Viewfinder Coverage Street Photography Tip John Free

John Free is a social documentary photographer. John has taught at USC, UCLA, PCC, LACMA and has worked professionally at this craft for more than 45 years. For his personal work he does street photography. John's work has been featured in numerous publications from U.S. News and World Report and Newsweek to Photographic Magazine to Smithsonian, and a wide range of exhibitions, including the California museum of science and industry, Los Angeles, Laguna Festival of Art, Armory Center of the Arts in Pasadena and the Bagier Gallery in Ojai, California.
Website: Johnfreephotography.com
Instagram: John_Free_Photography
Facebook :John Free Photography
IG: deeno_andfree
#johnfree #streetphotography #filmcameras

[@JohnFreePhtography]

I forgot to mention that this is mostly concerning film cameras. I enjoy the film camera and the darkroom work.

[@brencaaa]

Hoping to finally start printing in the darkroom soon, for now I only scanned and printed my negatives and it's ok for color negatives, but is not the same thing when it comes to B&W film...

[@noenken]

That problem is also present in almost all but the most expensive digital SLRs. The best digitals in this regard are modern mirrorless cameras, they will show you the image while shooting it, pixelperfect, including exposure and everything.

[@lifetimesofamultiplemediam1003]

Good to see John Free still about in 2020… Keep on keeping on Souljah!

[@noremacbeez]

Preach bro!! Love this...

[@Shibukawa]

1. Great to see John again! 2. What's with the action-takes? 3. I've never felt so proud about owning the same shirt hahaha.

[@mikedesimone1783]

Hi John Free, Wonderful to see you are still educating on the journey of photography that you have provide to all of us over the many years. Thank you so much. Mike

[@1stfootprint_art]

I love your work... and your philosophy to the approach you take to your photography... you are one of the most visually poetic photographers I have come across... your advice crosses photographic genres... I mostly work in a controlled environment and much of what you have to say applies there too...

[@davidsaylors]

He’s back! Your an inspiration for my street photography! Thank you!!!

[@oneLEADFOOT]

What a treat to see you John ! Many years ago you inspired me to pick up a camera and shoot street photography. Thank you.

[@arryharry]

What a treat this morning, a top tip from John on film photography! John - I remember you talking about the F3 years ago and the coverage it gets, I have the FE2 myself, but have my eye on the F3T Sean Penn used in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. It's a beauty. More of these please my friend!

[@JohnFreePhtography]

You must be a rich kid.

[@joeltunnah]

Back when many people shot color slides, the extra picture not shown in the viewfinder was hidden by the slide mount anyway.

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Yes.

[@SVisionario]

John you are the greatest. Literally been watching videos of you speaking and walking around streets for hours now. You're definitely going to have an impact on this Norwegian photographer to come, now making his move to document life, relationships and human beings in South-America/Brazil. Thanks a lot for the heartfelt advice and knowledge you bring. I especially fell in love with the phrase "visual poetry" that you mentioned in another video. THAT'S what I want to do!! Will definitely embrace that for the rest of my life. Thanks John. There's too much fuzzing around with gear, eyesight and everything else today. A good photo comes from the heart. This viewfinder tip was really great and I'll be sure to take it before I fuck up my intuition. Now in the process of trying different gear and finding "the one". All the best to you John, I will be sure to follow you, watch more videos and when I settle somewhere I want to have photos on the walls, I will definitely get some of your photos. Lots of love

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Thanks Sebastian. I am happy for you and me. We are brothers of the lens in search of all that makes photography so worth doing.

[@SVisionario]

@@JohnFreePhtography Brothers of the lens. That sounds so good. Thanks for the reply and the kind words. I think a lot of people appreciate your videos and that even more will appreciate them. Genuinity like you portray is lacking today, and deeply needed as people try to reconnect with it again. So keep doing what you're doing when you feel like doing it my friend.

[@secondamendment6277]

I just checked my Fuji X-T20 and it has 100% coverage. Thank you for the information on this. And yes! I practice, especially after watching your videos. You are a great resource, John!

[@GarnettLeary]

What s nice surprise. Thanks for your time.

[@yasser1993319]

It's always good to see you man, thanks for the advice

[@gstefanos2792]

”Framing and focusing but more than that it's speed". Words of wisdom.

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Are we fast, or half fast?

[@gstefanos2792]

I fully understand that speed is crucial in street photography, yet I'm not fast enough. And more often than not, I hesitate. I'm not giving up though.

[@secondamendment6277]

Thanks to John wisdom, (though I would never say this to his face, lest he become too confident - Lol), my practice has really paid off. John has been my greatest influence and I appreciate everything he's done.

[@sidaustin1079]

I like John free. He seems like a really nice guy. And his videos educate and inspire me. Great advice. Looking forward to more great photography videos.

