Playing away

Street photography means capturing life as it happens. “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women, merely players“, is a famous quote from William Shakespeare. As street photographer roaming the streets, I’m always on the lookout for those little scenes that tell a story and leave enough room for every viewer’s own interpretation of the captured moment. Walking through a little town on the island of Sardinia in Italy, I passed an open door of an otherwise empty bar, were the musician was playing away towards that open window. Indifferent of what was happening behind him. A truly precious moment.

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Walking through a door

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

Life is a journey that ends not with fear, but with curiosity. In the final moment, we are walking through a door, leaving behind everything we have ever known. No one can tell us what lies beyond, yet the unknown has always been where new discoveries begin. Perhaps there are wonders we cannot imagine, familiar faces, endless peace, or something greater than words can describe. Until that moment comes, all we can do is wonder—and when the time arrives, step forward with quiet curiosity to see what waits on the other side.

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Silent Observations

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

A woman sits in the doorway of her house in a Nubian village on the banks of the Nile in Upper Egypt. Wearing a light-colored traditional dress and headscarf, she holds a glass in her hands and enjoys a moment of silent observations. The photograph was made using the available late afternoon light, with sunlight falling across her face and clothing while the interior behind her remains in shadow. Shooting in monochrome was the easy choice to emphasize the contrast between light and dark, drawing attention to her expression and the everyday scene of village life.

Taken with my Nikon Zf and the Nikkor Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR, image specs 1/800 sec @f/6.3 and ISO 2000, 200mm focal length

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

The Guardian

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

A photograph I actually took today. In an ancient Egyptian temple in the city of Edfu, located on the west bank of the Nile between Luxor and Aswan. The temple, 2250 years old and dedicated to the falcon god Horus, is considered one of the best-preserved temples in the entire country. Light shafts were falling into the interior of the temple, illuminating the hieroglyphs on the wall as well as the guardian who poses for the visiting photographer.

Taken with my Nikon Zf and the Nikkor Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR, an awesome combo for travel photography, image specs 1/500 sec @f/6.3 and ISO 6400, 45mm focal length

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Smiling

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

There is no country like Uzbekistan for Street Photography. You point a camera at people and the start smiling. Like this bridesmaid flashing me a gorgeous smile while the brides fixes her vail for the next set of her wedding photography session near Samarkand’s Registan Square. Taken with my Nikon Zf and the Nikkor Z 24-200mm f/4-6.3 VR, an awesome combo for travel photography.

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Father and Son

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

When roaming the streets doing Street Photography, my camera is always set to a high contrast monochrome profile. Not that I couldn’t convert the RAW files to black & white later on. But I love to see the scene and my composition in monochrome when I look through the viewfinder. And even when the eyes are “hunting” for stories of the streets to capture, I have black & white in mind. When I saw those two doing father and son things while sitting in a street café after nightfall, I saw the light and knew it would give me the perfect monochrome shot. Image specs were 1/13 sec @ f/5.6 and ISO 1600. Focal length was a 240mm full frame equivalent. Shot on an Olympus OM-D E-M1.

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Wishes

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

My heart beats Street Photography. I’m always looking to capture life as it happens. Like this little girl looking at votive candles in Cathédrale Notre-Dame des Doms d’Avignon. Amazed by the magic light, maybe asking herself what wishes have been associated with those candles. A monochrome shot taken today with my iPhone using the dark black&white mode.

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Open Eyes

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

Street Photography (which is my preferred genre) goes great with black & white photography. Or, even better, with high contrast monochrome shooting. Concepts like having to wait for the golden hour do not matter to the street photographer. Complaining about the harsh midday light is also irrelevant for them. Basically you can shoot at any time of the day. Even when traveling and the light is bad, I start looking to capture an interesting street scene to get me back into the flow.

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Predator

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

For this Monochromia guest post I selected a nature shot. Animals are great subjects for black & white photography. Especially wild ones. But you don’t need to go on Safari in Africa. Just grab your camera and a decent zoom and visit your local zoo. You will be amazed how many opportunities there are for some great monochrome shooting. Look for interesting light, texture, gesture and high contrast. I took that image of a Leopard in the zoo of my hometown Nuremberg. Eye in eye with a predator…

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“

Flatiron

Black And White Photography, Marcus, Photography

For my second Monochromia post I selected an architectural shot. I took that image of the iconic Flatiron Building (aka Fuller Building) back in 2018 when my wife and I visited the Big Apple on our Silver Wedding Anniversary trip. NYC is full of great architecture, and architecture is a great fit with black & white photography.

More of my photography can be seen on my blog “Streets of Nuremberg“