Women street photographers have been experimenting with the medium since the invention of the daguerreotype* camera in 1839.
Although women have been very active since the beginning alongside the pioneers, often printing for their husbands, and taking photographs themselves, their contribution has being overlooked for too long.
*The Daguerreotype (1839) is the first successful technique of capturing and fixing a permanent image.
Sarah Anne Bright (1793–1866) and Constance Fox Talbot (1771-1837) have been credited with having been the first women to experiment with photography in Britain.
In 1843, Photographs of British Algae by the botanist Anna Atkins is the first book to be photographically printed and illustrated.
From the studio to the streets
Unlike studio photography where the composition is staged, street photography is a genre of photography that records everyday life in a public place.
Street photography can be shot indoors as well; in a mall, the subway, or from a car for example.
![©Alice Austen, [Self-Portrait with Bicycle], 1897](https://i0.wp.com/mindfulphotolab.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/©Alice-Austen-Self-Portrait-with-Bicycle-1897.jpg?ssl=1)
Alice Austen (1866-1952) was the first woman in the USA to work outside the confines of a studio. She was ten years old in 1876 when her uncle gave her a camera and she spent the next fifty years making more than 7,000 photographs, processing them herself in a second-floor closet turned into a darkroom. She would explore the streets on her bicycle with more than twenty kilos of gear.
A pioneer of street photography she took photos of anything and everyone who interested her, from the high life of Staten Island to the street sweepers, suspenders sellers, postmen, policemen, fishmongers, shoeshine boys, and newsgirls of lower Manhattan.
Leica revolution
In 1925, Leica launched its first commercially available 35mm camera. It was a small camera with fast shutter speeds and good quality lenses allowing street photographers to shoot high-quality candid shots.
In Paris, Ilse Bing used the Leica to create surrealist* images while Marianne Breslauer captured fleeting moments off the streets, in parks, and along the Seine.
*Surrealism was an artistic, philosophical, and literary movement which developed in Europe after the first world war. It aimed to transform the human experience by celebrating the treasures of the unconscious mind over a rational vision of life.
In “Défense d’Afficher”, Marianne uses the juxtaposition of the lamp post’s shadow and the lady lighting a cigarette to create a surrealist picture.
In french, “Défense d’Afficher” means ‘Stick No Bills’ which creates a humorous effect as the lamp post looks like a police officer looking at the graffiti on the wall.
Although the picture was taken in 1937 it has all the elements of modern candid street photography.
In the 1930s, Lola Alvarez Bravo began venturing out of her studio in Mexico City to capture what she called “the life I found before me.”
Although technological advances in photography were becoming more available globally, gender roles in most countries didn’t allow women to wander the streets alone with a camera.
We have to wait until the end of the second world war when women street photographers were allowed entry jobs formerly reserved for men to see a shift in behaviour. But it’s in the 1960s that a deep societal change occurred with the women’s liberation movement.
“I was in downtown Philadelphia and I just took a walk and started making contact with people and photographing them, and though:’I love this. This is what I want to do forever.’
Mary Ellen Mark
The digital revolution
The first digital camera was built in 1975 by an engineer at Eastman Kodak but we had to wait for thirteen years, in Japan, before Fujifilm launched the first fully digital camera.
Whereas the earliest women street photographers were primarily Western and often had to defy social norms, the digital camera revolution made photography more affordable and accessible in almost every country.
Despite this continuing increase in women around the world picking up a camera, women still remain under-represented in photography, especially in Africa and Asia.
In Ethiopia for example, buying a new camera costs more than double the price than in the U.K because of government taxes, and second-hand cameras remain very expensive as the demand exceeds the supply.
Women Street Photographers
“Women street photographers” by Gulnara Samoilova is a wonderful photobook that creates a bridge between the history of women street photographers and contemporary ones from all over the world.
If you suffer from Gear Acquisition Syndrome (G.A.S), I recommend that you invest in photo books rather than a new camera or a new lens.
