In today’s episode, I’m joined by Simon Ogden, a street photographer from Manchester. We talk about how he goes out daily. How he loves nighttime photography. And how books make a difference for inspiration. Further we also discuss doing photography with friends or alone.
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Follow Simon Ogden:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/simon.c.ogden/
- Website: https://www.simonogden.co.uk/
- Threads: https://www.threads.net/@simon.c.ogden
Listen to the episodes on:
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4QMO6fGiNG9ONpml4g90jj
- Acast: https://shows.acast.com/slices-of-time-street-photography-podcast
- Deezer: https://www.deezer.com/en/show/1001125911
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuRVp34UK3slv3Xfp8g_77opdIlUvfRWU&si=X9eI9mETmt86b_ZW
The summary of this episode + links
00:00 Intro of the Slices of Time street photography podcast
00:30 Simon introduces himself
- From Manchester, UK
- More nighttime orientated
02:00 How he got into photography
- Had a camera during his childhood
- Bought a new camera → https://www.dougiewallace.com/harrodsburg
- Bruce Gilden – https://www.brucegilden.com/work
11:30 Street portraits
- Candid or not candid
- Looking for the right person
- Not focussed on their looks
- Revelation in NYC – https://www.simonogden.co.uk/gallery/street-studio-portraits
19:45 Your composure during nighttime street photography
- The rising popularity of street photography in Manchester
- About feeling unsafe at night
- Workshop with Matt Hall – The 13th Second – https://www.the13thsecond.co.uk/about
- Reflection shots during nighttime – https://www.instagram.com/p/C9-qCDyobAs/
27:45 Changing camera’s
28:15 Night photography during summertime
- Leaves at 10-11pm
- Waiting for wintertime
- More people during nighttime in winter
- Different weather
30:00 Waiting for the shot
10-15 minutes
- Come back to the place if necessary
31:30 Routines and going out daily
- Clichés in street photography
- Using the viewfinder to engage with people
34:00 Doing photography as a social activity
- Enjoying the brief encounters
- Meeting new people
- Managing situations and emotions
- Going out daily for a few hours
- Photographing with friends or not
- Photography and your close relationships
42:00 Planning your photo routes
- Victorian buildings in Manchester
- Sometimes scheduled, sometimes not
- Wander around and chase the light
- Find coffee places to take breaks
- Tiborg Varga https://www.instagram.com/tibishootraw/
45:00 About his large collection of photos
- Edits in Lightroom exclusively
- Not into Photoshop
- Uses his own presets
- Using Noise Reduction AI or not
- Not too much noise with Hasselblad X2D
- Cropping too much with the 28mm lens
- 55 mm lens which is 35mm full-frame equivalent
53:30 The comfort zone in photography
- Using the viewfinder or not
- Stefano Broli episode:
- Listening to podcasts or music, or nothing at all
- Started listening to music
- Tigran Hamasyan – https://www.tigranhamasyan.com/home
- Dhafer Youssef – https://dhaferyoussef.com/
59:50 About editing as a street photography
- Feels like a necessary evil
- Edits when coming back home after shooting
- Always edit before going out to shoot more
1:03:00 Selfevuation and improvement
- Making fewer photos now
- Though keeping the same amount of keepers
1:08:15 Photobooks as inspiration
- Inspire yourself to not always do the same
- Not only the go-to classics
- Book recommend: Oli Kellett – Cross Road Blues https://www.olikellett.com/work2
- L.S. Lowry
- Research online if books aren’t available to you
1:12:45 Losing your mojo and staying inspired
- Books help counter this
- Ernst Haas https://ernst-haas.com/
- Looking for specific things
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