Alleyways and Street Vendors

The Importance of a great shot list…

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Making a shot list is a good way to ensure you get more from a photo shoot. It helps give your work a theme and people begin to expect certain things from your photos.

Here is a list I keep in my head when I go out shooting.

Alleyways, angry cats and dogs (showing teeth), discarded everyday objects, prostitutes, old people with wrinkly skin (I know it is a cliche, but works so well), children playing, steaming kitchens, brick-a-brack, antique dealers, street vendors, gambling, smokers, taxi drivers, old bikes, couples arguing, couples embracing, market sellers, migrant workers

Lastly I always look for life in the alleyways I walk through. In Shanghai there are unique places where life that is usually lived inside a house is undertaken outside. Here I may look for:

People washing their hair, homework being carried out, dinner being prepared, laundry being done.

This last list is certainly not unique to China, but are not things you are likely to see in the suburbs of Paris or London.

Feel free to share you ideas of what to look for when shooting street. I would love to hear them! Below are a few pictures that have arisen from having a shot list before I have gone out to shoot street.

Keep Clicking, Chris