Here’s a selection of pictures and texts from the “Women Street Photographers” to inspire you for this week’s assignment; Reflection.
Cavanaugh Colleen
“Seeing Red….On a hot day in NYC, I was attracted to the reflection of the crosswalk lines on a truck. The texture on the siding of the truck made the lines appear wavy as though they were melting.
I waited for an interesting subject to walk by. This lady, wearing a hat to protect herself from the sun, seemed appropriate and fit perfectly into the background. The fact that she was carrying a red bag was an extra that completed the image for a hot day, as well as firming up my decision to display this image in color.”
Tip:
- Use a strong colour (here red) to anchor your subject
Donna Keough
“This photo was taken during the very early stages of the 2020 pandemic. I had a specific goal to document life in my city (in a safe manner) during this strange time.
Restaurants were shifting to take-out services only. I wanted to take photos through the window of this restaurant of employees wearing face masks, as that was fairly uncommon at the time.
This woman, a customer, was waiting for her order, leaning against a counter by the window with her back to me. She turned to look at me. I thought her gaze was so interesting through the rain droplets on the window. She gave me a little smile. She didn’t appear to be hesitant or uncomfortable, and did not duck away. She didn’t appear to be stressed by the pandemic situation or the bad weather.
That’s part of the street photography process. You start with one thing in mind et voilà, something else presents itself.”
Donna Keough
Florence Olivier
“At nightfall. The departure is announced.
Those luminous golden lines are about to move themselves and to accelerate.
I like these moments when a small abstraction hides in the reflections and creates a story.
The nearby train lights me up through a smile.
I’m going to find my daughter…”
Florence Olivier
Jutharat Pinyodoonyachet
“I was walking on the street at SoHo, NYC, then I found a giraffe as a decoration of the clothing store. When I tried to frame using the window display reflection, I saw that eyes staring at me. So I shot them all together.”
Jutharat Pinyodoonyachet
Linda Hacker
“I spotted this photo when I was attending open art studios in an old manufacturing building in Dumbo, Brooklyn, NY. I often find that looking at art helps open up my mind to photographic possibilities. I was walking down a hallway and saw the light reflected beautifully on the very shiny floor. I just had to wait for the right person to walk by and cast their shadow into the waiting light to complete the photo.”
Linda Hacker
Kimberley Wallis
“A train passes by just as I arrive at my favorite station to take images, and I move to the spot that I love to stand that gives me a clear view of those that will stand to my right. I waited for the train and I begin to take photos immediately, I can see the woman next to me and how she looks so out of place for some reason. It was all over in a second, and I was keen to go through the images.
I was delighted to see the image was exactly how I had hoped it would be, the human on the right stood out just as I had noticed, and immediately I found a connection.”
Kimberley Wallis
Cince Johnston
“On a bitterly cold day in January, I found myself sitting inside a mall waiting for my daughters who had conspiringly gone off to buy a gift.
The winter sun was shining through several large windows, bathing shoppers in a golden light and boldly casting their shadows. Since the backdrop of the concrete architecture felt aesthetically too cold to photograph directly, I found myself looking around to find a more subtle way of highlighting the movement and emphasizing this beautiful light, and saw the forms of the people reflected in the window of a nearby shop.
Due to January sales, there were no items directly behind the glass but just bold bands of fuchsia and pale pink coloured paper creating a more suggestive and theatrical scene.”
Cince Johnston
Reflection Assignment
As we have seen there are many ways to make compelling photographs by using reflections whether you include people or not. You can use windows, storefronts, cars, water… as your reflective surface.
For this assignment shoot a series of photographs using reflections and share your three favourites.
Tips:
- Use a colour to anchor your subject.
- Once you have found your spot decide if you want to be in the picture or not
- If not, make sure to position yourself so as not to be visible in the frame.
- Pay attention to any distractions such as cars on the same surface.
Have fun!
Inspirational References
Women Street Photographers, by Gulnara Samoilova