The streets. Un-sheltered from the elements, strangers of all types pass you by. A moments glance at someone or something gives you the feeling your mind can handle at that instance. For this project I took to the streets of Philadelphia hoping to candidly reveal scenes of every day activities from the mundane to the unique. The magnitude of what really happens in a city can not be captured in one frame rather exposed through multiple frames, angles and subjects.

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Rediscovery Emily Ganser

There is no right or wrong way to do street photography. You will get different shots depending on your mood. I have been miserable when going out to shoot lately because I’ve been ill and the cold has been so bitterly aching. My photos seem to reveal that in a way. Some of the colors are dull and gray and the shots including people are from a distance. Trying to take photos without my subject realizing is probably one of my biggest fears as photographer. As I feel drawn to photos of unsuspecting people walking on the street, I don’t feel connected. I feel a much stronger connection with subjects that are aware of the camera. Random eye contact is perfectly natural, although my photos do not exactly depict this, it is what is conveyed in the eyes of my camera. All of the people in these photos knew I was taking photos. They noticed me. However, it is doubtful they knew I was taking a photo of them. I think it is important to go out by yourself when you are using this method of shooting. This has to do with waiting. It is not impossible to capture something amazing simply by being at the right place at the right time. However, there is something much more satisfying that comes from anticipating the right shot. When I first started taking photos, I didn’t necessarily have purpose when I would go out; I just wanted to capture that interested me. I think this is good 132

practice because sometimes we forget that we have our own point of view to share. For me, snap shooting helped me remember why I love photography in general. Photography is an escape from normal and, at the same time, a tool to understand what normal is for others. You are much more likely to have an interesting and stimulating day if you go out and take photos of things you’ve never seen before or people you’ve never met. I live in a very cultured, inspired, progressive, lively city; It would be a shame if I didn’t explore every crevice of it.

Emily Ganser

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Snapshot Philadelphia