Walking in a cold street one day, I saw a blind man sitting on the cold ground playing the erhu. The sound of the piano is moving, but his figure is very lonely, and his eyes tell an unspeakable feeling. It is very important to choose the right lens when shooting this kind of subject. Wide-angle lens is not suitable, because too close distance will produce perspective deformation effect, and exaggeration will have the opposite effect. It is best to use a standard lens to shoot from a parallel perspective, mainly to respect the subject, not to exaggerate or be curious, to truthfully record the hardships and perseverance of the blind with black and white pictures, to objectively and truly show the subject, and to fully show the living mode and self-improvement spirit of the disabled.
Old people performing street performers in the street (F2.8, 1/640s, ISO1200mm)
Shoot folk customs
As long as it has witnessed historical events, local customs and human photography, it can be regarded as documentary photography. There are 56 ethnic groups in Chinese mainland, and their unique folk customs are also one of the important themes of documentary photography. When shooting folk themes, you can find people with folk characteristics. The images, expressions and mental states of different characters are all interpretations of folk life.
Minority girls (f 10,11000, ISO 100, 60mm)
At the same time, if you want to be able to walk into their lives and keep each other in a natural state in front of the camera, you must communicate with each other. Blind shot's method can also be used when shooting folk themes, that is, the photographer can chat with the subject while pressing the shutter without looking at the viewfinder. This way of shooting while communicating is conducive to capturing each other's natural demeanor. The costumes of different nationalities have their own characteristics. When shooting representative costumes and combining them with portraits, we can feel the richness of folk culture from costumes.
Highlight the subject identity with background
The most basic thing of documentary photography is to be able to put down your body and walk into the crowd in daily life. Only in the "vulgarity" at the grassroots level can we completely capture every moment of its most real life. The picture below was taken in the countryside of northern Shaanxi. I saw the old farmer returning from herding sheep taking a short rest in the sheepfold, and a ray of sunshine hit his face. His weather-beaten face showed fatigue, and life went on day after day.
Simple herdsmen (F4.5, 1/250s, ISO 100, 10 mm)
In shooting, one is to use the background (yellow sand, sheep, slogans) to reveal the identity (farmers), lifestyle (raising sheep) and the characteristics of the surrounding environment (remote rural areas). Background has the functions of setting off the subject, enriching the theme and displaying environmental information. The second is to highlight the subject by comparing the background with the characters. Contrast between light and shade is a common technique in photography, and its purpose is to achieve the harmony of the picture and highlight the subject. In this picture, the sheep are bright white under the sunlight. The old farmer's face and clothes are all dark, and the outline of his face can be seen under the illumination of the side backlight, which looks vicissitudes.
Show people's lives with prospects
A few cages of steamed bread or a bowl of fried noodles is the most common breakfast for small town residents. The locals always say, "It's delicious, convenient and not a waste of time. When shooting a breakfast shop, you must pay attention to the composition. The subject of shooting can be a busy breakfast shop owner or a guest who eats breakfast. It can also be a delicious breakfast and the surrounding environment. The picture should be concise and full, preferably "people". "
Breakfast stalls in the town (F3,1100, ISO 100, 18mm)
The owner of the breakfast shop and his wife have been busy all morning, using the high steamer on the stove and the fried noodles in the pot as the foreground to show the livelihood of the characters. In the continuous hot air, the figure of the couple in tandem is plain and natural, and the proportion of the characters in the picture is naturally presented by shooting at a low angle. The foreground of the picture effectively shows the working environment of the couple, and also fully shows the village characteristics of the "small town breakfast shop".
Shoot rural life from a high angle
Changing the shooting angle to make the subject show the corresponding visual effect is an important means of framing. Photographers should use different angles to obtain diverse compositions to improve the expressive force of the picture. The picture above shows the work scene of farmers after the autumn harvest. From the wall, several peasant women are peeling corn. Choosing a high angle will not attract the photographer's attention, which is conducive to maintaining the original appearance of the picture. Using the angle of high-altitude shooting, the scenery is unobstructed, the characters are orderly distributed, the movements are very clear, and the surrounding corn does not overlap, which further enhances the stereoscopic effect and perspective effect of the picture. If you shoot from a head-up angle, it is impossible to shoot the whole scene.
Working scene of farmers peeling corn (F5, 1/300 s, ISO 100, 150 mm)