Learn Joel Meyerowitz’s Photography Techniques in 6 Step

[@davecarrera]

"Have the courage to photograph what you want". Simply beautiful advice.

[@Digital_Art_Stylz]

Agreed. 🙏 I’ve been struggling again lately with the “there’s nothing, and it’s not good enough” syndrome. It’s very hard to step out of that trap at times. Needed to hear that advice 👍

[@alchemist_x79]

When I started shooting with a 135 1.8, that’s when things clicked for me. I’m sure I’m an outlier preferring a telephoto, but I’m an extreme introvert so it allowed me to get candid shots without getting in people’s faces, keeping me unnoticed which I prefer. The background separation I get is also a nice bonus. It opened a whole new world of shooting for me.

[@stanleystevens6278]

I'm about to try doing that but with an 85mm lens.

[@surrcram]

Telephoto is a Godsend for introverts

[@justcallmesando]

Joel is such a natural instructor and inspiration. Every time I listen to his words I have this will to take my camera and go out.

[@bassem500]

I love the phrase "they will follow the tune you are playing in your photograph". Images I have chosen to share always carried some kind of music for me.

[@johnhoey7717]

I’ve used so many lenses over the years-and have learned a lot from each one. Love my 100mm macro. But when I decided to rent a 35mm, it was love at first click. Sold most of what I had and now keep the 35mm on my Canon R5 about 99% of the time. Totally connected with this focal length; all of a sudden someone seems to have turned on the light in the world around me….almost makes me want to cry, if I’m being honest.

[@janfrosty3392]

Same here, but for me is a 50mm one or even 58mm as it was on a Minolta that I purchased 50 years ago.

[@EricJFord]

@@janfrosty3392 wow amazing 50 years ago.

[@EricJFord]

Where can I see your art?

[@janfrosty3392]

@@EricJFord Dear E. Ford, I do not display my art, it is just for my use.

[@stevemuzak8526]

@@janfrosty3392 You should share it. Otherwise it doesn't make any sense. Art is for sharing.

[@foxdavani4091]

Funny, I chose a lens based on my blindness. Since I don't see out of my left eye and my right has no preferial vision, I choose to photograph with a tight tight tight lens. So it matches my vision. So my audience can see how I see.

[@MrRalph-wt3fo]

love to see your photos

[@foxdavani4091]

@@MrRalph-wt3fo I'll warn you in advance. I'm no pro. Just someone who fell in love with my mother's camera instead of cartoons at 5 and I've been in love with photography ever since.

[@pointeighteen2437]

Beautiful

[@Akashkumar-wd2cj]

Do share some links for you photos

[@Lito-gs4rb]

What's your Instagram?

[@webvideofan]

1:29 I always loved the framing in that image. Meyerowitz is one of my favorite photographers. I probably enjoy the way he talks about photography even more than his great images. I could listen to him talk all day and have listened to most of his interviews on KZbin and podcasts through the years. His is a style not easily replicated as the value of the image can be lost on an average viewer if not done just right. He doesn’t rely always on compositional rules as he does rather, in capturing a feeling or an unique moment. The art of the catch. A lot of his images have many different scenes within them. His landscape and architectural work are zen like at times in their symmetry and solitude. Joel Meyerowitz is a genius, of course. I have the book you’re featuring in this video and I highly recommend it to anyone passionate about photography as it is refreshing… as is your channel.

[@bujins123]

What a teacher Alex is,great at delivering these videos .You feel he really wants to help us in our photography what a talent. Another belter from Alex

[@sean.grogan]

The flower story resonated a lot with me. It was going back to a bunch of pictures I took over a vacation that I also discovered that I really really liked the pictures of flowers and boats I took on that trip. Other nature and landscape shots didn't do it for me anymore, at least not in the same way as a gorgeous flower or a unique boat. I have this one picture of a sunflower with a bee that I look at, and it literally brings a smile to my face each time.

[@ubeauty100]

You speak to us in our language of wonder and the prophetic power of visual communication BIG thank you it’s music to our creative ears

[@willstith1]

Hey for anyone who's considering purchasing this book and the accompanying course. I have to say that they are absolutely worth it. I highly recommend them. The course is often on sale as well.

[@minibuns5397]

Humor and all kinds of cool thought provoking stuff in one photo. You know they are good when you freeze the video so you can look inside the photo much longer.

[@benroyal1957]

Looking at photographs by great photographers can create a sense of the possibilities we can bring to our own work. Not being a street photographer I never really looked at his work until I came across his Cape Light series.

[@tedbrown7908]

After watching this video, I went back and looked through my photo's. I had in mind what photo's would I select that I would feel would look good in a photography book. DAMN ! not many at all. I started with setting 5 categories ( 5 books), Landscape, Street, Animals, Flowers, and Birds. I couldn't fill any one of them with 40 quality photos. That opened my eyes !

