Street Manual

A field guide for street photographers.

by Luke Carey

Projects1–2 hours

Buskers

The performance and the audience.

A project about busking - the performers and the people who stop, the people who don't, the coins in the case. London has extraordinary buskers.

How to shoot it: Find a strong pitch with good light and work it, because the performer is fixed so you can concentrate on the audience and the exchange. Shoot the coins going in, the child transfixed, the people pointedly not stopping. A longer lens for the crowd's faces, wide for the whole scene. Drop something in the case, you are using their stage, and the best buskers are used to cameras.

The output: A series about performance, public space, and money.

Camera Settings

Any. Reaction shots matter as much as the performer.

The Assignment

Find a busker. Photograph them and everyone who stops.

Free Course