To all those who say he's not 'the best photographer'. Of course he isn't. I agree. His photography is not strong. BUT, he has the guts to teach and bring people from level 1 to level 2. He does not need to be the 'worlds best' in order to teach and inspire. What a bunch of haters ya'll are.
C Tabs but the fact is, his photographs are boring. It is isn't about hate, just amazement that people are so impressionable and are sold on his workshops.
THANKS B&H for posting this video seminar of Mr.Thorsten Von Overgaard who is an incredible photographer and unique in the way he transmites his knowledge.
Very good presentation. Especially appreciated his talk about the legality of public photography. I am well aware of my rights but so many individuals who would like to do street photography are too meek and too afraid to point their camera at a stranger in public. Get over it! Public photography is your right and you are protected doing it by the First Amendment. Know your rights and get out there making photographs.
It comes with doing it. The more you do it, the less there is a barrier, and the easier it is to be friendly and natural with people who will return the same.
Living in New York, around 2002, and before learning about my rights as a street photographer, unfortunately, one of my unexpected experiences was rather negative, when in a broad daylight, in the middle of the summer, I tried to photograph from a distance a highly attractive young white girl walking alone towards me down a secluded section of a boardwalk in Brooklyn. Seeing me photographing her, she actively chased me and proceeded to interrogate me as to why I was taking photos of her. She demanded to see what I snapped and after viewing the photos, forced me to remove them. As she was getting rather loud and envisioning a brooding problem, I complied as she was insatiable and on the verge of calling the cops on me. 8-( However loudly insulting me still wasn’t enough for her, and when I started heading back to my car, she proceeded to follow me and as she was walking, she also began to rouse a few groups of local young thugs, (who apparently knew her), and who were sitting aimlessly at the time on the benches along the boardwalk. They quickly started forming a separate group and also proceeded to follow me along with others “to do the justice”, with the girl still heading the “procession”. I guess she really wanted them to attack me or at the very least beat me up… I was certain that I would be attacked at any moment, losing my photo equipment, but somehow barely managed to escape this unfortunate encounter when I finally reached my car. Later I called the police to ask about my rights as a photographer, describing what had happened to me, but didn’t get a clear answer about wrongful actions by the girl. Later, after researching the subject of my rights as a photographer, I purchased a book about this very subject, now written by a lawyer-photographer, who described in details do’s and don’ts of street photography and other rights of photographers. So, each time I see all the lovely photos taken by Mr. Overgaard of friendly or unsuspecting people/pedestrians and other human subjects, I unfortunately instantly recall my negative experience with the girl. Also, his selection of urban places around the world in which to photograph is generally in selected well-to-do safe neighborhoods of mostly Europe or even one neighborhood of New York: the Manhattan, with mostly classy, refined, friendly people who generally populate these neighborhoods with cozy street cafes, and who don’t think negatively when they see a camera lens pointed at them. I suppose Mr. Overgaard’s motto to “always wear a camera” has to be also interpreted as in “wear your camera in safe neighborhoods”. Having on you (as in his case) roughly $25K worth of Leica equipment, dictates careful selection of one’s surroundings.
It would be good to see an Overgaard video regarding the use of Leica's Noctilux lenses - or any of their 'fast' lenses - indoors. I regard taking photographs in coffee shops, art museums, libraries, and taverns as just another type of 'street photography.' In an art museum you don't need neutral density filters to take advantage of your f/0.95 and f/1.4 f-stop settings. Indoor 'street photography' isn't quite as straightforward/easy as its more common, outdoor version
Interesting how most of the photos shown where in the 50mm focal range! So many people are telling you go with 35mm or 24mm! 50mm has such a classic look.
It's "classic" because the lenses with focal distance of 50 mm (on FF) mimic the way we see the world around us with our own eyes. Not 24, not 35, but 50!
Unfortunately, it has become even tougher in Germany: As far as I understand it is not only about publishing them, even taking pictures of individuals without their permission or legitimate interest is prohibited by GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) - and people are very aware of that. I still like the philosophy that a charming picture should not be a crime.
Thanks Thorsten! Don't listen to the butt hurt people here criticizing you cause they feel they're better informed than you are. If they are such great photographers they should start their own lecture and stop hating on others.
