I love telling this story of overcoming fear and turning it into a passion. The first time I went out to photograph on the streets I had far from a pleasant experience. I was challenged by my mentor to go out and try street photography as a part of my wedding photography course. I took the challenge on. Confidently. But I wasn’t ready for it. Not the slightest bit. I quickly looked up what street photography was about and I fell in love with the concept. I had a plan for the day in my head. Get on the train from Folkestone to Dover, take some photos at the train station there and jump on another train to Canterbury.

What I hadn’t considered was how hard it was going to be to photograph people in the public without a seemingly good reason for it. That was the huge mental roadblock I had to deal with. And on the day I struggled. I’m not sure where it was all coming from. Maybe I was afraid of being confronted by somebody, without having a good reason to give as to why I’m photographing them. It was definitely fear. A fear of a brand new experience. I came home that day feeling quite discouraged. I went through the images that I took and I kept 4 or 5 from the whole day.

There was only one that I thought looked cool and I was happy that I managed to capture it. And that one photo was enough to convince me to pick my camera up and go out on the streets again.

London Street Photography

The next time I got to do street photography was in London with a group of photography pals. The experience was a 180 degree turn from my previous go. I loved it. I had read a book on street photography. I’d looked at some inspiration from great street photographers. I came to terms with my fear of photographing people in public and enjoyed the day so much. I was able to focus on creating interesting compositions and shooting with the light in mind. I was in the zone. When I got back and put the images on the big screen I was really pleased with what I managed to capture, especially compared to my first time. A passion was being created.

Over the next two years I returned to London several times and truly fell in love with the process of street photography. It remains one of my favourite locations to shoot street. There is so much going on. I love the colours, the buildings, the light.

Prague Street Photography

One day I thought –  what better way to challenge myself than to go on a street photography solo trip somewhere I’ve never been before? I booked  plane tickets to Prague, the Czech Republic’s capital. I spent just over a day roaming the streets of the beautiful city, enjoying local cuisine and capturing things I found fascinating. It was one of those just outside your comfort zone experiences and it felt really, really good challenging myself but also practicing something I already love and get so much joy from. I’d love to do something like this again.

Brighton Street Photography

Brighton was another awesome street photography day out with a bunch of photography pals. Loved the sun, the vibe of the city and the colours. It wasn’t summer yet, so we didn’t get to see Brighton in its full glory but it was nice enough. I was looking for pockets of light and juxtaposition and similarity as well as layering. Here are some of the street images I took that day.

Edinburgh Street Photography

I got to visit the Scottish capital on a destination wedding weekend with my mentor and we had some spare time the day before the wedding. Normal folk would take it easy, read a book, eat good food and hydrate. Being far from normal, we decided to climb Arthur’s Seat and wander through Edinburgh instead. We ended up doing around 20,000 steps but the steak and ale pie at the end of it all was well worth it. I also thought haggis was some sort of ale. I was embarrassed but people found it funny. 

Edinburgh is another place I would love to return to and explore properly, with a camera in my hand, of course. Here are a few street snaps I managed to take in between the rain, the climb of Arthur’s Seat and haggis.

Funchal (Madeira) Street Photography

I had some free time to explore Funchal the day before I photographed a gorgeous wedding on the outskirts of the island’s capital. I wandered in the veg and fish markets and managed to snap some street pics.

It’s safe to say street photography has turned from a dreadful experience into a passion for me. I look forward to every chance I get to pop out and photograph on the streets. I can’t wait to show you more of my street work soon.

Photography was the outlet I needed to find to start creating instead of consuming. It helped me find a part of myself that I didn’t know existed. It helped me feel better, find purpose and meaning. I hope some of my images inspire you to pick up a camera one day, if you haven’t already, and start capturing the beauty of the world around you.

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