Shooter Files by f.d. walker

Street Photography Tips, Interaction, Travel, Guides

Street Photography

33 Street Photography Photos from One Week in Hanoi, Vietnam

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Living in Ho Chi Minh City, I had to make a visit up to Vietnam’s capital. Hanoi quickly became one of my favorite city’s in Asia for street photography, with endless character, charm, places to shoot, and people just as photography friendly as back home in Saigon. Being thousands of years old, you feel the city’s age when exploring the streets. From a city of over 3 million people, there’s an authentic, old world atmosphere it exudes. 

So here’s 33 photos that I was able to capture during my time in Hanoi…

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Street Shot Sundays
Photo of the Week:
“Dog Clap”

Saigon Shooter Files

Street Shot Sundays Story & Stats

Story:

This Sunday’s Street Shot of the Week was taken at September 23 Park in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Taken in the same area as a previous Sunday Street Shot, this long, skinny park runs along Saigon’s backpacker district up to the popular Bến Thành Market. In the heart of the city here, there’s always something going.

After shooting in the park some, I noticed this little white dog at the edge of the grass. I really liked the colors, with the bright white dog inside the red cloth set on green grass. As I walked over to take a photo, his owner came over too. The short, older man leaned over and started playfully talking to his dog while clapping. Due to how short the man was, I was able to tower over them by stepping on the grass side curb. I tried to compose the shot directly above the dog to accentuate the combination of colors, while also creating a sort of illusion with the man’s hands and feet only showing from under his hat. While it was a little difficult balancing above for the shot, the old man got a good laugh once he noticed what I was doing. 

Stats:

  • Camera: Fujifilm Xpro1
  • Lens: Fujinon XF 18mm 
  • Focal Length: 18mm (27mm full frame equivalent)
  • Aperture: f/8
  • Shutter Speed: 1/500
  • ISO: 1600

Saigon Shooter Files

The Friday 5
(November 4th, 2016)

FRIDAY-5-COVER

5 Photographic Links for Your Weekend

Discover

Photographer of the week: Roberto Deri

Watch

Video of the Week: Return To Cuba: In the Footsteps of Walker Evans (Trailer)

Read

Article of the Week: Behind the Mask: Scenes From Nicaragua’s Sandinista Revolution

Travel

Photography Destination of the Week: Hyderabad, India

Look

InstaGram of the week: @vanepallotta

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7 First Impressions of Bangkok, Thailand
(From a Street Photography Perspective)

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*My time in Bangkok came before the recent passing of Thailand’s long beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej. The nation is now observing a 30-day period of mourning and I’d like to wish the people the best while dealing with their great loss.

In-between leaving Vietnam on my way to some work in Russia, I decided to stop in Bangkok, Thailand. I’d been before years ago, but only as a short stop before visiting the beaches for vacation. So it was my first time really exploring the city for some photography. Bangkok is one of the more well-known cities in Asia and if you’ve seen much of the quality street photography coming out lately, Thailand has been producing much of it. While I couldn’t find much street photography info online for Bangkok, outside of the main tourist section, I luckily had some help from some of these local photographers in the street photography community here.

Bangkok Pattaya Shooter Files

Bangkok is known for the Grand Palace and temples, amazing cuisine and street food, wild nightlife and backpacker streets, and a mix of grit, lights and big city life in Thailand. Much of this is easily found around certain areas, but navigating around Bangkok looking for street photography spots can be exhausting if you don’t know where to go. 

So here are my first impressions of Bangkok, from my personal Street Photographer perspective…

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City Street Guides by f.d. walker:
A Street Photography Guide to
Kathmandu, Nepal

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*A series of guides on shooting Street Photography in cities around the world. Find the best spots to shoot, things to capture, street walks, street tips, safety concerns, and more for cities around the world. I have personally researched, explored and shot Street Photography in every city that I create a guide for. So you can be ready to capture the streets as soon as you step outside with your camera!

Kathmandu

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33 Street Photography Photos from One Week in Hong Kong

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While living in Ho Chi Minh City, I took a week break up to Hong Kong. It had always been high my list and it didn’t disappoint. While the clouds and rain didn’t do it any favors, I still left Hong Kong loving it and wanting to return. It’s one of the more unique cities I’ve been to with an international urban vibe mixed with old world Asia. It has one of the most impressive city skylines I’ve seen, but down on the ground in the narrow alleys and older neighborhoods, you can experience a completely different atmosphere.

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Hong Kong has such a variety of scenery and life that I’d recommend it as one of the best cities in Asia for street photography. So here’s 33 photos that I was able to capture during my time in Hong Kong…

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Street Shot Sundays
Photo of the Week:
“Siesta and a Short Dress”

Saigon Shooter Files-47

Street Shot Sundays Story & Stats

Story:

This Sunday’s Street Shot of the Week was taken on Nguyen Hue Street in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Also called Walking Street, Nguyen Hue is the first pedestrian-only street in Ho Chi Minh City. The French colonial styled City Hall and Ho Chi Minh statue sit here, which can bring some tourists during the day, but it usually doesn’t get crowded until night.

Streets run across each side of the walking lane, lined with cafes and shops. I was walking along when I noticed this attractive woman in a tight, short dress with an unusual pattern that stood out. She was also wearing purple high heels and looked like she was dressed for the club in the middle of the day. As she stopped at a closed business to look in the window, I also noticed a man dressed in a bright orange work uniform sleeping on his motorcycle, with shoes off on the ground and his feet resting above.

In Saigon, men sleeping on their motorbikes are about as common as Pho restaurants. So I normally avoid taking photos of them due to how common of a sight it is, but this scene gave me a reason to stop. I composed them together while catching some of the city reflection in the window, and making sure to expose correctly since they were under shadow, out of the bright Saigon sun. For me, this scene is 100% Saigon. 

Stats:

  • Camera: Fujifilm Xpro1
  • Lens: Fujinon XF 18mm 
  • Focal Length: 18mm (27mm full frame equivalent)
  • Aperture: f/5.6
  • Shutter Speed: 1/500
  • ISO: 800

Saigon Shooter Files-47

Master Profiles: Ernst Haas

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Ernst Haas ©Erich Hartmann

* “Master Profiles” is a series profiling all the great photographers of uncontrolled life. Unlike the rest of the blog, I’m doing these in a straight profile format to make it easy for quick access to facts, quotes and knowledge on all the masters. I’ll also group them together here every time I add a new one.

Profile:

Ernst Haas (1921-1986)

Austrian photographer and photojournalist known for his pioneering use of color and abstract aesthetic.

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