How to shoot street portraits: tips from a pro

As Julian says, street portraiture is all about interaction, so don't be shy about asking your subject to move if necessary. "The light might be nicer if you shoot them in the shade, or it might make for a better photograph if you give them some tips on posing," says Julian. He found that the rear screen on the Canon EOS RP helped with this element of street portraiture. "You're engaging with the subject a bit more, and not hiding behind the camera," he says.

The Canon EOS RP's Face Detection and Tracking Autofocus function was also useful. "It's a great technology which, again, allows you to spend more time interacting with your subject and choosing your composition, without having to worry about the focus. Every picture has been perfectly focused on the person's face, even when they are relatively small in the frame."

For his recent street portraiture shoot, Julian photographed people both indoors and outdoors using three different lenses: the Canon RF 35mm F1.8 Macro IS STM, the Canon RF 50mm F1.8 STM and the Canon RF 85mm F2 Macro IS STM. "For the indoor portraits, I tended to use the 35mm or the 50mm and for the outdoor ones, the 50mm or the 85mm. My decision making is based on how much background I want to include. Indoors, you're closer to the subject because there's less space, and you want to show more of their natural environment, so the 35mm is useful. Outdoors, the background is busier, less controlled, so a long lens helps isolate the subject and make the portrait more about them."

The Canon EOS RP and Julian's choice of lenses are all lightweight, making them ideal for shooting portraits on the go without weighing you down. The EOS RP also comes equipped with Eye AF tracking, this Dual Pixel CMOS AF technology helps keep your subject's eyes in super sharp focus, ensuring pin-sharp image quality in your portraits.

Julian uses only the available natural light in his street portraiture. "When I'm shooting indoors, in a shop, for example, I'll ask them to turn off the artificial lights. Premises are often lit by strip lights or spotlights which are very unflattering and hard to work with, so part of choosing a good location is looking for somewhere with large windows," he says.

"If you're shooting outdoors, shoot early or late in the day when the sun is low in the sky," he adds. "Often when they're starting out, photographers think you need beautiful sunshine to make nice photographs. For portraits, that's definitely not the case. On an overcast day, the clouds act as a giant softbox and diffused light is much more flattering."

You're not chasing action shots or "decisive moments" in street portraiture, but it can help to build a narrative by showing your subject engaged in something that's relevant to them, for example, a printmaker next to a print machine. "Generally, the subject and the background aren't moving and I'm not having to respond very quickly to lots of changes so I'll tend to use Manual (M) mode," says Julian. "If you use Aperture Priority (Av) mode, every time you reframe the photo slightly, your exposure will change as the camera recalculates it. Often I've got something bright in the background or the foreground and I just want to hold the highlight."

Julian usually carries about five small prints from his portfolio to show potential subjects, plus an instant printer so he can give them a picture straight away. "That way it feels like more of an exchange," he says. A portable printer such as the Canon Zoemini or Canon SELPHY Square QX10 would be ideal for this purpose. Often people will ask for a copy of the photo, maybe for their social media profile or to print out and display, so Julian also carries business cards. "That way you're not having to scribble down your email address 25 times a day," he adds.

Although he always seeks permission before taking street portraits, Julian only uses a model release form if he is taking photographs for a commercial assignment. "You don't need a model release for editorial purposes, where you're simply representing a person as they are, not associating them with a product, service or brand. I explain how the picture will be used and get their verbal agreement," he says.

What makes this genre challenging is exactly what makes it exciting: it's unpredictable. But, although there are many aspects outside of your control, with a bit of thought, practice and confidence, you can work creatively with the elements at your disposal – the subject, the composition, light and location – to produce beautiful and authentic street portraits.


Written by Rachel Segal Hamilton