[@RogerBays]

I have always found heading to the photography section at a university library worthwhile because there are thousands of books to wade through, many offering bizarre images that open the mind to what can and have been photographed. These books help instil the art of composition, which, to my mind, is beyond words and rules and gained through the experience of viewing art made by others and creating art oneself.

[@longhairwhocares]

This is good. I especially liked the bit about pushing through boredom and seeing good stuff emerge from staying with the boredom.

[@Ashien22]

Wow, thanks for sharing about Joel Meyerowitz. Some of these photos are instant favorites for me.

[@NealeSmith76]

Joel's instinctive timing was so finely honed. The focal length discussion is an interesting one, he shot on so many different formats if I remember rightly, from full plate to 35mm, so from slowly and more considered to knee jerk in the moment 35mm rangefinder. But the timing is always immaculate.

[@sbai4319]

I have this book and the book by Albert Watson. Fantastic resources. I also bought and binge watched the course by Steve McCurry. I heartily recommend all of them.

[@MiddleClassNaPobre]

i had 50mm and 85mm cuz its good in social media but over time i wasnt happy… im starting shooting with only my phone cuz im not motivated enough to bring my camera… suddenly theres a spark… im in loved with the wide shots i took… i sold my 50mm and 85mm and bought wide lens… its already 2yrs im still loving 35mm… i love to document everything not only the subjects but also the places… i thought photography is just taking pictures… but its a way of sharing the world you see…

[@roy.mclean]

A 16 to 35mm has recently become my walking around lens. Shooting wider helps capture the wider environment which adds to the story. If it doesn't, I can crop it in post.

[@Kalimero46]

İm so excited. I'm waiting for video about Joel meyerowitz and his work 🎉

[@wolfgangtoeglhofer1710]

Your tutorials are perfect first in this art 🙏🙏🙏🙏

[@alanward4551]

great book bought it during lock down... very informative.. thanks for great video's and insights..

[@jjmummert]

Truly enjoyed this video. Very inspiring. Joel planted seeds of street photography interest in me at the beginning of my journey.

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thanks for watching

[@chrisschepper9312]

Not an aesthetic I generally like. But we all have different tastes. I respect his success.

[@nova.105]

Great video! I walk for days & it's a struggle to see the streets like he did! NYC has almost 9 million ppl & it's not the same imo!

[@caulacau2318]

Excellent commentary. Thank you very much.🥂📸📷

[@CarmenFalkenburg]

Love your podcasts, your deep perspective is wonderful

[@kodithebear]

His work is great. Thanks for sharing!

[@Goat.Herder]

I only ever used to use manual primes and they are nice lenses to use. I do prefer a zoom as I don't have to keep chopping and changing, but do try a prime if you haven't as you'll often get lovely bright, sharp images at a good price.

[@Uncommon-pixels]

Excellent video- very inspiring - thank you

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you for watching

[@thegroove2000]

Super pin sharp, hyper-detailed images are not needed to captivate as many cameras seem to be these days. Hence why many older cameras will do just fine.

[@NathanMandjes]

A prime lens is one on the most brilliant things I always was afraid of doing. I’m currently shooting with the X100V and this is the first time I photograph what my eyes see. Why didn’t I do this earlier?

[@aeyb701]

I recommend his paving stone of a book called “Aftermath”, a self-narrated collection of large format pictures of Ground Zero immediately after the attacks. He writes of the way he secured permission to photograph down among the crews, fascinating in itself.

[@DavidSk2683]

I really so appreciate your videos

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you

[@nvrumi]

You are awfully hard on my wallet! I'll buy a copy of this book straight away. I have it in my Thriftbooks cart as I write. Your comment about a prime lens is interesting, particularly in Meyerowitz's frustration with a 50mm. That's what I had when I bought my first SLR so many decades ago. I shot it a lot until I was able to buy a second lens, a Sears 135mm prime. It was followed by a Ricoh 35mm prime. Those three got me by for a long time. They, along with the camera, are all long gone. But, that's another story. For the last year, my daily carry camera has been a Fuji X100V. I have a small bag that holds it, some spare batteries, some spare SD cards, and a bottle of water. That is a 35mm equivalent focal length in full frame. There is something about the simplicity of a single lens that is appealing to me. Thanks for the video. Well done.

[@manishmishra6945]

Thanks for the lovely video

[@RichardsModellingAdventures]

I don't want t shoot photos like Joel Meyerowitz, I want to shoot photos like me :) Great video :)

[@jake_runs_the_world]

Man, such rich information !

[@daretoseeit]

Very inspiring.... Thanks Alex.