I think it's great that there are actually people who are self taught photographers and who have the understanding that photography is Subjective. A photographer can't impose snapshots on the public and describe them as some thing sensational. Anyone that has the knowledge of shooting a camera can take a picture. If that person has taken random street snapshots of everyday life for a decade, can present these photos as some thing phenomenal or have a gallery friend and blow them up and sell them for big bucks. I've seen 1,000s of exhibition photos, and think they are crap, but just because they are famous, sell books and have the gift of gab...their photos are unique...remember photography is Subjective, so any photograph is unique to the person who took the picture... None of these pictures ”wow” me at all...the photos are just snapshots on the way to the market... Blow up your photos and they will look just as awesome...even better, put your favorite in a photo book binder from costco and they will look great...just remember these guys can afford all the best leicas because it's a Business deduction...
Agree with the guy above, we have too many street shooters who are fond of people. Would be interesting to hear what a guy who doesn't like people have to say about our society!
I'd be grateful if you'd list, say, three things that all "good" photographs have in common. When you're looking at a photograph, what makes you say: "Ah, that's a good one!"
That's a good question, but a bit tough :-) but let me try: 1) It has to have an emotional impact. If you look at other people's photographs you know when they have it. When you look at your own, you tend to notice errors or things they don't have, or what you wished they should have. That is why sharing your photos with others is a good thing because their comments and reactions tells you what it does. 2) For me, a photo that makes me wonder and want to be part of it, that is a great photo. 3) A photo that inspires me to go photograph or go write or travel or something. In short, it brings life. Maybe not the perfect three (I'll work on refining them :-). -Thorsten Overgaard
@@MagicOfLight_ThorstenOvergaard , thank you for responding. I knew that was a very difficult question. It's like asking someone "How could you justify paying $460 million dollars for THAT painting?" (Someone was able to.)
Interesting talk, For me this work relies upon nostalgia in subject matter, style, influence and treatment not to say it doesn't have place and indeed there are some very enjoyable images but it all feels a bit cliche. The Influence and importance of classic reportage photography i.e the likes of HCB and Erwitt to name just two is undeniable but referring back to it to much becomes a new kind of pictorialism, a sort of aesthetic hunting where your looking for an aesthetic theme as opposed to "real" reality, that is of course a contradiction but to sum it up in a kind of metaphor Cuba seems to pull in Leica wielding street photographers and they all seem to end up with the ubiquitous 50's American car in there work, of course this is a huge part of the "outside" view of Cuba (cliche) but I'm probably more interested to see the Toyota's and Peugeots and real contemporary life a supposed to the cigar smoking man leaning against his Cadillac with a crumbly wall behind him. Robert Frank didn't photograph Jukeboxes and Cadilacs because they were nostalgic, he photographs them because it was step here and now of America 60 odd years ago. Paul Graham touch upon this in a talk which is available to view on youtube and it was really interesting in the fact that now his work is 30+ years old people view his work with the same nostalgia for 1980's Britain in his Beyond Caring series. He made the work in it's time of contemporary and banal situations, the work had value then and the nostalgia accumulates and the political and the aesthetic value is a fascinating element to consider. Again some great images and nostalgia has an important place in documentary recording. Good talk. Thanks
I would say "Cuba seems to pull in Leica/Nikon/Canon/Fuji/Sony/Pentax/Olympus/Hasselblad/Panasonic/Ricoh etc wielding street photographers and they all seem to end up with the ubiquitous 50's American car in there work" :)
Thank you Thorsten for sharing your experience with us. N🍦 Photos from you. I like it. The most things you said I agree with you. But not the thing with holding the camera. I don`t like to shoot from the eye hight. For me its boring. It`s our natural view all the time. I shoot mostly from the hip or searching for some unique angles. And I love the humanity aspect in street photography. For me humans have to be in a street shot. Storytelling or creating a cool look. Thats my goals. Thank you again Thorsten I also had a lot to say for street photography. Please invited me B & H ralfscherer.com Greetings from Germany
Hola y muchas gracias por su sugerencia. Por el momento es algo en lo que estamos trabajando. Por favor mantengase pendiente ya que actualizamos nuestro contenido a menudo.
Overall this guy is just a businessman that knows some techniques and sells courses and webinars for half a grand. U can't learn being a good photographer, it's not a trick dear people. It's something U need to achieve yourself. If u really want to be good at story telling in photographs U will pick up a cheap camera yourself and start experimenting and ask for feedback to real artist that fight for a dime. This guy is all about the money and his pictures tell that. There's no emotion or connection to the subject. Most of the pictures are really forced and so hyperrealistic that there is almost no room for own interpretation, somethingthat's essential in (fine) art, which he claims to be in. Do yourself a pleasure and look for the answer elsewhere and start with yourself!
Perfect exemple of that leica nonsense. This guy think that because he use leica cameras that his work is great. Very boring Snapshot with $$$$$$$ gear.
