[Leica] 'street photography'

[Ian Stanley <stanley@loxinfo.co.th>]

Greetings all,

	This thread on street photography has actually gotten quite interesting,
well to me at least.  What I am noticing in these discussions, and have
noticed in my travels is that the reaction to photographers in general
really does vary greatly from place to place.  One of my early favourite
people and street places was Ghana were the success rate was very high,
hassles extremely low - except for the odd interference by the military and
the police - I honestly can't recall having someone there say no.  Nepal
was a different story, even though I was there for six years and can speak
some of the language, my success rate was much lower and I found myself
doing more architectural and landscape work than anything else.  

	London was a great place to cruise the streets for snaps.  Even when
descended upon by a large group of photogs (London LUG) with more Leicas
than I've ever seen in one place, people did not seem to mind us snapping
away.  That's a trip I'd like to do again some time.

	Bangkok so far has been an absolute paradise but you have to be willing to
get involved with the people.  It is easy to grab quick shots without
interacting with people as you walk around but if you invest a small amount
of time to stop and chat you can photograph just about anyone and anything
you choose.  A lot of my time late seems to be spent on the chatting part
as I try to pick up on the language.  I don't like to generalize on an
entire population but Thais in general seem to like to have their pictures
taken.  The bulk of this activity has been taking place away from the main
tourist haunts - down small lanes and back streets which helps as well.  

	Another thing that has helped over the last while is my newly hired photo
assistant, translator, language teacher and equipment carrier.  This woman,
Pilaiwan, is incredible when it comes to chatting with people while I work
and generally setting the entire scene for me to work with - it's
wonderful!  At the same time I get accurate research and information on the
geography and history of the area we're working in.  I should have done
this a long time ago.

	I really feel fortunate to be photographing in a country that really is
hassle free - well other than the traffic.  Even the traffic is starting to
pay off in a way though, as I am building up an interesting collection of
shots taken from taxi windows while we are stalled in traffic.

	To keep this on topic - I'm still using my M4-P, M6HM, 50mm Summilux and
90mm Elmarit, TRI-X Pan developed in HC110.

Ian Stanley,

Bangkok, Thailand