The pipe

[dubaiphil]

A different class of bus user in Oxford:

[Shadowman]

Very dapper gent. Nicely captured.

[Donald]

Street photography at its best.

[rpcrowe]

Great shot!

What have been the differences (to you) shooting in the U.K. rather than shooting in Dubai? I tend to shoot more of people in "exotic" locals, than in my home area of San Diego. In fact, looking at my images over the last several years, the only street photography that I have done has been on trips to foreign countries.

You have become an inspiration to go out and see what I can do locally!

[dubaiphil]

Thanks guys. This was my last shot of the day while waiting for the park and ride bus out of the city. A good thing here is to note that you shouldn't pack your camera away until you can physically shoot no more - this was one of my favourites of the day.

@Richard - whenever I was shooting street photography in Dubai I treated it as if I were on holiday. The places that I was shooting in were not areas that I would otherwise go to but the environment was safe which gave me the confidence to do so. Getting out of my comfort zone and into these areas was an assault on the senses - there is a lot to take in and plenty of material to shoot which I was not familiar with, so very much like shooting on vacation and being immersed in a very different culture.

I used to shoot a lot of environmental portraits and not so much candid street photography in Dubai. It was easier to approach people and ask for a shot. So far I haven't tried this in the UK.

So far in the UK I have been mainly shooting in cities. In London no-one bats an eyelid to a cameras and Oxford is very touristy too so you can fly under the radar. Shooting in more local areas is more challenging as people notice you far quicker and in some places you don't feel so safe while shooting. Martin Parr, shooting medium format with a flash in some poorer areas, must really stick out like a sore thumb!

In Dubai there were lots of people with mobile phones but not so many people were using them in the areas where I was shooting. In the UK they're everywhere and this is the bane of many street photographers lives. It was easy to catch a porter in the backstreets in Dubai who was lost in his thoughts but in the UK everyone reaches for their mobile phone whenever they have a spare minute to tweet or whatever. Catching day dreamers is tricky.

So shooting locally has it's advantages and disadvantages. You're local and can easily revisit an area, yet sometimes become blase and over familiar with your environment. When travelling you feel as if you need to capture the essence of the place, whereas if you live there you feel as if you know that essence and may miss things. I find that it's just good to stop and watch. People are people and similar the world over, be it through their mannerisms, facial expressions, interactions.

So at the moment I'm standing back a bit more than I used to, trying to get my mojo back and shooting in my style in a very different culture which probably made my Dubai shots stand out a bit more than most. Getting there slowly and soon to embark on an environment street portrait project.

And pipe man - he's been the closest yet that I've come to asking permission to shoot in the UK. He knew I was there with a camera as we were waiting for the same bus and knew I was taking the shot. It was quiet with a 50mm prime so I wasn't far away - my D700 shutter ain't subtle! If he'd asked what I was doing then I would have chatted to him and got a few more shots. Looking that dapper, in a touristy city, he knows damned well that he's going to have his picture taken at some point!!

[dubaiphil]

And the irony, oh the irony

The previous post was written and sent while travelling to work on the train with an iPhone.

I've become one of them

[IzzieK]

You did a very good explanation of the differences though...I enjoyed that one despite that it was constructed truly and fully on an iphone. I thought it carried fully well how you feel despite being in a crowded environment of a bus. Now that is called "separation." Anyway, this image of yours depicts a real Englishman of old school. Very nicely caught.

[dubaiphil]

Thanks Izzie!

[thegman]

Excellent shot Phil, I wonder what he's thinking?

[dubaiphil]

Thanks Gerry - probably why I was walking around him taking shots from different angles