My street photography

Water puddle reflections, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-26T10:57:00.000-07:00

Some other water puddle reflections I have taken around the center of St. Petersburg. These always seems to show interesting forms and angles, hence why I find them quite esthetic to shoot them.

Shots taken with an M7, Zeiss 50mm, and using Illford HP5 Plus 400 film.

Cat sitting comfortably by a window, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-23T11:37:00.000-07:00

I was walking around my wife's neighbourhood and saw this cat peering outside of a window. He or she was so comfortably sitting and the scene looked so unreal. Almost like the cat has perfectly copied its human friend's posing. I wish I had gone a bit closer for the shot but I did also not want to scare the cat.

Shot taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm and using Illford HP5 Plus film.

Lighting up candles, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-20T13:27:00.000-07:00

I caught this picture inside of the Kazan cathedral on Nevsky prospect with a women lighting up candles. Russians are quite zealous people in religion. All women must wear a scarf overhead when entering a church. They light up candles and then sign and bow themselves in front of the icons. Some icons due to their importance, get kissed by people as well, who queue up for it.

I had to do this picture in hurry due that it was forbidden inside to take any pictures.

Shot taken with a Kodak Tri-X 400 film.

Busted wall or facades, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-20T13:18:00.000-07:00

St. Petersburg is full of decaying walls or building facades and this around many places in the city even close to historical places in the center. I find these actually quite appealing to photograph due to the amount of details and textures they provide. I sometime also try add some movement in like in the below examples of a women making a call or a biker passing-by.

Shots taken with Kodak Tri-X 400 & Agfa APX 400 film.

Street signs, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-18T10:16:00.000-07:00

Street signs or panels are another kind of favorite for me to shoot. I like to shoot them from different perspective and also possibly including some background with them when I feel it suits the picture.

Below shots have been taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss 50mm lense and using Agfa APX 400 film.

Water flakes, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-17T12:25:00.000-07:00

I also like shooting water flakes. They can be quite interesting in terms of deviating the real shape of a building for example or of a person through the riddles of the water. They can be also intriguing due to their mirroring perspective. I have taken a few of these water flake shots in SPB.

All shots taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar and using Agfa APX 400 film.

The shot below was taken in one of not so cozy neighborhood of St. Petersburg. It was shot in April when the snow melts in the city and almost everywhere you find water leaking on the asphalt as well as mud. This is due I believe to poor sewage system that prevents all this water to leak properly off the roads. This shot shows part of a man strolling his child.

This 2nd shot is off the iconic Lada car. I initially wanted to have someone as well stepping over the flake to add some dynamism to the picture. Unfortunately, I was not much lucky on this one that day. Nevertheless, it still shows some very strong icons of Russia both being the Lada car and those big cold and rubbled story buildings built in the communist era.

Spiked railings, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-17T12:06:00.000-07:00

I find myself sometime shooting railings. These can be quite photogenic in my opinion with quite various forms and shapes or adornments on them. They also show repetitions which can be of a photographic advantage. This particular railing I liked of its spiked top and complemented well with the background pedestrian panel.

Shot taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm and using Kodak Tri-X Film.

Yield sign on building, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-16T14:12:00.000-07:00

This yield sign caught my eye in the center of St. Petersburg. It's actually surreal to see such sign hanging on the wall of a building, instead on the street. However, it is placed underneath some greek stlyle columns and I can think the sign is related somehow to the verticalness of these columns. The facade of the building looked quite in rubbles.

Shot taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm & using Kodak Trix-X 400 film.

Passer-by and arched bridge, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-16T13:58:00.000-07:00

I'm always interested to catch geometrical forms or shapes and this bridge caught my eye with its croissant shape. I also wanted to include some dynamism to this picture, so I patiently waited until somebody would show up on the bridge and so this lady did. This lady also made a good opposition with the lamp post. I did not notice in first place, but some shadows on the bridge did come out pretty well.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm & using Kodak Tri-X 400 film.

The tramway stop and the hair conditioner ad billboard, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-16T13:05:00.000-07:00

In this picture, I wanted to catch two completely seperate things but which somehow coexist in today's Russia. On one side the typical tramway stop sign and on the other side, the ad billboard for a hair conditioner of a western company. I felt there was enough contrast colliding between the two to allow for a shot.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm & using Kodak Tri-X 400 film.

Broken drain pipe, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-16T12:44:00.000-07:00

This is a photo taken of a broken drain pipe. They are not very esthetic on a building since they are quite large and folded or broken like in this picture. Hence you are wondering in heavy rain how the water would get properly conducted to the ground. On the other hand, I found this broken pipe actually quite esthetic from a photography standpoint.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm and using Kodak Tri-X 400 film.

Cables and lamps, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-15T01:18:00.000-07:00

Wire cables on the streets of St. Petersburg can become quite interesting I think to shoot. There are some lamp posts where there tend to be quite some straight and twisted cables around and going in different directions which can make it quite complex from a visual standpoint. This can provide opportunities for great graphical shots with interesting shapes & lines as well.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm & using Agfa APX 400 film.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm & using Agfa APX 400 film.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Plannar 50mm & using Agfa APX 400 film.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm & using Agfa APX 400 film.

Love locks on bridge, St. Petersburg, Russia

2010-08-14T13:04:00.000-07:00

I love shooting these love locks hanging on bridge railings. You find quite a few around in the center of St. Petersburg, mostly around bridges. I'm certain you will also find this in other cities of Russia and in other big capitals around the world as well. I believe there is some sort of superstition behind these locks that by hanging a lock, it will bring luck & fortune to the couple. The encryption on these locks would contain the two partner's names as well as some short sentimental messaging or heart drawing.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm and using Kodak Tri-X 400 film.

Photo taken with a Leica M7, Zeiss Planar 50mm, and using Agfa APX 400 film.