Heya,

I'm sure as you all know, Canon's white lenses in particular tend to get people's attention.

When you are out an about in the city (as tourists/ or for candids etc) do you guys take any precautions/ have any tips with respect to:

- Subtlety, how to minimise people realising that you are taking a photo of them and because of which they pose and subsequently disturb the scene?

- Safety, has anyone been mugged/ threatened because of the fact that people realised they were carrying valuble photographic equipment around? How risky is this outside the main touristic centres?

regs & thanks

Kurt

First thing I do is to look around for nice shooting opportunities with the camera in the bag or pointed down. When I spot such a shooting opportunity I pull it out quickly (if it was in the bag), make the all the necessary arrangements (e.g. pre-selecting focal length [if it is a zoom], AF point, aperture, metering mode, EC, FEC [if I am using a flash] etc.) with my back to the subject and only when all is set I turn around and shoot.

Obviously, I rarely need to make all those arrangements. In most situations most are already where I want them to be so the whole sequence takes just a few seconds.

There's also a lens coat but as I noticed the amount of attention I get from the 200/2.8 (the longest black lens) is about the same as with my 70-200/2.8 IS I never bothered to purchase one. I guess that for average Joe everything which is not a small P&S is a pro gear worth staring at.

Happy shooting,
Yakim.

When in doubt, don't pull it out.

Reminds me of Aerosmith "Big 10 inch Record":

got me the strangest woman
believe me this trick's no cinch
but I really get her going
when I whip out my big 10 inch...

...record of a band that plays the blues

I conceal carry when I am shooting in the city. And I still don't feel completly safe. The only thing you can do is to be aware of your surroundings. Consider using a hand strap or wrapping your neck strap around your hand, and not around your neck. This will help prevent someone from snatching it off your shoulder. I personally only bring my 135L when I'm shooting discretly on the street. That mounted on the 5D isn't the MOST noticable combo. My main street set up is non-gripped 5d with 35L.

Guess the weapon of choice would be 500mm +
With those monsters you can keep the distance great enough to hide your intentions.

It also gives you street cred to impose yourself as a real pro -not just a sneaky peeping tom (which you really are after all)

Well, first we need to decide what is that "big white lens".
For example, on the POTN forum people talk of the 70-200 f/4 as a "big white".
On the Naturescapes forum that adjective is reserved for the 500 f/4 and better.

Either way, the supertelephotos are awkward to use for walk-around street photography because of their weight and size. The visual impact of those can be somewhat diminished by not mounting the hood.

On rare occasions I have used hoodless 200 f/1.8 and 300 f/2.8 for some casual street picture taking. However, there are street events like parades, rallies and such where one can see a number of supertelephotos being used by professional and amateur photographers alike.

I have not found a large camera/lens to be a problem & I take my camera almost everywhere.

OT: I read that, what a load of crap.

use a shorter lens...get involved in the picture instead of sniping...

todd

WilsonImages wrote:
use a shorter lens...get involved in the picture instead of sniping...

todd


I wouldnt necessarily call a 70-200, "sniping", but it will still draw attention.

WilsonImages wrote:
use a shorter lens...get involved in the picture instead of sniping...

todd

But when you get involved they notice you.....

Happy shooting,
Yakim.

OceanView wrote:
When in doubt, don't pull it out.

Ah yes, abstinence is always the safest bet unless you have some protection

Yakim Peled wrote:
WilsonImages wrote:
use a shorter lens...get involved in the picture instead of sniping...

todd

But when you get involved they notice you.....

Happy shooting,
Yakim.
Then hang out for a bit so they get used to you & start to ignore you. I don't do much street shooting, and that little bit is mostly at some kind of event (county fair for example). I usually use the 24-70 and have the gear hanging--no hiding what I'm up to. I'll get the occasional reaction to the brick, but usually can get my shot.

Kurt Paris wrote:
I'm sure as you all know, Canon's white lenses in particular tend to get people's attention.


I haven't found that to be true. In my neck of the woods it's not uncommon to see white lenses at zoos, parks, concerts, etc.

This is a pretty general question as it is a big world and every place is different

I have several times gone walking around town with me 300 f2.8 and never worried about security. Then again I live in Stockholm

I did get a few looks

I live in South Africa, a high-crime country. I work for a newspaper that employs many photographers and fits them out with the latest gear.

