The more accurate title of this blog would have been When Street Photography Meets ICM Meets Taking Shots from a Moving Auto-Rickshaw. That’s exactly the origin of this image although it did require a bit of post-processing to achieve the final look.

By grand proclamation, the government of India declared India open-defecation free in 2019 — because a bunch of toilets were constructed across the country. But what’s the reality on the ground?

To those who believe this fairy tale, I often direct them to this image I took a few years back, one that I could take on any given morning if I wanted to.

Transitioning from street photography to portraiture with a model wasn't as easy as I thought it would be - considering that I'm shooting with ICM. I burned through my SD card in less than 45 minutes and I didn't even think to bring backup. Who takes 1,400+ shots in a portrait session, anyway? Lesson learned.
I've only just begun my new direction in ICM photography since the end of March this year and I only see myself taking this further into unchartered waters.

I’ve heard too few photographers talk about the phenomenon between how we feel when we’re taking pictures and the results. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Germans had a multi-syllable word for it. But we English-speakers certainly do not. So here’s a common scenario to describe what I’m talking about.

Welcome to my series where I tell the story behind some of my fine art photography pieces. I hope to convey to photographers that street photography is a great source for creating art. If you’re like me and love the visual arts but lack any talent to paint or draw, photography has become my artistic surrogate that allows me to create whenever I desire. That’s because my companion passion is street photography and I’ve literally thousands of images to choose from to create fine art photography pieces, and with and with any luck, I’ll be producing works of art for years to come.

I foolishly brought my Rokinon fisheye lens to the beach thinking I would shoot some ICM with it. Unfortunately, I don’t have an ND filter for it and the conditions were much too bright to take slow shutter shots without one. I did happen to bring a backup lens with me, fitted with the appropriate ND8 (neutral density) filter that worked just fine. But another strike against me on this outing as I didn’t get anything good despite shooting over 800 Raw files. So on the way out of the beach, I slapped the fisheye lens back on because I knew there was shade up on the road where I’d catch my cab back home.

If you’ve visited India before, then you know it’s not only about the heat; there’s also some nasty humidity to deal with. During the summer months, that can make a 95F day feel like a 123F day when the humidity is clinging to you at 70 percent. This isn’t an uncommon scenario, by the way.

I’ll be the first to admit that shooting street photography on vacation isn’t always a fruitful endeavor. Whenever I travel to Goa, I have the same conversation with myself. Should I take the camera or leave it at home? If I take it, I’ll likely not use it that much and have to pack onto the flight with me as carry-on. If I don’t take it, there’s always the chance that I’ll miss the shot of a lifetime.

In Chapter 1 of Tales of Mumbai Street Photography, I’ll share a few of my favorite images from the past and recent shots from 2022. The purpose of these posts is to act as supplemental material for my Street Photography projects page.

Mumbai is one of India's most prominent mega cities with a population in excess of 18 million residents. It is also arguably one of the best places in India for street photography. As a resident and avid street photographer myself, I offer a glimpse into many of the best spots in Mumbai for street photography.

I’ve recently rebooted my website and I wanted to offer something special to those interested in my fine art photography prints. I thought there would be no better way than to offer custom prints that are signed, limited, and authenticated by a recognized brand.

Welcome to my series where I tell the story behind some of my fine art photography pieces. I hope to convey to photographers that street photography is a great source for creating art. If you’re like me and love the visual arts but lack any talent to paint or draw, photography has become the artistic surrogate that allows me to create whenever I desire. That’s because my companion passion is street photography and I’ve literally thousands of images to choose from to create fine art photography pieces, and with and with any luck, I’ll be producing works of art for years to come.

For the first entry in my How I Turn My Street Photography Into Art, I’ll talk about the story behind “Emergence”.

Welcome to my series where I tell the story behind some of my fine art photography pieces. I hope to convey to photographers that street photography is a great source for creating art. If you’re like me and love the visual arts but lack any talent to paint or draw, photography has become my artistic surrogate that allows me to create whenever I desire. That’s because my companion passion is street photography and I’ve literally thousands of images to choose from to create fine art photography pieces, and with and with any luck, I’ll be producing works of art for years to come. For my first entry in my How I Turn My Street Photography Into Art, I’ll talk about the story behind “Girl Alone”.

If you live in a humid climate, protecting your camera gear is of vital importance. Storing your gear in a regular cabinet isn’t enough. Rust may eventually corrode away your thousands of dollars of investment and render some of your cameras and lenses useless. Don’t let that happen. Protecting your gear from humidity is easy and very cost-effective.

I think most street photographers out there would scoff at the idea of working out just for leisurely activity like street photography, where walking is already a large part of it and a physical activity unto itself. But I’d like to point out that stair climbing is a fantastic workout, one that I adapted during the pandemic as an alternative to doing absolutely nothing physically. After a few weeks of stair climbing when I first got started, I could definitely tell there had been an improvement in my stamina and how this activity could be a great way to prepare street photographers for long outings.

I've been fortunate so far that all of my clients have come prepared for my street photography workshops here in Mumbai. They haven't forgotten anything nor have they been inadequately equipped to deal with photographing Mumbai. This is a great thing. But it only means I've been lucky so far to play host to some very experienced travelers and photographers. I'd like to take a few moments and make a list of things that I regularly pack with me when I plan to shoot street photography for several hours in Mumbai. Because there is a difference between casually going out versus traveling some distance and making a day of it, especially considering the heat of the day which begins to manifest before noon.

I want to share with you a few key insights and tips I learned from my experience transitioning from a street photographer to a workshop operator. I hope other photographers out there may take away something from my experience and be able to put it to practice. It’s also my intention to connect with my potential clients, by way of a brief introduction.

The Sony A7iii is a full frame mirrorless camera and one that many street photographers may pass off as oversized and overpriced. But the the advantages of shooting street photography with this camera far outweigh these objections, especially if you’re in the market for a main camera to shoot professionally.

Ask me about my influences as an artist, and I’d have a completely different set of answers. I would point to music and musicians. I’d point to poets and poetry. All of which have nothing to do with photography directly as far as the craft is concerned. But ask me about artists, and the first person that I’ll likely mention is Egon Schiele, whose work when I first saw it in a Tower Records book section in 1991 or so blew me away. It was the first time ever that I picked up a picture, one of his self-portraits, examined it, and said to myself, “that’s exactly how I feel.” That connection, or whatever you want to call it, was inspiring.