{"id":805,"date":"2015-04-10T05:59:46","date_gmt":"2015-04-10T09:59:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/decisiveshot.com\/?p=805"},"modified":"2015-04-10T05:59:46","modified_gmt":"2015-04-10T09:59:46","slug":"how-sharp-does-a-street-photography-image-need-to-be","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/decisiveshot.com\/how-sharp-does-a-street-photography-image-need-to-be\/","title":{"rendered":"How Sharp Does A Street Photography Image Need To Be?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s all relative.\u00a0 Unlike still life, landscape, portrait, and almost every other type of photography, Street Photography does not necessitate tack sharp images.\u00a0 There is a direct relationship between the degree of interest within the frame and a viewers acceptance of an images flaws.\u00a0 If you consider the fact that at times you’ll have less than a second or two to take a photograph from a relaxed position to firing the shutter you can understand why some images may not be perfect (unlike landscape where you can set up, use mirror lock-up, and take multiple images of the same scene until you get it right).<\/p>\n

\"Pittsburgh<\/a>

Pittsburgh 2015<\/p><\/div>\n

Obviously each person is going to have a different threshold for what is acceptable and what isn’t.\u00a0 So how sharp does Street Photography need to be?\u00a0 You’ll hear the word “acceptable” being thrown around quite a bit in Street Photography circles when talking about the sharpness of an image but there isn’t a real definitive guide to reference.<\/p>\n

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It’s difficult to say “the fathers of Street Photography didn’t always shoot tack sharp images so it’s not required” because the forefathers also didn’t have the technology we have today.\u00a0 They also predominately shot in black and white and it’s annoying to hear photographers use this as a reason they only shoot in black and white (photographers like Henri Cartier-Bresson would have shot in color had it been easier at the time and he said as much in his book Henri Cartier-Bresson: The Mind’s Eye<\/a>\"\").\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

I would argue that Street Photography is less about technique as it is about content…\u00a0 In fact, I would say content trumps everything when it comes to Street Photography or Photojournalism.\u00a0 If the photograph is slightly blurry and still tells an amazing story it’s acceptable.\u00a0 However, if the photograph doesn’t tell a story then it could be so sharp it cuts your eye when you look at it but it would not matter, it would be worthless.<\/p>\n

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