[@ChrisHunt4497]

Wonderful video Alex. I really must get that book. 👍👍👍👍

[@stevemphoto]

This vides feels like one of our mentoring sessions :)

[@Black_Jesus3005]

Thanks again as always

[@fdgl6730]

Great lessons

[@MWB_logic_reason_respect]

Thank you Alex!!!

[@hurleygreen927]

EXCELLENT SHOOTING TIPS! Keep up the great work... :)

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thank you

[@AK-hk2pd]

Thanks Alex, helps explain my 35mm favorite unknowingly 😀

[@ivansvara9200]

Great great video and many thanks!

[@DebiSenGupta]

I have this book and your commentary makes it richer. Are there anymore books in this series? Thanks

[@shanemcgrath2497]

Great video Alex, thank you

[@pk_fauxtaux]

2:07 genious !

[@ubeauty100]

Wonderful thank you.

[@monjue4459]

I just want to say, I love your videos. I would love to join one day and be more involved, but at this moment financially its not possible. Hopefully this will change for me soon!! But really thank you for putting up the content you do.. very inspiring and educational.

[@susancheer5981]

I really appreciate what you have to offer up for us on each of your videos. And I guess if I wanted a 'painting' video I'd go check out Bob Ross.

[@tduke91]

Great book.

[@yosefco]

loving it. this is the essence of photography: one very very short moment on the timeline in some place on the planet, that captures eternal human story. a time machine. just have one questiong reagarding joel's technic: how does he make his photos look so sharp edge to edge, and yet so soft? is it just the leica? is it high apperture?

[@litoco]

Hi Alex. So much thanks. But Can You put the photobooks ISBN-number in the description ?

[@Rob.1340]

Thank you. 👍📷😎

[@TimberGeek]

Yeah I've got grid lines at the 55mm field of view from my old Mamiya. ;-7 But I do enjoy a good telephoto.

[@johnbullock8885]

My curse is that I absolutely love my 21mm and my 35mm ( on a crop sensor). I also use a 40mm as well AND want a 28mm lol. If I absolutely had to choose just one, id continue with the 21mm only and just crop when needed.

[@ddsdss256]

Great stuff as usual, but every time I try to go out with just one lens (especially a prime), I find my self wishing I had another lens with me as I often miss potentially great shots. You often don't have the luxury of being able to "zoom with your feet" just as there's often a "right" focal length for a particular image. That said, I agree that "chasing" photos is pointless--trying to create art doesn't work, you just need to open your eyes and let it happen.

[@thomaseriksson6256]

A good one

[@rastemasha2951]

Greeeat video

[@ScottDunnCA]

Great video

[@ThePhotographicEye]

Thanks!

[@christinebeckett7060]

Classic, Alex. :-)

[@Alexandre-vj5yq]

I heard that having a Leica will make you a great photographer. I just wanted a camera that said "Leica" somewhere on it and put gaffer tape over the red dot.

[@TheDavveponken]

To be honest I think all this talk about story yadayada isn't all that it's cracked up to be. Most importantly it is about aesthetics. The aesthetics is what gives it it's richness. First of all it's composition, second it's ending up with something, or someone, sympathetic to that composition, and if you're lucky apart from that, interesting in itself. Take a look at some of the photos shown. Some (of the city shots for instance) appear to portray very little due to their very busy composition (nothing stands out, it's just a lot of everything), while others of the same category quite the contrary, while still not containing anything spectacular. I think it's all about training your eye for composition and then when the moment arrives, you take it (and capture it with a photograph). This of course begs the question what is aesthetically pleasing? Is it something that transcends our everyday experience? Or is it something (or someone) that deeply resonates with us? Might it be both?

[@henrikmartensson2044]

Storytelling is important. The problem is that very few photographers do it, even if they claim they do. Check out Joe McNally's Pointe Shoe Diaries for an example of how to do it. William Mortensen was also good at it. There are very few others that I know of.

[@minibuns5397]

This video hits better after dancing with Mary

[@memboy.advanced]

Didn't realize Taking Back Sunday used one of his photos for their album cover.

[@lynd4188]

I started without knowledge- only instinct. Light would arrest me. I read the snap. My scene spoke and I listened. I do not really have anything to say. I just inhale and let the light and shadows exhale. Perhaps I have no hope to be one of the best.

[@Reinavera73]

Hola. ¿La imagen que se muestra en el minuto 4:15 está realizada en Álora (Málaga - España)? Creo que sí. Un saludo

[@ChrisW.Fuji_Canon]

🙏😍🙏

[@AllBlacksNZ]

What is the book you are reading from? I want to buy itll

[@Koen75NL]

The music that starts at 5:00, what is it? It stops again within 20 seconds.

[@Leptospirosi]

Meaning of the story: go out. Take hundred of mediocre images to get that one that stands out. You don't go out; you don't press that shutter; you don't think it's good enough; that's how you know, for sure, that you probably won't bring home anything good from the street.

