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Last week, on October 29-30, I participated in a street photography workshop in Stockholm, led by Berkley based Eric Kim. Seven photographers from Germany, Switzerland, France and Sweden were my fellow students. After an inspiring talk on how to catch emotions in street photography Eric guided us in the streets and always pushed us closer to our subjects.

The first day´s mission was street portraits where we had asked for permission and the goal was not reached until we had gotten 10 No´s - harder than you could imagine, since people are very kind and many interesting characters in the street are keen on being recognized.

The second day was harder and we were asked to take candid shots maximum two arm lenghts away and minimum 10 exposures of each subject.

I appreciated very much Eric´s easy way and the practical advice he gave us in the street. He motivated us to take some great shots as showcased here. Erics behind the scenes video is also on Youtube. I learnt a lot during the two days and some of my take aways are

• By getting this close to the subjects and by carefully selecting backgrounds I can use color in my street photos
  
• I don´t need to hate my flash if used carefully as a fill light
• And most importantly, it is great to approach people in the street!