StreetSnappers - The Street Photography Podcast

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London can make you feel like you have lost your eye. You walk for days, you chase the same old 'street moments', and somehow the city gives you nothing back. We talk candidly about that exact feeling and why it is not just a bad patch, it can be a sign that your work needs a real change. The big question I keep returning to is simple: if you do what you have always done, will you get what you've always got?

To jolt the creativity back into motion, Imake a serious commitment: from 1 July I am shooting black and white only, on a 28mm lens only, for at least six months. No colour. No swapping focal lengths. Just one tight creative constraint designed to change how I really notice light, shape, gesture and composition. If you have been stuck with street photography, documentary photography, or your personal projects, this is a practical experiment you can borrow.

I also answer listener questions with a no-nonsense post-shoot workflow: importing and culling fast in Photo Mechanic, embedding copyright and keyword metadata for archiving and SEO, then doing only basic darkroom-style edits in Adobe Camera Raw or Photoshop.
From there we jump into one of my favourite photo books, Sergio Larrain’s 'London 1959', I share thoughts on cropping and aspect ratios  and I have a big rant about empty street portraits made without purpose. Finally, we head to Lisbon with a detailed street photography guide covering light, neighbourhoods and how to get around.

Thanks for tuning into the StreetSnappers Street Photography Podcast. Do subscribe for the next show, share this with a photographer who feels stuck, and, if it resonates, leave a review so more people can find the podcast.
LINKS:
Sergio Larrain's book 'London 1959' - here
Subscribe to Brian's street photography newsletter - here
Book a street photography workshop with Brian - www.streetsnappers.com

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The camera that improves your street photography might not be the newest, fastest, or most expensive, it is the one you cannot stop picking up. We dig into what makes certain cameras feel 'alive' in the hand, why that emotional pull leads to more shooting, and how early experiences with classics like the Zorki 4, Rolleiflex, and old-school rangefinders can shape the way we see. If you have ever wondered why a Leica or a Fujifilm X100 feels different, we get into the real reason without drowning in tech.

From there, we tackle a question that keeps coming up for UK photographers: is the Royal Photographic Society (RPS) worth it for street photography? We share a straw poll of member experiences, including distinctions like LRPS and ARPS, the value of groups and days out, and the frustrations that can come with cost, access, and judging. The takeaway is practical: match your membership to your goals, and be clear whether you want structured progression or freedom to build your own projects.

We also get hands-on with the everyday kit that keeps you moving: wrist straps versus neck straps, what to prioritise for comfort and speed, and a useful London stop for coffee when you need to reset mid-shoot. Then comes a frank rant about street photography Facebook groups, why low standards get rewarded, and why smaller, critique-led communities often produce better work.

Finally, we make a strong case for shooting square. The 1:1 format changes pacing, simplifies clutter, makes the centre powerful, and can shift the emotional tone of your images. Try a square project on your next walk, then subscribe, share, and leave a review if it helps. What camera, group, or format has genuinely made your street photography better?

SHOW LINKS:
Wotancraft straps & bags  www.wotancraft.tw
Check out my workshops  www.streetsnappers.com
Watch my YouTube videos www.youtube.com/streetsnappers
Follow me on Instagram www.instagram.com/streetsnappers
Join the Facebook Community - www.facebook.com/groups/streetsnappersworldwide

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Street photography ethics
Street photography is supposed to be about real life, but the moment you point a camera at a stranger, you step onto an ethical fault line. We wanted to tackle the questions that make people defensive, angry, or quietly unsure: when is candid photography fair, when is it intrusive, and when does a “great shot” come at someone else’s expense?

We dig into consent as the core dilemma and break it into something more usable: implicit consent in public space, post-shoot consent through engagement, and explicit consent when you ask up front. We also talk about the gap between what’s legal in the UK and what feels right, especially when a photograph removes someone’s agency even if the law allows it. From there, we take listener questions and get frank about exploitation: photographing homelessness, distress, or vulnerability can either serve a genuine documentary purpose or slip into aestheticising hardship for attention.

