Mexico City Street Photography: How to Photograph the City Beyond the Postcard
Mexico City is an extraordinary place to photograph, more and more recognized by photographers around the world. But it can be also an easy place to photograph badly.
The city offers an almost endless supply of recognizable images: colorful streets, markets, street vendors, historic buildings, murals, architecture, traffic, food, people and the visual chaos that makes Mexico City so immediately attractive to photographers. But photographing Mexico City is not simply about collecting interesting subjects. I am sharing this with you, as a photographer becoming a professiona photographer in this city, in 2010.
The real challenge is learning how to see the city photographically.
Mexico City Street Photography
For me, street photography in Mexico City begins with observation. Before thinking about cameras, lenses or settings, you have to pay attention to what is actually happening around you. Light, gestures, relationships between people and architecture, signs, colors, shadows, movement and unexpected visual connections can all become photographs. I mean: youshould be genuinely atracted and curious about the city in order to achieve impiortant photos. Otherwise you will obtain photos but not expressing really what is Mexico City. Mexico City rewards photographers who are willing to slow down and look. And only the ones really interested to immerse themselves, in this particular reality. You don't necessarily need a complicated setup. A small camera and a single lens can be more than enough.Take in mind I started to document Mexico City with 2 cameras, the first Olympus Pen E-P1 and the Panasonic Lumix LX3. What matters is knowing where to stand, when to wait and when to press the shutter.
The city is full of photographs. The difficult part is deciding which ones are yours.
Photography in Mexico City: Look Beyond the Obvious
One of the biggest mistakes when photographing Mexico City is looking only for what immediately identifies the city. The postcard version of Mexico City is already everywhere. Instead, try looking at the less obvious relationships between things. This is where photography becomes more than documentation. You are not simply recording Mexico City: that can be made by any tourist with a camera.
You are a photographer and you are called to interpreting it.
Street Photography Tips for Mexico City
If you are visiting Mexico City with a camera, here are a few things I would keep in mind.
Walk without constantly looking at your camera.
Look first. Photograph second.
Don't photograph everything.
A busy street does not automatically produce a good photograph. Give yourself time to recognize a visual situation before reacting to it.
Try one camera and one lens.
Limiting your equipment can make you more attentive to distance, perspective and composition. That is exactly how I approach always the city.
Pay attention to backgrounds.
A good subject can be ruined by a distracting background. Often the photograph becomes interesting because of the relationship between foreground and background.
Don't chase the exotic.
Mexico City does not need to be made more Mexican. The ordinary city is already visually rich.
Stay longer in one place.
Instead of constantly moving, sometimes wait. The photograph may arrive when the right person, gesture or light enters the frame.
And perhaps most importantly:
Don't try to photograph like somebody else.
Your photographs should eventually begin to look like you.
Photographing Mexico City as an Urban Landscape
Street photography is only one way of approaching Mexico City. As a photographer, I am also interested in the city as a human-altered landscape: architecture, infrastructure, empty spaces, traces of human activity and the constant transformation of the urban environment. This approach does not require spectacular buildings. In fact, the opposite can be more interesting. And Mexico City architecture is particularly interesting because different periods, materials and urban realities constantly exist alongside each other.
The result is a city that can be photographed not only through its people, but through the traces people leave behind.
A Different Way to Experience Mexico City Photography
This is the idea behind my private photography experiences in Mexico City. I have been photographing in Mexico City since 2009 and teaching photography since 2011. My workshops are designed for photographers who want more than a conventional photo tour. They are private, one-to-one experiences. We photograph together, but we also work on observation, timing, composition, visual awareness and the way you personally respond to the city. There are no groups and no fixed photographic formulas. This means: no compromises and only focused to your need and growth as a photographer. The goal is not to leave Mexico City with a collection of typical tourist photographs.
The goal is to leave with a different way of looking. Starting to think as an author.
Photography Workshops and Experiences in Mexico City
I currently offer two main approaches:
A private experience focused on people, moments, observation, timing and the visual relationships found in the streets of Mexico City.
Human Altered Landscape Experience
A private exploration of Mexico City through architecture, urban space, traces, interventions and the contemporary landscape shaped by human activity.
Both experiences can be adapted to your photographic interests and level, whether you are beginning your journey with photography or have been photographing for years.
Coming to Mexico City with a camera?
If you want to explore the city photographically rather than simply take photographs of it, you can find all the details, formats, prices and availability here:
Photography Workshops & Experiences in Mexico City
Mexico City is already full of photographs.
The interesting question is what you will choose to see.
