Let’s take it back to the basics. Today I would like to share with you some thoughts I have about street photography that I have learned from a decade of practice. 

The Camera is a Passport

Your camera is the excuse to see the world. Think of your camera as the key that will unlock the many doors, stories, and places that you will find along your way through life. When you head out with your camera, remain in a curious and childlike state. Treat your daily commute as a simple way to see if anything is going on in your town. You are just wondering what is out there, what is happening, remaining detached from the outcome, like a tourist in your hometown.

Be a Tourist

A tourist is always excited and curious. I know that when I travel to a new place, I wake up with my eyes wide open before the sunrise, eager to explore. A wise approach to daily street photography practice is to pretend as though you are a tourist, despite walking through familiar territory. Slow down more, appreciate the details, read the signs, visit the parks, and live each day like it’s your first day exploring with a camera. 

No Preconceived Notions

When practicing street photography, it is very important to hold no preconceived notions. What this means is, you do not make any effort to research locations, weather patterns, landmarks, events, and merely go with the flow. Allow your intuition to guide you through life and embrace the unknown with open arms.

The World is a Canvas

The beauty of street photography lies in the fact that the world is our canvas. The street becomes a stage where the actors, or strangers, dance upon the concrete. As the photographer, or the director of the drama, we articulate the spontaneous chaos that converges on a street corner. These candid and multifaceted complexities of everyday life become our subject that we use to tell the story of the street.


Mind, Body, and Soul Photography

Practicing street photography requires the photographer to be grounded in the now. When I am on the street, I enter a zen, meditative state of recognizing both the patterns in nature and human behavior. I make sure to stay fasted without food in my stomach, so that when I am making photographs, I remain laser focused with a clear connection between my mind and my body. I believe this helps me tap into my god-like intuition, or my gut. The photographs not only are a depiction of the life in front of me, but they turn inwards as a reflection of my soul.

Hand-Eye Coordination

The camera is an extension of your eye and body. I believe you must have strong hand eye coordination to practice street photography as it requires you to be swift, while observing, and raising the camera to press the shutter.  I practice my hand-eye coordination skills with a Japanese Kendama skill toy. I believe the Kendama enhances my camera operation skills as I use my camera on a wrist strap. Most of the time while I am photographing, I am not even looking at the LCD screen, and merely making snapshots through my intuition. My compositions are loose, yet connected to my vision as I have a strong hand-eye coordination. 

The Name of the Game is in the Mundane

Street photography requires you to embrace the seemingly banal, boring, or the mundane. As photographers, we thrive amongst the small details and moments in life that otherwise go unnoticed. When you recognize the beauty in the mundane, you will become empowered to walk the same lane every single day, and still be able to find something to uplift in a photograph. 

Sharp Visual Acuity

Strong photographers have sharp visual acuity. When we’re on the street, we must make sure to observe the world in front of us with laser focus. This means that we are always observing the details, fleeting moments, and everything in between. Our clear vision, patten recognition, and laser focus is what determines the output of our photographs.

Pattern Recognition

One of the most critical attributes that a street photographer should possess is pattern recognition. Recognize the patterns in both nature and human behavior. Watch the feet of people as they dance upon the street. Observe the light and the way that it casts upon the sidewalk at certain times of the day. Look ahead of you and anticipate moments as they come your way. Become in tune with the rhythm and the beat of the street.

Repetition and Practice

Walk the street on repeat. The more I walk every single day, the more in tune I become with the street itself. By practicing daily, it gives me more opportunities to play and to experiment. When I’m on the street, I make sure to follow a similar route because this increases the chances of me finding something. When I follow the same route for an extended period of time, whether it be one week, one month, or even one year, I learn the nuances of each corner at every time of the day and can anticipate the various patterns that occur. 

Composition is Intuition

Compositions are made best when followed through with your intuition. If you overthink a composition, line things up perfectly, and do too much planning, the composition will become too contrived and boring. The looser you are with your composition, the more intriguing it becomes. Even in some of my strongest compositions, where things line up with ease, I am merely responding to the life in front of me through my gut instinct. Less thinking, more shooting. 