Context is the hidden trap. A street photograph can be “true” and still misrepresent through framing, timing, cropping, sequencing, and captions, and once an image is online you lose control over how it is read. We also look at cultural sensitivity when travelling, the risks of 'othering', and why photographing children demands a higher standard because safeguarding and downstream use matter as much as the click itself. We wrap with the point that keeps resurfacing: intent matters, but impact is what the subject lives with.

If you’ve ever hesitated before taking a shot or second-guessed one afterwards, you’ll find practical ways to think it through. Subscribe, share the episode with a photographer friend, and leave a review, then tell us where your own ethical line sits.
Check out my workshops  www.streetsnappers.com
Watch my YouTube videos www.youtube.com/streetsnappers
Follow me on Instagram www.instagram.com/streetsnappers
Join the Facebook Community - www.facebook.com/groups/streetsnappersworldwide

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Big events can make street photography easier, but only if you stop aiming at the obvious target. I’m heading to Liverpool for Grand National weekend, not to photograph the racing, but to work the city centre where the real street stories unfold: early-morning pubs, people in finery, high spirits, bad decisions, and that brilliant collision between everyday streets and “special occasion” behaviour. If you want more keepers, the margins are often where the emotion and character live.

Then I’m joined by Derek Darke, founder and editor of Klick Magazine, a print magazine made for street and documentary photographers by the people who actually shoot it. Derek shares how Klick was born from the buzz of seeing images in print, why every submission needs at least some words, and what makes him lean in when a WeTransfer lands in his inbox. We get practical about what gets rejected, why projects frequently beat single shots, how the quarterly edit and layout process works, and why niche print publishing still has real space in a digital world.

We also tackle listener questions, including the Ricoh GR3 battery life and dust concerns, plus how I keep Venice fresh after years of returning by working clear street photography projects and matching locations to light and weather. I wrap with news on my Leica-focused London workshop with zone focusing, a new critique-driven Street Snappers Worldwide group, and a reminder about the Dublin Street Photography Festival.

If you enjoy thoughtful street photography chat, subscribe, share this with a street photographer pal, and leave a review so more people can find the show.
LINKS:
Klick Magazine: https://www.klickmagazine.com
Dublin Street Photography Festival: https://www.dspfestival.com/
My Dublin 1-day workshop: https://streetsnappers.com/dublin-street-photography-workshops
My street photography workshops: https://www.streetsnappers.com

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Monochrome-only cameras, contest culture, comfort zones and the eternal “does expensive gear matter?” debate all collide in a spring-bright Street Photography Podcast that starts with Venice energy and ends with a Negroni done properly. I dig into the most repeated bit of street photography advice and push back on the macho idea that stress equals better work. For some photographers, staying within your limits is not laziness, it is the route to consistency, focus - and photos that actually say something.

Listener questions take us straight into street photography competitions, from big international awards to the camera club circuit. We talk entry fees, judging, trends, and why 'winning' can quietly steer people towards contrived images and tired clichés. Then we tackle camera gear head-on: if two people shoot the same scene with the same settings, will a Leica beat a Fuji every time? My view is that modern cameras are excellent across the board, and the real differences often come down to lenses, rendering, and what you choose to look for.

The gear slot goes deep on monochrome cameras, including Leica Monochrom-style bodies and newer options like a monochrome Ricoh GR4. They can be spectacular for black and white street photography, especially in low light at high ISO, but the limitations are real when colour is the point. 
Along the way there’s a book recommendation (Magnum Streetwise), a rant on why definitions of street photography matter, and a news round-up with exhibitions and events in London plus a quick trailer for an upcoming interview with Klick magazine’s editor.

If you enjoy thoughtful street photography talk without the hype, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review. What topic do you want us to tackle next?
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Links from today's show:
Street photography workshops & resources - www.streetsnappers.com
Klick magazine - here
Magnum Streetwise book - click here