Making a Living from Street Photography - Tokyo Street Photo Vlog #5

[@JeffWalshPhotography]

This video along side the blog post is INSANELY informative.

[@EYExplore]

Thank you!! Glad to hear that!! :)

[@callmehank88]

Another excellent video, thanks Lukasz and Axel. I find your production style far more engaging than other photography videos I watch which are mainly a lot of B roll of walking and transport to a location or two then a few sample images. This photo walk style is genius. I love it! 👍👍

[@EYExplore]

Thank you for saying so!! It really helps to know you and others like this format. We'll keep making them!!

[@Project_2501]

It is interesting when "following some other photographer through the streets", seeing pretty much what he sees and noticing how differently I would have picked my subjects and frames. Not in a better or necessarily worse way but just to see how certain things attract the attention of each person differently is fascinating to me.

[@EYExplore]

I agree! It is very fascinating. That's why I love to share my vision/process. Not to prescribe my way of doing it, but just as a reference. And people can see what I do and pick and choose what, if anything, works for themselves.

[@ColdCoffeePhotography]

Love the laid back style from you both, plenty of useful information without the machine gun approach! Still on my bucket list to get out there & hopefully have a tour with yourselves

[@EYExplore]

Really glad to hear that!! I'm worried the vids are too long but I don't want to sacrifice the chill mood.

[@bryanjarboe8920]

So great Lucas. I love these videos. Seriously I started watching another channels “street photos in Japan” videos and stopped 3 minutes in and came back to your channel. Seriously great content, please keep making more of these! Your composition is awesome and your insight is helpful!

[@EYExplore]

Thank you so much for the encouragement, Bryan!! We'll definitely make more!

[@helencogan2187]

Your content is awesome..as well as your work.I have learned a lot from you.. thank you and Be well!!

[@EYExplore]

Thank you so much!! :)

[@TMM6900]

This video is dense pack with info. Love it

[@EYExplore]

Thanks!! :)

[@omeanderch3024]

I’m so love it to find your channel!

[@EYExplore]

Thank you so much!! :)

[@iDipTest]

The map is an awesome idea ! Thanks a lot to have took time to explain how you make your composition.. i'll gonna have to keep in mind "Less is more" for my next session

[@EYExplore]

Thank you!! I'll keep going into more depth about composition in future videos. :)

[@paulchino81]

Miss Tokyo so much. Just received your prints the other day. They look amazing! Thanks!!!

[@EYExplore]

Thank you very much!! Glad to hear you're happy with them! :)

[@patrickemmerechts6054]

Another gem nice work.

[@EYExplore]

Thank you so much!! :)

[@skebir2506]

I just love the pictures you display in your videos

[@EYExplore]

Thank you very much!! :)

[@j.decasas]

LOVE these videos. keep ‘em coming!

[@EYExplore]

Thank you! Will do! :)

[@sebhitch]

Really enjoying these vlogs as they give me inspiration!

[@EYExplore]

Thank you so much!! Glad to hear it! :)

[@RobinNoah]

great content and awesome idea with this map. hopefully i‘m able to visit Tokyo soon. it would be a little dream doing street photography in one of your workshops.

[@EYExplore]

I hope you can someday!!

[@anoth3r_kim]

Its funny you make relations with photography to pokemon haha. Great shots Lukaz!

[@EYExplore]

Sometimes I feel like I'm just wandering the streets and trying catch certain archetypal photos: silhouette shot, reflection shot, guy smoking shot, umbrella shot, and so on. Just like Pokemon! :)

[@anoth3r_kim]

@@EYExplore Haha nice! I might improve by thinking so.

[@bradl2636]

Great video.

[@EYExplore]

Thanks! :)

[@vinyalonde]

You probably already know this but the Nikon museum is located in Shinagawa. Great video as always. I am looking forward to taking several of your workshops the next time I am in Japan (when it is safe to travel again).

[@EYExplore]

Yes! The museum is awesome. So many cool things there! I hope we can all travel again soon.

[@nigeldawson8218]

It’s interesting how you can take so many photos in Japan without much anger from the people. Working in the USA, I get frequent confrontations. It’s annoying because the people are on security cameras and iPhone cameras every inch of their lives.

[@EYExplore]

Yeah, people here are much more ambivalent towards photographers and cameras. It helps a lot!

[@Francis_A.321]

Solid compositions! I would've made better shots if I came across your channel before I went to Japan. Stay safe brother!

