Walking around and attempting to get into Street Photography in New York City is nerve wrecking. In truth, you think you know you will be ok, but you won’t.

My first attempts at Street Photography, now that I look back, were all a failure. I tried to get in the middle of the action and get some human emotions and raw moments. I tried to learn the Do, Do Not, settings, composition, I thought I had and knew it all… #FAAAAIL. It didn’t matter if I had all the knowledge about it, without the lack of practice I was mediocre. Most of my early attempts of getting in the middle of the action and capturing people failed because as soon as they made eye contact I panicked. I panicked because I am a person who tries to avoid a confrontation, and in my mind someone out there was ether going to punch or slap me across the face. Early street photography attempts on my end are of people from the back or objects that I truly didn’t want to photograph. I didn’t give up though. By all means I don’t consider myself the best Street Photographer, however, I can say that I improved tons from my real life experiences and never giving up.

My greatest failure was to be afraid of what people would think or say. I would find an attractive place and wait for the right person to pass by, however, when it happened I would NEVER take the shot. I was too nervous, I thought I was doing something illegal, do I need people’s permission? how do these photographers take photos of random people?” I thought to myself. It turns out, I scared myself more than I should’ve. I started little by little taking photos of people and getting the emotions and looks I wanted. Little by little my confidence grew substantially and i was able to get closer to people and achieve raw moments. I do have to say that I have never been in an altercation, I take my shot, smile and keep on moving.

What I leaned and helped me immensely is that it is perfectly OK to photograph random people in the streets of New York City, as long as you follow the general rules you will be good. However, if someone does tell you to not photograph them, please be polite to respect their wishes. This will save you from so many headaches and altercations. Trying to get into Street Photography in New York City is nerve wrecking and you will question many things about what you know, you might also think you’re not meant for it. DO NOT think this way, YOU CAN DO IT, you just need some courage for it. You need to remind yourself why do you want to do Street Photography, what do you see that you want to show, what do find beautiful about your chaotic city or town.

I have realized one thing though, street photography is not just about photographing random people on the street. Street photography is about the collective of what makes a city, a feeling of chaos and balance within its people and streets, the harmony of buildings organized in grids, the never ending sounds coming from every direction, the movements from local businesses. Street photography is about anything and everything that involves street. There is not one definition for it, everyone will interpret it differently though. And that is actually beautiful. With that this in mind, Go out and SHOOT 😊.

I have always had a gravitational pull toward the arts, more, now than ever, after realizing my own potential. I was always fascinated by the artists and artworks from the Renaissance, Neoclassicism, Symbolism, and Impressionism periods. I appreciate ancient Greek sculptures and the way expression was portrayed that gave each one feeling. I admired anyone who contributed to the arts.  To me, it was the most gratifying feeling to see someone else create something. I always enjoyed gazing over these works and talking about them; what I saw in them, what they meant to me, what I felt for them.

I tried my hand at drawing, and to my surprise, I was slightly good at it, especially still life and perspectives. I also tried music, learning to play the piano, and again, to my surprise I was really good at it. I never pursued either of these things, though, even if the people teaching them told me I should do so. In a way, I guess it was because of my cultural upbringing. I actually wanted to go to college for photography but my family had said, as had many others, “You can’t pick a career where money is an uncertainty.” I never mentioned it to them at the time, but just listened to them and chose to study something else.

On Christmas of 2015, I received a Nikon camera as a gift. I was told, "You have a good eye for imagery, and you should explore photography." Wether that statement was true or not, it had embarked me on a new path to self discovery. It wasn't until late spring of 2016 that I actually started learning about photography and getting out of my comfort zone and capturing images. I started reading about lighting, composition, and all the basics of photography. I even thought of taking a class but I never did. In some ways, I didn’t feel like I needed to. Above all, I learned photography mostly through trial and error, capturing what I felt when I looked at a train rushing past me. Finding beauty in the everyday sights of the city. Capturing how people really are in their everyday moments, and ultimately sharing these experiences. In some ways, I felt like photography was something I was supposed to know. Something that I knew, yet I didn’t bring it out.

Since then, photography has been a huge part of my everyday life. It was solely my way of expression, interpretation of feelings, my way of thought and the way I see beauty. I carried my camera everywhere with me. I wouldn’t leave it home and bear the thought of potentially missing out on some beautiful sights of my city, New York City, and the simple moments between me and friends and the people around me.

I am grateful that I was introduced to photography because someone else saw something in me. Some potential that I did not even realize I had. A potential that I perhaps suppressed for so long.

When I look back, I now realize why I loved the impressionist and symbolic periods in art history so much. It is simply because combined, they make up what I capture. Photographs that capture a moment I see; a moment I envision, to represent a feeling, a thought, an idea. However, this golden period of discovery and enjoyment only lasted no more than two years, in part I gave up on it because of life experiences. I guess it will be a story for another day…