“The background can sometime fight with the subject. What you put in the background i as important as what you have in the foreground.”Īnother practical tip from Mary Ellen Mark: try to separate the elements in your background, and avoid overlapping figures: “The difference between a picture that works and one that doesn’t is often what’s in the background. Mary Ellen Mark shares the importance of the background in the photo: This has helped me make stronger images, in which the subject and the background contribute to a great photograph. So what I have tried to do to remedy this problem is this: focus on the background, not the subject. I personally make this mistake quite a bit. Then when we get home, we realize that our subject and content matter is great, but the background is either messy or doesn’t add to the photo. Once we see someone interesting, we start clicking away (without looking at the background). We shoot on the streets, and roam– looking for interesting moments or people. The common mistake that we do as street photographers is as follows: Leave out key information, to add more mystery to a photograph– make your images more “open-ended” and open to interpretation. Try to eliminate distracting elements from the background, and focus on the edges of the frame.Īlso try to cut out elements to add more mystery to your shots.įor example, cut out the eyes of your subject. The next time you’re out shooting on the streets, see how you can subtract from a scene. Learn to subtract, not to add to the frame. I think whether simple or complex, it’s all a matter of being able to say what you want to say with your camera.” Assignment: The line between extreme simplicity and an empty frame is a delicate one. She strives to distill her frames into the essence of what she is trying to say: Mary Ellen Mark also applies the same philosophy to her photography she tries to make her photos simple as possible (but not too simple). This is similar to the concept of “ Occam’s razor” - a concept that a simple solution is often better than the more complicated one. There is a quote I like from Einstein which says: “ Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” However there is a fine line how can you continue to subtract from the frame without having nothing to look at? Photography is more about subtraction than addition. Do you mind if I made a few photos so I can remember this wonderful memory?” 2. Then you can say something like: “Excuse me sir (or miss), I really enjoyed getting to know you and more about your life story. Start off by just chatting with them, and wait at least 30 minutes before bringing out your camera. But in the beginning, don’t even bring out your camera or mention photography. Assignment:Īs an assignment, start off finding a subject that you find interesting in. Of course we all want to make good photos, but first we need to strive to make connections with our fellow brothers and sisters. On that day, my life changed forever.”Īs a street photographer, you are curious about human beings and humanity. I realized all of the possibilities that could exist for me with my camera all of the images that I could capture, all the lives I could enter, all the people I could meet and how much I could learn from them. On that day, I realized that the world was open to me. It allowed me to enter lives, satisfying a curiosity that was always there, but that was never explored before. “I saw that my camera gave me a connection with others that I had never had before. The camera allows you to enter the lives of others: To her, photography is less about making photos it is more about making connections with her subjects.Ī lot of photographers are shy with their cameras, but realize, a camera allows you to build a bridge with your subjects. What I love about Mary Ellen Mark is that she is genuinely interested in her subjects, and has a deep sense of empathy and love for her subjects. I have already written an article on Mary Ellen Mark titled: “ 8 Lessons Mary Ellen Mark Has Taught Me About Street Photography.” However I still learned new lessons that I want to share with you: Mary Ellen Mark is a photographer who endlessly inspires me, and especially with her recent death, I wanted to meditate on some of her thoughts and philosophies about photography and life. I recently came across the excellent book: “ Mary Ellen Mark on the Portrait and the Moment”, an educational workshop book published by Aperture, at the home of my friend Brian Sparks. Read as a Google Doc (where you can suggest edits, and also download as a PDF).
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