I was trying my hand at some street photography and caught these two at Main Beach in Laguna Beach. Laguna has its share of colorful characters, so I thought I'd give the subjects some color. The sun had broken through and the rain has stopped for the first time in a long time, but I'm not sure it's really warm enough to be parading around in a tank top. I have the feeling that he is rarely wearing anything but his tank top.
What I learned in taking this photo: Patience. Cars moving through the background do not make for good street photography.
But how do you stop the traffic in southern CA?? If he's a native southern Californian, he may not have anything but tank tops! How often would he need anything else?
And he's wearing white gloves because: he's a traffic cop? a cartoon character? a Germaphobe? Classic Laguna character. I always feel like a spy trying to get a street people shot.
The one on the left looks like quite a character while the one on the right looks like he's trying to figure him out. They both pop against the background. Intriguing image.
Superb candid capture love the use of selective colouring really makes it pop, I don't think the cars detract they out of focus as is all the background, my only critique on this interesting image is what happened to guy with the hats left arm Ron:)
Oh, there's just all sorts of special in this pic, including the expression on the face of the guy on the right. Kudos to you for daring to grab this pic.
Ron, i just love this image.. the facial expressions and body language are priceless. they may appear to be from different poles of the spectrum - but - who knows??
For me, it is great street scene because it poses more questions than answers... it makes one think... i just love his affectation of the white gloves...
@888rachel Thanks Rachel. I was going to try and make up some story about how his arm really was black and white, but fact is I just blew it in the masking. Another lesson learned - don't try to edit your photos when you have an appointment to keep.
@joysfocus Thanks Joy, yeah good questions as to the need for the gloves. He spent a fair amount of time standing curbside waving at the passersby. I'm assuming that was their purpose - the Mickey Mouse effect I guess. And yes, you do feel a bit like a spy. There's a certain thrill in it. ;-)
@taffy You nailed it Taffy. When I walked by a few minutes later, the one of the left was almost pleading with his counterpart here. All I overheard was, "Look man, I really, really care about people." This was after a police officer stopped by spending some time conversing with them. I'm sure I'll see them again in the near future. I have lots of appointments in that area over the next few weeks.
@pcoulson Ha ha, yes, I screwed up in doing the masking. As I replied to Rachel above, I was simply in a hurry, and I'm stuck with another errant editing job. I'm going to have to start just going SOOC!
@runner365 Thank you sir. I was struck my the contrast too, and I guess that's what made me want to capture the two of them. It is nice to have a zoom lens in such cases!
@lyndemc Thanks Denise. As I replied to Taffy above, the conversation, mostly from the gentleman on the left, was lively. I really couldn't figure out what the motive was for the guy on the right. Hopefully I'll be able to catch one or both of them again in the near future. Thanks for stopping by!
@cjphoto Thanks Chris. It is fun people watching - especially in Laguna Beach. I'm hoping to run up to Hollywood Blvd and get a bunch of street shots there. That should be pretty interesting!
And I really like the contrast between the two subjects.
For me, it is great street scene because it poses more questions than answers... it makes one think... i just love his affectation of the white gloves...