Very boring and uninformative (except laws). Photos are a solid 2 (scale 1-5). A couple merit 3-1/2. Good reason for resulting mediocrity. "I don't think a lot about lines or geometric patterns." or composition. Only importance is emotional impact, which is personal to him and relies on the back story (explaining the situation) for others to see why he bothered to take his snapshot. Det er det.
No I am sure you would look in the mirror and ask the amazing guy you see. It takes one to know one - and you are not the one, so what can you see, and does it really matter... :-)
@@goswo have you got some problems formulating a reasonable, coherent thought that is related to this? dum-dum, what do you know about how I view the world? tell me more dipshit…
To all those who say he's not 'the best photographer'. Of course he isn't. I agree. His photography is not strong. BUT, he has the guts to teach and bring people from level 1 to level 2.
He does not need to be the 'worlds best' in order to teach and inspire.
What a bunch of haters ya'll are.
C Tabs but the fact is, his photographs are boring. It is isn't about hate, just amazement that people are so impressionable and are sold on his workshops.
Then where do those people go to get from level 2 to level 3 and above?
The facts is [subjective opinion].
It isn't about hate, it's just [cynical insult]
The next free video
You guys know fuck all about photography
my favorite danish photographer who teaches photographing
A strong reminder that light, composition, passion for making photographs are what matters.
THANKS B&H for posting this video seminar of Mr.Thorsten Von Overgaard who is an incredible photographer and unique in the way he transmites his knowledge.
Very good presentation. Especially appreciated his talk about the legality of public photography. I am well aware of my rights but so many individuals who would like to do street photography are too meek and too afraid to point their camera at a stranger in public. Get over it! Public photography is your right and you are protected doing it by the First Amendment. Know your rights and get out there making photographs.
It comes with doing it. The more you do it, the less there is a barrier, and the easier it is to be friendly and natural with people who will return the same.
@@MagicOfLight_ThorstenOvergaard Right! After you do it for a short while it becomes second nature.
Living in New York, around 2002, and before learning about my rights as a street photographer, unfortunately, one of my unexpected experiences was rather negative, when in a broad daylight, in the middle of the summer, I tried to photograph from a distance a highly attractive young white girl walking alone towards me down a secluded section of a boardwalk in Brooklyn.
Seeing me photographing her, she actively chased me and proceeded to interrogate me as to why I was taking photos of her.
She demanded to see what I snapped and after viewing the photos, forced me to remove them.
As she was getting rather loud and envisioning a brooding problem, I complied as she was insatiable and on the verge of calling the cops on me.
8-(
However loudly insulting me still wasn’t enough for her, and when I started heading back to my car, she proceeded to follow me and as she was walking, she also began to rouse a few groups of local young thugs, (who apparently knew her), and who were sitting aimlessly at the time on the benches along the boardwalk. They quickly started forming a separate group and also proceeded to follow me along with others “to do the justice”, with the girl still heading the “procession”.
I guess she really wanted them to attack me or at the very least beat me up…
I was certain that I would be attacked at any moment, losing my photo equipment, but somehow barely managed to escape this unfortunate encounter when I finally reached my car.
Later I called the police to ask about my rights as a photographer, describing what had happened to me, but didn’t get a clear answer about wrongful actions by the girl. Later, after researching the subject of my rights as a photographer, I purchased a book about this very subject, now written by a lawyer-photographer, who described in details do’s and don’ts of street photography and other rights of photographers.
So, each time I see all the lovely photos taken by Mr. Overgaard of friendly or unsuspecting people/pedestrians and other human subjects, I unfortunately instantly recall my negative experience with the girl.
Also, his selection of urban places around the world in which to photograph is generally in selected well-to-do safe neighborhoods of mostly Europe or even one neighborhood of New York: the Manhattan, with mostly classy, refined, friendly people who generally populate these neighborhoods with cozy street cafes, and who don’t think negatively when they see a camera lens pointed at them.
I suppose Mr. Overgaard’s motto to “always wear a camera” has to be also interpreted as in “wear your camera in safe neighborhoods”. Having on you (as in his case) roughly $25K worth of Leica equipment, dictates careful selection of one’s surroundings.
Such an elegant starting line . I was walking down the street when :)
Nice talk. I think the key with Thorsten's photos is he likes people.
