All about Candid Photography

Photography is about capturing a perfect moment at a perfect time. If you can do that, you are a photographer in the making. Some people stage the entire shoot and capture beautiful images that can move you. Fashion photography, product photography, landscape photography come under this category, where everything is, planned and staged. On the other hand, street photography, candid photography, wildlife photography are the genres that are random and not staged or planned. Every photographer began their career by clicking random pictures of animals, humans, flowers, and whatnot. We all were exploring candid photography without even knowing it. We captured our friends playing, dancing, fighting, and saving them for the future. All these were candid shots. This blog is all about candid photography and how to excel and become an excellent candid photographer.

Candid Photography

Coming to the definition of the genre, it is a type of photography in which the subject acts natural, unaware of the fact that they are being photographed. Nothing is staged or posed in candid photography. The models and scenes in candid photography are completely in their natural form and what they express is pure. This style of photography is very commonly used in street photography.

You might wonder that candid and street photography are the same thing. It is not true. Both the genres have slight differences between them. Every street photograph can be a candid photo but not every candid photograph can be a street photo. In street photography, you capture the raw nature of human society and the environment. The human element can be absent or present in the photo as per the choice of the photographer. Whereas in candid photography, human emotions are given more importance.

Tips to Get Better at Candid Photography

Practice! Practice! Practice!

You can’t better yourself unless you practice and hone your skillset. Keep practicing, and you will see yourself climb the stairs. You could try the given tips and push yourself as a candid photographer.

Make Camera your Best Friend

You are walking down the street and notice a frame you can capture, but you don’t have your camera with you. You missed your shot, and now it won’t happen again. A candid photographer always has his camera with him, ready to shoot. You will be impressed to see how many shots you take when your camera is ready to shoot.

Use a Telephoto Lens

To be a candid photographer, you need to stay unnoticed by your subject. You cannot capture raw emotions when your subject is aware of your presence. To solve this issue, use a lens with a long focal length. Something like 85mm or above will do the job for you. It will help you stay hidden and capture your subject in its natural, carefree environment.

Say No to Flash

You are trying to capture a person in a happy mood, and suddenly your flash goes off! Your cover has been blown, and the moment has passed. It is the worst nightmare of a photographer. Be sure to check your flash is off and won’t fire during the shoot. No one likes to be a deer in the headlight when a flash goes off in front of them. Instead, use the natural light or boost up your iso to get the desired shot.

Go on a Rampage Mode

In the era of film cameras, people used to save up their films for important pictures. Candid photographers were a bit different. They would keep clicking just in the hope of capturing that one moment. Today in the digital world, unlimited photographs can be clicked and stored. So, forget about the storage problem and click.

Hip Level is the Best Level

When you shoot from eye level, you make it obvious that you are taking a photograph, and your subject might change their behavior. It won’t be a candid photograph then, and you might get into trouble regarding privacy laws. Instead, try shooting at your chest level or hip level to be less suspicious. Shooting like this can be a hit or miss but will give you a different perspective of the image. Silent your camera and take burst shots. This technique will make it easier to catch the moment in that one frame of the burst shots.

These tips are not enough to make you a full-fledged candid photographer, but these are enough to make you feel confident and motivate you to go out and click. Remember, keep practicing, and you will ace in capturing the candidness.

If you are someone who considers the camera your third eye, you might as well read the following articles.

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