Street Photography & the Art of Seeing at the National Monuments

A photojournalist is a visual storyteller. And as such, we tell stories with a series of photos and one photo at a time.

Washington Photo Safari is pleased to present this safari in street photography taught by Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist, Essdras Suarez. The goal of this photo safari is not only to help you make better images but to also help you tell stories with your images, thus creating more intricate and complex images.

The area around DC’s iconic monuments, the Lincoln, Korean and Vietnam Memorials, visited by 20 million people per year, is fertile ground for street photography.

By embracing the chaos of daily life and applying principles of layering, composition, decisive moments and other elements that go into making interesting images, you’ll be able to tell the story not only of the places we visit but of those people visiting as well.

During this three-hour photo workshop taught by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Essdras Suarez, you’ll learn how to see the world around anew. We’ll achieve this by observing human interaction as well as how people relate to their surroundings. We’ll play close attention to the quality of light as it strikes people and inert structures; thus affecting the feel of a photograph. We will also capture those candid moments that tell a story of human relationships.

• You’ll learn to recognize patterns within the chaos and the mundane of everyday life.
• You’ll learn to quickly recognize and anticipate the decisive moment at which to push the shutter.
• You’ll learn to pay attention to light and how it affects your photo subjects.
• You’ll learn to observe and analyze human behavior and interaction.
• You’ll learn to recognize groupings in design, and in our general surroundings.
• You’ll learn to visually interpret what you see through your photographic device in new and interesting ways by changing your angles and perspective; thus shifting your visual paradigm.
• You’ll learn to quickly apply principles of composition, leading lines, the rule of thirds, the concept of “layering,” and to recognize points of entry within your composition.

You’ll learn to use techniques such as “shooting for the highlights,” and “wrap-around composition” and others in order to create more sophisticated images. You’ll also learn what equipment is best suited to this type of street photography when you travel, and how to use that equipment in a way that does not invade the personal space or privacy of your subjects.

What to Bring:

• Camera
• Lenses
• Extra memory cards
• Extra charged battery
• Accessories such as filters, remote release
• Weather appropriate clothing

Where to Meet: 

Meet at the base of the Albert Einstein Statue, 2151 Constitution Ave NW, Washington, DC. The closest Metro is Foggy Bottom on Blue/Orange /Silver Lines.