Of the four in my office, none has ever been mugged, to my knowledge. And I think I would have heard of muggings among the eight or so photographers at head office, but I haven't.

Even bad places aren't as bad as we fear.

Depends what city and country. In any city/town I've visited in Australia, it's never been an issue, so I walk around with the lens out. And it's much more common to see BWL on cameras these days.

Hi everyone.
I met someone, who made a stupid mistake. He photographed the automobile races at Phoenix international Raceway-using a Pentax 645, with a 600 F5.6, great white lens. His buddy was using a Nikon system. After the race was over, they put the equipment into a locked car trunk, and went for a beer! Well , you can guess the rest of the story. Someone had spotted the big Pentax lens, and helped himself to it, living the 35MM cameras and lenses behind. I lived in Phoenix for 28 years, and yes it is a high crime aera.
Cheers
Harry

I've been all over with the 70-200/2.8 and a 1DMkII over my shoulder and never had a problem. I guess that might be a different story with a 400/2.8 or 600/4 but then I don't tend to run around cities with either of those lenses. In fact, I don't run far with either if those - they're both just too heavy

WilsonImages wrote:
use a shorter lens...get involved in the picture instead of sniping...

todd

Todd is absolutely right. For most street photography you're better off with a smaller lens. With wider angles, people often don't even realize they're in the shot.

Most good street photography is done with standard or moderately-wide lenses anyway.

This guy just looks creepy:


Now there are plenty of good uses for a longer lens in the city, but I think candid street shots with long lenses is just lame / cowardly.

In Washington DC, using a long lens I'm mostly worried about attracting attention from security personnel, even if I'm shooting legally. I wouldn't be surprised if you got similar attention in high profile spots in places like NYC, LA, Paris, London or Chicago. I don't think the general public gets distracted by it though. It's also rare that I'll go street shooting with anything longer than 50 mm. If I'm interested in getting architectural detail then I'll bust out the zoom.

I actually do not really worry about people stealing my gear, but I am using a Lowepro shoulder pack and whenever I am shooting I keep the bag clasped. So it's near me at all times and it just looks like a big bag. Someone who is interested in mugging you is probably not spending his mental effort calculating the street value of your gear. I'm actually more afraid for my wallet than anything else.

I've actually become quite disinterested with taking photos of random people. Very few people are actually worth shooting. I'm actually more afraid of people *thinking* I'm shooting them, when actually, I'm not at all.

If I drive to some high profile or very heavily-trafficked place with my car and I leave my gear in the car, I usually put it in the trunk or down below the seat where no one can see it. Smash and grabs are extremely common... people will steal stuff and they don't even know what it is until they get home to inspect it.

I carry a pistol, and I'm also trained in Judo/JuJitsu. Fighting someone off isn't my concern. My concern would be, I'm attacked for my camera. In the scuffle, my gear is broken. Or, I'm attacked, and I shoot the individual, now my pistol is in evidence until I'm cleared or even worse, I'm attacked and I get introuble.

My concern is getting "caught" taking the pictures. I'd rather avoid all confrontation. I'd rather just get my snap shots and get out. That said, the few candids I've got, I took with my 50mm lens. My longest lens is the 17-85 IS with a lens hood on it, and I think it's too long for candids (well at my local shopping mall). I couldn't imagine trying to shoot a 70-200 or whatever in that place. Then again, where I live it's not exactly like people walking everywhere ala LA NYC DC or something like that.

RobertLynn wrote:
I carry a pistol, and I'm also trained in Judo/JuJitsu. Fighting someone off isn't my concern.


Good lord. You sound almost as creepy as the guy pictured above

pipspeak wrote:
RobertLynn wrote:
I carry a pistol, and I'm also trained in Judo/JuJitsu. Fighting someone off isn't my concern.


Good lord. You sound almost as creepy as the guy pictured above


The ol' if everyone carries a gun, no one will get hurt scenario, as everyone knows everyone else has a gun and won't dare draw on them - because everyone is so 100% rational living in the perfect world we inhabit.

We come in peace shoot to kill, shoot to kill

Here comes the old gun arguements again.....