[@yorkieinnz4648]

Top man.....How anyone can give John a thumbs down beats me. 👍👍👍👍👍

[@KeithCanisius]

Love your vid's and my F3's. Keep em coming John. Good work buddy!

[@asifvirk953]

THANKS FOR THE TIP JOHN AWESOME.

[@newdegeneration]

this is one of the reasons i really like electronic viewfinders, they cover 100%

[@mrdre1019]

Nikola Stoyanov so true

[@malcolmlawrence3169]

That’s great advice! Thank you

[@oldgrumpyjim5003]

For my 66 birthday this year I’ve promised myself to go back to film and relearn some old skills from my early days. Thanks for this!! Great education as always from the master

[@JohnFreePhtography]

You want old and grumpy? I got your old and grumpy right here. Go back to film and get real. You start making some good shots and the grumpy goes out the window.

[@oldgrumpyjim5003]

John Free will do 🤣😂

[@DickTjepkema]

Just discovered that my 2 year old (consumer grade) Canon dslr has 95%. Pfff ... something to watch out for in my next camera. Thank you for making me aware! And a great to see a new video from you Sir! Best regards from The Netherlands.

[@mrdre1019]

another good video and points thank you

[@jontymitchell6288]

Clicked on this video too quick, absolutely love your videos John, great job Dean

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Deeno is the man.

[@kerstenzolfel1342]

Hello John Free, nice to see a video of them again. Greetings from Cologne, Germany, Kersten

[@WatchesAndPhotography]

Good thing I have a rangefinder style viewfinder, that way I know whatever’s within my frame lines is what I’m gonna get. ;-)

[@Socrates...]

Please make longer videos, I love your ideas

[@warrenwise8127]

replay, replay, replay, its similar to practice, practice, practice.

[@TheSweettooth95]

Thank you!

[@JoeLopez]

Good stuff. My F3 is my go to!

[@jdebultra]

So true.

[@Johnybulletproof]

i love your work and you had inspired me to get out to the street and capture , personal moments too , also i was inspired by your use of the NIKON F3 i have 3 of them now and i swap them ofthen . its an increadible machine

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Happy for you. With several cameras, you could be a photography mentor and really have some fun.

[@Johnybulletproof]

@@JohnFreePhtography hi , i try to lend them to my friends and family. I enjoy a lot when people gets curios about the analog process of documenting life .

[@mintslice2214]

I've always hated not having 100% coverage on all cameras I've ever owned. Drives me nuts!

[@joeltunnah]

Heavy professional cameras drive me nuts.

[@Being_Joe]

Any modern mirrorless camera with a electronic view finder. I really like shooting with my Fujifilm cameras. Good point though if you are shooting film.

[@danielandujar5479]

I've own two. 📷 one with and one without. And they're Greate 💪 And with vintages lens 👀🚶‍♂️ 📷 Fujis the best 📷

[@warrenwise8127]

Great to hear from you John. Great information!!!! never thought of this, i just checked on my old banger, my beloved Canon A1, 93.5% vertical and 95.3% horizontal, not great but my heads that messed up it won't make much difference, but I love her, and my 50mm 1.4 as i get pin sharp results, will just have to fix it in the darkroom, I find 35mm onto 8 by 10 you have to loose a bit anyway, just a hobby ( one of too many ) love your work, Cheers from Australia.

[@JohnFreePhtography]

I like my lying camera anyway?The camera is a cold machine. Love what a camera can do. Get one that works for you and what you want in your photos, nothing extra, just what you want in the frame. Nothing more. Love a camera which messes you up?

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Sharpness is good but content is more important to me.

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Het Warren, how can you photograph effectivly with the camera held upside down?

[@warrenwise8127]

​@@JohnFreePhtography I agree on all your comments, its quicker than my digital canon powershot gx3 which I don't like as much because on manual focus it seems like a million turns of the lens to focus and to touch the screen where i want it to focus on auto that process is too slow and i find myself missing shots on both manual and auto focus. I'm not a very tech savvy person, which is why I like my A1, she's quick, a little lens turn to focus , push the button, bang, done, no delay, doesn't talk back, I push the button and she is 'yes sir' . You say content is more important to you than sharpness, well to me, getting the shot even if it is with 5 or 6% more is more important than not getting the shot. I wont be replacing all my A1 gear, I have vehicles, truck, and bike to restore, and my dollar only goes so far. I love black and white film, film, paper and chemicals in a darkroom, yeah, you cant beat it.

[@AceHardy]

📸

[@micaelrodrigues5821]

Great topic, i´ve a digital slr with 96% coverage and some photos that i thought were good while taking them were different when i view them

[@JohnFreePhtography]

The great sadness, is that the photographer thinks its his or her fault for not getting close, but it is the stupid cameras fault.

