Humanist vision, certainly disconnected from the constraints of mainstream street photography

My street photography, I realize, sings out of the chorus. A free song against the visual homologation of these years.

I recognize myself in a frame full of people's expressions and gestures. In this sense my street photography is closer to portraits. I don't care much for skits. And this differs from what is rewarded, celebrated, from what is invited to festivals. And speaking of festivals, often organized by people who don't have a portfolio worthy of the name, who think that a guy riding a bicycle is a good photo, I say that most of the time it's better not to be there than to be there. What is today street photography? I can see a mainstream street photography that I am not interested at all. From my photographs but also with photography of others I want the emotion. the emotional aspect today is often not considered. And I can see a lot of technical, cold, detached filmmakers, with perfect, too perfect, perhaps false images.Someone even talked about photo-collages. There are people using burst mode or which extrapolates frames from videos. But it's all a crazy chase for vain glory.

As I said there is not emotion.

And if I can’t see emotion, i am sorry, I am not interested.

And we'll be able to tell each other again in a few years.

Alex Coghe, 2023

Small note

I agree with Trevor Wisecup when he says that there is a street photography which is made for other street photographers. A bit like what happens in those academic circles where books are published that people will read among themselves and that are not open to the general public. But thus photography remains a masturbatory act. Something that doesn't really arouse emotion but is made to demonstrate to others like us, how good we are (?).

How good are you if your photography lacks soul?

What does it mean to keep repeating what others do without ever encountering your own personal voice?

How does your photography truly offer something to the world of photography?

Do you really think that festivals can represent quality?

In New York, however, photographers have an old school approach that arouses emotion in us. And that's exactly where I still find hope, certainly not in festivals organized by incompetents.

When street photography becomes a mere stylistic exercise and a flat standardization to be sold to other street photographers is a really useless thing and it's a great masturbation for a small group. Photography should be able to arouse emotions regardless of whether the viewer is a photographer.

Academic Circle Syndrome is one of the most devastating things you can embrace.