[@EYExplore]

Thank you!! You'll have all this knowledge for next time! :)

[@cotron]

Good stuff - I've definitely found to make a living as a creative professional, you have to be creative in finding opportunities to get paid too.

[@EYExplore]

You're totally right!

[@supermarkomarkomarko]

Nice video, very informative about the topic (can you make a living from the street photography) and also about Tokio streets. I was looking at the details all around the place, what are they leaving in front of their shops, is there a mop in the corner, what that soda can is doing, etc. And also, someone noticed that you have very laid back style of communicating with the audience. I like that a lot, it's like I'm walking with you. You have very good channel that's in my bookmark list :-) I have a technical question: Why do you go with slow SS and leave high iso in the photos without subjects? Why don't you set your ISO to 100 and speed up SS? Thank you

[@EYExplore]

Thank you so much! I'm glad it feels like we are walking together. That's we are going for! As for the question, if I put a high SS, for example 1/500 and LOWER the ISO to only 100, then the photo will definitely be too dark. If you are shooting in a dark place like in the video, then faster shutter speed means higher ISO (ignoring aperture for now, but I was already on f/2 or 2.8 so it could not be increased much more). So, the reason I put a slower shutter speed (1/60) is so that my ISO can go down. For example, let's imagine I take a photo at 1/50 and 100 ISO, then if I speed up the shutter to 1/100 the ISO will have to go up to 200 to keep the same exposure. And so on: shutter speed 1/200 and the ISO goes to 400. The exposure will be the same in all three examples above. Actually, we have a video that explains this in detail: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qKDRnZWqedKKaJo

[@supermarkomarkomarko]

@@EYExplore Thank you man, I'm gonna watch it! Keep up the good work

[@andgainingspeed]

The audio has always been solid, and as long as we can see your eyes, I doubt the mask impacts communication with audience in a meaningful way. Your beard already obscures your face. Surprised that during the hot Japanese summer you have not shaved it. 😅

[@EYExplore]

The bears is PART of my face hahah. I'll think about it. I get what you're saying but some day the pandemic will be long behind us and these videos will still be up. The beard is no problem in the heat! Beard + mask though does get hot.

[@azzamplify]

Best pancake lens 🔥

[@EYExplore]

Totally!! :)

[@aehii2305]

I think patreon would be best for me, but i don't think any street photographer does it. Tatsuo sells prints on patreon, not many subscribers though. I've been wondering for a while why workshops have become the go to method, i think on a holiday in a city like Tokyo with all the technical stuff you know it makes sense but for more philosophical candid street workshops where people aren't taken to spots, aren't told technical tricks, and they're paying £500 for two days, sharing the time with 11 others it's a bit ehh. Makes me think of life coaches where rich people in corporate jobs have realised how unfulfilling they are and want to figure out some other future. There's a difference between seeing shots and wanting to close the gap on how to attain them because there's some mystery there, as opposed to workshops that are about the individuality of the photographer and trying to realise that, so Reuben Radding's are like that. I said this to the street thief in an Instagram live video, just 'why do you think the method to making money doing this is workshops and not patreon?' but he took it kind of defensively, like 'the only reason i use Instagram is promotion', i meant the question generally, like where the traction is, teaching, learning, improving, so much of youtube taps into that but then you also have people doing reaction videos who have patreons, if people are willing to pay strangers to react to films, why can't i get people to pay a few quid a month for uploading photos, but then you're asking strangers to give you money indefinitely and it's weird. I've had a few people on deviantart message me telling me about their music, artwork, asking to use some images, photos I've put up and i know really it's to establish a connection but I'm so lazy to reply well, it'll take me a week. You want your output to make people feel something but then if they say anything you think...it's alright i guess, i liked it at the time, boring now. Also wanted street thief to consider the amount perhaps, if you only upload a few shots a month then patreon would make less sense than uploading every day. Ultimately loads of people upload street shots, people aren't starved. I think i do it differently to everyone else though, photos that aren't like what you'll see elsewhere but maybe I'm deluded. This is how my mind works: I'm getting a kick out of writing another wall of words because i think at some point you'll think...wait who is this. In the street thief live video i asked 'what do you think of my photos?' because i wanted to see if they left any impression and he'd remember the name. But he said 'I'd have to look at them, there's so many people'. Another thing about patreon for people is just having stuff to listen to while at work, you have chapo trap house in America where basically because politics is making people so frustrated they filled a left void. They make an insane amount of money a month. Same in the uk, Novara Media, Owen Jones, they're great but i wonder how honest they are about left media making a difference, as opposed to filling a void for angry people. They are the most eloquent people on issues, proper journalists, but they can go for decades and nothing changes because power lies elsewhere. It's essentially the same points made every years for decades. I get a better reaction on reddit than Instagram, there are some enthusiastic people on Instagram but the impression is people who don’t do much will be more impressed than the old guys who have seen it all. In terms of audience it made me think. You can see how the cult of personality forms over someone like Trevor Wisecup, whose shots are like loads who do flash film colour New York street photography but if there's some younger people they attach in that 'you're the best' way because it depends on exposure. Like the reaction videos are basically liked by kids who look up to adults, an adult is talking about my favourite film isn't that cool. I assume. I doubt anyone is asking someone in their 40s 'what are your monthly outgoings then?' and replying 'well, got my car insurance, phone, Netflix, Disney, Lucy and Ben reaction videos, HBO'. Or maybe they are, i dunno.