People and atmosphere. I love it :)
It would be good to see an Overgaard video regarding the use of Leica's Noctilux lenses - or any of their 'fast' lenses - indoors. I regard taking photographs in coffee shops, art museums, libraries, and taverns as just another type of 'street photography.' In an art museum you don't need neutral density filters to take advantage of your f/0.95 and f/1.4 f-stop settings. Indoor 'street photography' isn't quite as straightforward/easy as its more common, outdoor version
Interesting how most of the photos shown where in the 50mm focal range! So many people are telling you go with 35mm or 24mm! 50mm has such a classic look.
I agree. 50mm is very classic.
It's "classic" because the lenses with focal distance of 50 mm (on FF) mimic the way we see the world around us with our own eyes. Not 24, not 35, but 50!
Nice !!!!
As lover of street photography i really enjoy this video, thanks for share it.
You should watch more videos
@@anils.rkumar6551 why ?
WONDERFUL. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GREATLY APPRECIATED.
Love Thorsten.
Unfortunately, it has become even tougher in Germany: As far as I understand it is not only about publishing them, even taking pictures of individuals without their permission or legitimate interest is prohibited by GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) - and people are very aware of that. I still like the philosophy that a charming picture should not be a crime.
I do it anyways. The good thing is that if you look like a tourist with a camera, you can be left alone.
Thanks Thorsten! Don't listen to the butt hurt people here criticizing you cause they feel they're better informed than you are. If they are such great photographers they should start their own lecture and stop hating on others.
I think it's great that there are actually people who are self taught photographers and who have the understanding that photography is Subjective. A photographer can't impose snapshots on the public and describe them as some thing sensational. Anyone that has the knowledge of shooting a camera can take a picture. If that person has taken random street snapshots of everyday life for a decade, can present these photos as some thing phenomenal or have a gallery friend and blow them up and sell them for big bucks. I've seen 1,000s of exhibition photos, and think they are crap, but just because they are famous, sell books and have the gift of gab...their photos are unique...remember photography is Subjective, so any photograph is unique to the person who took the picture... None of these pictures ”wow” me at all...the photos are just snapshots on the way to the market... Blow up your photos and they will look just as awesome...even better, put your favorite in a photo book binder from costco and they will look great...just remember these guys can afford all the best leicas because it's a Business deduction...
Nice photos. I have personally never been a fan of humanity in general so I haven't explored street photography.
Well then thats a great starting point to get into Street haha.
"Dogs live on the street. Dogs are awesome"
- Diogenes, 326 BCE
Agree with the guy above, we have too many street shooters who are fond of people. Would be interesting to hear what a guy who doesn't like people have to say about our society!
I'd be grateful if you'd list, say, three things that all "good" photographs have in common. When you're looking at a photograph, what makes you say: "Ah, that's a good one!"
That's a good question, but a bit tough :-) but let me try:
1) It has to have an emotional impact. If you look at other people's photographs you know when they have it. When you look at your own, you tend to notice errors or things they don't have, or what you wished they should have. That is why sharing your photos with others is a good thing because their comments and reactions tells you what it does.
2) For me, a photo that makes me wonder and want to be part of it, that is a great photo.
3) A photo that inspires me to go photograph or go write or travel or something. In short, it brings life.
Maybe not the perfect three (I'll work on refining them :-). -Thorsten Overgaard
@@MagicOfLight_ThorstenOvergaard , thank you for responding. I knew that was a very difficult question. It's like asking someone "How could you justify paying $460 million dollars for THAT painting?" (Someone was able to.)
@54 :30, as a Hong Konger,i can pretty sure that the guys walk by is a famous celebrity in HK instead of some passer by,he is a TV Dramma actor LOL
Epic Thorsten, be great to catch up in Africa sometime..
Yes!
nice experience of listening. may I know your experience of photography in India if ever visited ?
Interesting talk, For me this work relies upon nostalgia in subject matter, style, influence and treatment not to say it doesn't have place and indeed there are some very enjoyable images but it all feels a bit cliche. The Influence and importance of classic reportage photography i.e the likes of HCB and Erwitt to name just two is undeniable but referring back to it to much becomes a new kind of pictorialism, a sort of aesthetic hunting where your looking for an aesthetic theme as opposed to "real" reality, that is of course a contradiction but to sum it up in a kind of metaphor Cuba seems to pull in Leica wielding street photographers and they all seem to end up with the ubiquitous 50's American car in there work, of course this is a huge part of the "outside" view of Cuba (cliche) but I'm probably more interested to see the Toyota's and Peugeots and real contemporary life a supposed to the cigar smoking man leaning against his Cadillac with a crumbly wall behind him. Robert Frank didn't photograph Jukeboxes and Cadilacs because they were nostalgic, he photographs them because it was step here and now of America 60 odd years ago. Paul Graham touch upon this in a talk which is available to view on youtube and it was really interesting in the fact that now his work is 30+ years old people view his work with the same nostalgia for 1980's Britain in his Beyond Caring series. He made the work in it's time of contemporary and banal situations, the work had value then and the nostalgia accumulates and the political and the aesthetic value is a fascinating element to consider. Again some great images and nostalgia has an important place in documentary recording. Good talk. Thanks
Well said. Better to understand the reason behind rather then a mere copycat.