[@phairomonch]

Joel Meyerowitz: How I Make Photographs

[@leonardoiglesias2394]

100.000 have read that book….to end only realising how great Meyerowitz is….

[@paulie3095]

Buying cheap vintage prime lenses just to experiment could also be an alternative to renting a lens , eBay is a life saver for the modern photographer 😂

[@larson0014]

I miss kodachrome

[@hsheist9407]

a word on behalf of silence while looking at photographs.

[@wolfgangtoeglhofer1710]

..and maybe you may be able and interested to compact your incredible knowledge into a digestible book. that would help zillions of not only fotografers but pictorial artists in general. ps: I know marketing is about focus, but I really can see that you are way more than an excellent fotografer/teacher. Happy greetings from Vienna/Austria

[@wolfgangtoeglhofer1710]

Alex: your teaching style is positively flabbergasting. Please move beyond photography, move to creativity/art painting would definitely be a next area. I am sure that you are aware that artificial intelligence may move fotografy to the fringe as well as painting. Please consider this in your future yt tutorials. Reason: you/we may be obsolete with the AI. I am serious with my comment and I see that you do have the power to address this important topic. Otherwise just continue with your excellent yt tutorials. You are great but maybe move beyond

[@frankgurtler7316]

Hello, what would you say if it weren't for all these photographers that are talked about in their posts. You always talk about today and mean earlier. Sure, there were some impressive photographers whose work is only worth mentioning in 500 out of maybe 150,000 shots in 50 years, when I should still take the zeitgeist into account. Why not refer to your own work that reflects all the knowledge of the "ancients" you are reporting on? If so, you would have to be the guru among gurus, maybe...?

[@elonyao3894]

I got a another reason to buy a new len😂

[@kencur9690]

This is excellent stuff. I just want to add a few things though, and it’s not meant as negative criticism, but the full picture must be shown, excuse the pun... The time when this photographer was shooting was very different from today. I posit that street photography is much harder this day. There are some pros, especially in terms of new architecture and juxtaposition with the old, but we are facing a worldwide phenomenon of overcrowded places. Go back to the photos exhibited here, and notice the perfect balance: enough people to find subjects, but not enough to get lost in them. Go to any city today and it’s always a sea of people, which many times ruins the shot or makes it that much harder to capture. Also, people back then were way more interesting in their dress styles. More stylish, as it were. Today a lot of people make a clear effort to look cool and everyone ends up looking the same: individuality has clearly suffered. I used to watch those sci-fi films where communities become a group of uniform people, and it seems it was somewhat prophetic. Not to say that there isn’t good street photography these days, and not to say that there aren’t photos resembling these, because there clearly are, but there are definitely new challenges that are faced by new photographers. I won’t even go into the saturation of the photos themselves: once again, harder to be creative and original when everybody is a photographer, good or bad. Thankfully, moments can still be unique enough. Also, we can afford more images thanks to digital and storage capacities and costs. I guess we shoot more for less today.

[@kencur9690]

By the by, to add to this, there has been a lot of over-globalization which has rendered cities all over the world almost indistinguishable, were it not for the old towns and heritage. Add to that the lack of style in most modernization: in some cities, beautiful shop signage has been replaced by humdrum, cheap and ugly signs, so much so that in some parts efforts have been made to preserve the old signs. Some streets have literally been ruined by certain questionable introductions.

[@hsheist9407]

absolutely ... the mush of indistinguishable marketing garbage. Printed cliches on everyones clothing & a terrible desire to be famous rather than go about one's business and an individual person. (Have to add the noise of needless explanation ... same wrds repated like training a dog, badly.).

[@wolfgangtoeglhofer1710]

an idea: you are focusing on photography but what you are telling is relevant to painters as well. Why don’t you move beyond photography

[@pk_fauxtaux]

10:34 wtf

[@allend6137]

Focus on the everyday .. 🤔 Is it just me or was the everyday of yesteryears much more interesting than the current

[@kencur9690]

Hah, I just wrote something to the same effect, before reading your comment. It definitely was.

[@MikeKleinsteuber]

Taking great street shots in New York, London, Tokyo, Paris is easy. These so called street photographers should try their hand at small towns and villages and see how they get on. Joel is good no doubt but he only gets the low hanging fruit.

[@GPTMagana]

Coming from a small town west of Puget Sound and visiting Seattle few times per month, this is my art journey with the same medium Joel used.

[@klartext2225]

The JM pics are great - but the presenter is very hard to watch, being 2-3 stops overexposed! Today nobody seems to care anyway. But do you think Meyerowitz would have like this?

[@quartytypo]

What kind of booze does Joel drink?

[@AntonisKorakakis]

I have always found Meyerowitz's work to be overrated - boring photos that lack depth. I can't see what justifies calling him a "master of photography".