[@EYExplore]

I'm with you on the classroom style workshops. If I'm paying for a workshop I wanna work together with the photographer. I want to see them working in their element. That's the best way to learn. We have Patreon of course, and I really appreciate our supporters there, but I am most fulfilled when I know for sure people get something back for their money. For that, the workshops are best. We did another video that relates to this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a3OnaIJjd8Z_hMUsi=_Fuhrcn9WMrtuHgM I think you do it pretty uniquely, but I don't know if that's really crux of the matter. I think you're right that people want to connect. They want to feel validated in some way: oh here is someone who thinks like me, but maybe a bit 'better' and I wanna aspire to them. It comes down to personal values. If your values (which you showcase through your work in some way, even if it's kind of indirect/abstract) align with the values of the viewer, then they are going to feel connected to you. The stronger the connection the more likely they will want to show their support financially, whether that's by purchasing your products, services, or donating money on Patreon. I would say that's how it works in this 'gig economy' that artists can thrive in these days. I guess it's not much different from the old days when artists had benefactors and grants and whatnot. It's only the medium of distribution which has changed. HAHA, mans so true about your wall of works... I saw it, started reading and instantly knew who this is hahahah. You make the same point about modern media that I made above about values... I feel it's the same at least. The only difference is that those political talking heads and demagogues use this same mechanism in toxic dystopian way. But it hooks people more strongly, like a powerful drug, so the media exploits it. Reaction videos are kind of in between. I think simply put, in our modern dissociated reality people are yearning for some kind of connection. And building parasocial relationships with online personalities fills the void that use to be served by the village, clan, and family.

[@Nicolas.Duchemin]

Another thoughtful video! BTW, I'm so interested by the map as I'm living in Tokyo. (I'm still waiting Nikon to release this 40 mm pancake for the Z mount 🙃)

[@EYExplore]

Thanks! We're offering the map as a membership perk for now. And yeah, I think I might finally go to mirrorless when the Z6s and the new 40mm and 20mm pancakes are announced/released. I will definitely be keeping my D4 though. :)

[@samuelvallet741]

🔥🔥🔥

[@EYExplore]

Awesome!! :)

[@redbeard3946]

2:16 - Video ends. Credits roll.

[@EYExplore]

Haha, was a too blunt? :)

[@stevemcbeyphoto]

Another interesting and informative video. Could I please ask the brand of the 40mm lens you use with your D4? Thanks 👍🏼

[@EYExplore]

Thank you!! The lens is a Voigtlander 40mm f/2 for Nikon F mount.

[@stevemcbeyphoto]

EYExplore Thanks, I appreciate you replying so quickly 😀

[@EYExplore]

@@stevemcbeyphoto no problem! I try to get back to every comment. It's good manners haha.

[@TMM6900]

Is there a reason why you prefer 28 and 40. Over popular 35 and 50?

[@EYExplore]

There is no special reason. I like my 40mm lens because its ergonomics are good. It's very small, great for manual/zone focus and it's very sharp for the price/size. 28mm is great for getting close and also for more architectural shots. In the end though, these two lenses are just very fun to use and I like them. That's all. :)

[@willapanews9761]

You might be able to make some money doing Street photography by asking businesses if they would like you to post your photo to Google maps for a fee.

[@EYExplore]

This is another clever idea! :)

[@TomVestvik]

Would say that selling prints and books, is making money directly from street photography.

[@EYExplore]

That's a good point, but I don't do that... Yet. I'm starting out with prints and plan to do a book some day.