I would say "Cuba seems to pull in Leica/Nikon/Canon/Fuji/Sony/Pentax/Olympus/Hasselblad/Panasonic/Ricoh etc wielding street photographers and they all seem to end up with the ubiquitous 50's American car in there work" :)
I would add iPhone to your list, and then I think we can probably call it a day.
When I shot street in Cuba it was only American 50's cars or eastern bloc, that was in 2004
Here comes the light 11:44
They are not really STREET PHOTOS,
Common
excellent street photography!
Love your Gym boots!
Lot of jealous haters in the comment, it’s damn funny
You must admire that people take the time to watch a 60 minutes video to review it for others :-)
I take photos while riding a bicycle..I am a "bicycle photographer."
Cool video nice job
0:49 That's an interesting way to look at it. I'm not sure you could call it wrong.
I like your shoes :D.
Thanks.
🙏😍🙏
Hey man , i wonder , your snickers are capable of taking pictures too?
good talker, but it's sad that none of his photos impressed me.
Thank you Thorsten for sharing your experience with us. N🍦 Photos from you. I like it. The most things you said I agree with you. But not the thing with holding the camera. I don`t like to shoot from the eye hight. For me its boring. It`s our natural view all the time. I shoot mostly from the hip or searching for some unique angles. And I love the humanity aspect in street photography.
For me humans have to be in a street shot. Storytelling or creating a cool look. Thats my goals. Thank you again Thorsten
I also had a lot to say for street photography. Please invited me B & H ralfscherer.com
Greetings from Germany
Really nice photos at your site....
omg, these shoes…
...traducirlo al español...?....sería estupendo.
Hola y muchas gracias por su sugerencia.
Por el momento es algo en lo que estamos trabajando. Por favor mantengase pendiente ya que actualizamos nuestro contenido a menudo.
Overall this guy is just a businessman that knows some techniques and sells courses and webinars for half a grand.
U can't learn being a good photographer, it's not a trick dear people. It's something U need to achieve yourself.
If u really want to be good at story telling in photographs U will pick up a cheap camera yourself and start
experimenting and ask for feedback to real artist that fight for a dime.
This guy is all about the money and his pictures tell that. There's no emotion or connection to the subject.
Most of the pictures are really forced and so hyperrealistic that there is almost no room for
own interpretation, somethingthat's essential in (fine) art, which he claims to be in.
Do yourself a pleasure and look for the answer elsewhere and start with yourself!
It's a free seminar, and it's free here on RUclips. So you can take away from it what you want :-)
What about you? What are your accomplishments?
Dull pictures. dull person. He's not a photographer. He's a dude with a camera.
Like you
Perfect exemple of that leica nonsense. This guy think that because he use leica cameras that his work is great. Very boring Snapshot with $$$$$$$ gear.
what is light? Light is a kind of electromagnetic radiation.
Boring!
thanks for the outing.
everytime you’re bored, you’re making a mistake. if you’re open, you can learn in any situation.
Very boring and uninformative (except laws). Photos are a solid 2 (scale 1-5). A couple merit 3-1/2.
Good reason for resulting mediocrity. "I don't think a lot about lines or geometric patterns." or composition.
Only importance is emotional impact, which is personal to him and relies on the back story (explaining the situation) for others to see why he bothered to take his snapshot. Det er det.
His own work presented here is weak at best. Not someone I would be looking for advice…
The slide show behind him is his portfolio... there was some great shots in there.
No I am sure you would look in the mirror and ask the amazing guy you see. It takes one to know one - and you are not the one, so what can you see, and does it really matter... :-)
Ed Hoover, your photograph of Bangladesh is so much better. Oh wait, you don't have one.
Well, the guys who make great pictures are too busy shooting and working on their projects to teach anybody anything about photography lol.
@@goswo have you got some problems formulating a reasonable, coherent thought that is related to this? dum-dum, what do you know about how I view the world? tell me more dipshit…
"It's not personal. It's not because you took their photo. It's just because you are in Paris"
On Parisians being annoyed at your mere presence XD