[@kostyafedot551]

Always nice to see from John! BTW, I have more than 100% coverage in my Leica VF :)

[@camshenfield3144]

I think accurate framing is one of the high ideals in the art of photography. For now I'm shooting digital with a fuji xt2 which is full coverage. I repair vintage film cameras so I get to use everything else! But I'm yet to find my 'keeper' however I'm certain it will probably be a Nikon f2 or something else with 100% coverage. Thanks for another fine video John please keep them coming. :)

[@JohnFreePhtography]

I also would like to try an F2. I like the idea of a mechanical shutter release.

[@camshenfield3144]

John Free indeed. I love all cameras but the older mechanical models are fascinating to work on and shoot with. But I think I've got a broken F3 HP in a box somewhere so maybe I'll see if I can get that going too. :)

[@TheGazmondo]

Absolutely right, otherwise there’s no creativity, just gambling and guess work, no other tool of a trade would ever be that inaccurate!

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Nice words Gary.

[@epicedventures]

👍

[@jean-marcchenu5253]

Hi' John ! as you my F3HP is my favorite camera with the 55.28.

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Hooray. One of the finest cameras ever made with a very sharp lens for $200.00-$500.00 with lens. Anything else might be silly. Ten grand for a camera that is hard to work with?

[@CamMead]

Would be interested to know if you use the F3 in aperture priority (shutter speed to A) and use the exposure lock button on the front while metering the scene, or do you prefer just using it in full manual. Small technicality but would like to know if either way is more efficient to you? Thanks!

[@JohnFreePhtography]

I try to keep the shutter speed at 500th of a second by adjusting the F stops. I do not know what you mean by exposure lock button.

[@CamMead]

@@JohnFreePhtography Thanks John that makes sense to me, ok so the F3 you can put the shutter dial into (A) then camera will auto select a shutter speed for you based on your film speed and aperture setting. You can pause the exposure it chooses with pressing in and holding the button on the front right hand of the camera (button #7 in manual) until you release the shutter . This is how I typically shoot it, but have thought more of using it with your technique especially with moving subjects.

[@justinpozos3819]

Does anyone know what focusing screen John Free uses in his F3?

[@minekazik7997]

Also you can always get a rangefinder that has 200% viewfinder coverage

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Good point. I am used to the viewfinder on s.l.r. cameras. What you see is what you will get with no other things which might distract, With my Nikon F3, I can get very precise with the framing. I do not like to have to crop my photos. I try to be accurate when I make the photograph.

[@spyratekodaks7494]

I have the f2 which has 100% viewfinder coverage!! It's a really great camera!! It's like the Nikon f but better!!

[@JohnFreePhtography]

I use the F3, but I think the F2 is better because of the mechanical shutter release. The F3 has a battery operated shutter.

[@MakersTeleMark]

It's been way to long. You look good.

[@JohnFreePhtography]

I have good laffs watching me as an old guy pointing like Bernie.

[@Anarki2U]

Canon F1 New = 100% in the viewfinder. I had the Nikon F3, but I think the Canon is much better for several reasons, one thing that is better is the lightmeter operation.

[@stephenshea9268]

What kind of watch is that?

[@JohnFreePhtography]

A cheap one.

[@brencaaa]

My F2 is my work horse! 100% coverage. No surprises, what i want in the frame is in the frame, what i do not want is not in the frame.

[@JohnFreePhtography]

HOORAY.I think the F2 is better than the F3. The F3 has an electronic shutter which will not work if the batteries go dead. Mechanical shutter is best.

[@brencaaa]

John Free is the same reason why I went with it rather then the F3, both superb cameras, but the F2 is and feels like a Swiss watch. It will easily outlive me if used nicely!

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Oh boy. I think I might have to get an F2.@@brencaaa

[@stephenshea9268]

John Free did you get an F2?

[@nickfanzo]

Is this why you choose an slr over something like a rangefinder?

[@JohnFreePhtography]

Most cameras are just bad jokes that mess up photographers. For me a rangefinder camera is a trap with no focus control, just a stupid little split image device in the center of the viewfinder. A good camera for a moron who wishes to look good with a very over priced piece of junk. Use the Nikon f3 with 100% viewfinder coverage and good focusing control anywhere in the viewfinder. Even the great photogs in history who used rangefinder cameras show us 1/3 of their images are out of focus. Check it out.

[@nickfanzo]

@@JohnFreePhtography I have an f2 myself and love it. Thanks for the reply!

[@Being_Joe]

Wow, so my F100 only gets 96% coverage. I like that camera but now you making me think it is not as good. Thankfully for me I scan my film and can crop in post.

[@salmonsmoothie]

Rip rangefinder users

[@tomjsmith000]

ؚ is not very exact but my rangefinder is probably 130% viewfinder coverage...

[@lauriekriegar9000]

Are you adopted

[@lecadre236]

dont take life that serious