An Instant Sketch of Life

A photograph is an instant sketch of life. Making pictures is the quickest way to make something from nothing. We draw upon life through the medium, depicting what we observe in a fraction of a second. Don’t treat each picture like it’s some sort of grand masterpiece, but use your photography as a form of practice. Each day you are chipping away at life and making sketches out of it. 

Imperfection is Perfection

Nothing is perfect. You’re not perfect, your photographs aren’t perfect, and life surely is not perfect. Embrace imperfection on the street. I believe when you put too much thought into the process of making a photograph, they almost become too perfect. Allow your frames to tilt, subjects, to overlap, and break the conventional rules people often follow. Imperfection is perfection.

Uplift the Discarded

Nothing last forever. Embrace the impermanent nature of life and photograph things that are left behind. Observe the trash, textures on the walls, wrinkles on faces, and the fleeting moments. Everything is temporary, and I believe that highlighting the transient nature of life can unlock creative potential for your street photography.

Personal Diary

Treat your photography as a personal diary. It’s a way to remember the day, and take notes along the way. Photograph your family, friends, make self portraits, and uplift your personal life. You don’t have to seek any extravagant subject matter, locations, or themes to photograph. Make a body of work from your hometown, your backyard, and champion the mundane nature of your everyday life.

Universal Language

Like dance and music, photography is a universal language that transcends language and cultural differences. A photograph has the power to cross borders and touch the souls of people throughout the entire world. The stories displayed in a photograph can be understood in a multitude of ways, depending on the perspective of the viewer. I also believe in the gift of photography. When I travel to a new place, I always make sure to bring an Instax camera with me, and gift prints to strangers that I meet along the way. If I am unable to communicate with people, linguistically, I can always use my superpower, photography. 

Champion Humanity

I believe we should make photographs that uplift humanity. Look at people on the street as champions or heroes. When you photograph life, hold it up high and elevate the experience of what it means to be human. 


Detach from the Outcome

Embrace the autotelic approach to making photographs. Autotelic derives from the Greek words, “auto” meaning self, and “telos” meaning goal. Make pictures because the process genuinely fulfills you with joy. Imagine if nobody sees your work, would you still photograph? When you let go of the outcome, you’re free to experiment and open up your creative potential. Treat every photograph as a stream of becoming and always recognize that it’s onto the next one. Liberate yourself from any external validation and just have fun!

Greatness Requires Time

Great photography requires lots of time. As long as you are consistently making pictures, consider yourself productive. I believe it is important to set realistic expectations for yourself. With street photography, you typically come home with one keeper photo per month or maybe even only one per year. This is completely normal. It’s easy to get discouraged while practicing street photography because the results take a lot of time spent out in the real world. Perhaps over the course of 5 to 10 years you will have something. Just keep shooting!

Be Limitless and Courageous

Street photography requires an adventurous and courageous type of person to find success in their practice. Consider the street as an arena, and that when you enter the street, you are opening yourself up to the infinite possibilities that can come your way. You must go head first without any fear. If you see something, make the picture. Don’t worry about the repercussions until you make it. Allow confrontation to teach you how to behave on the street. Body language is critical, so carry yourself with confidence. Keep your head up, shoulders, back, and chest open at all times.

The Frontlines of Life

I believe strong photography has nothing to do with photography as a medium. Do you throw yourself onto the frontlines of life? How courageous and curious are you with a camera in hand? Do you wake up each morning with your eyes wide open, wondering what’s out there? A great photographer is always in the open world, producing more pictures. Fuel your curiosity through the power of photography and put yourself out there onto the frontlines of life.

Forever an Amateur

Forget everything you think you know and never stop learning on the street. Stay curious like it’s always your first day outside with the camera. Return to the amateur spirit every single day and feed your childlike curiosity.  

The Art of Street Photography

Street photography is not a genre of photography. It’s a philosophy, an ethos, a way of seeing seeing and doing things. What makes street photography so captivating is its ability to articulate the unknown. You are not only a bystander, but an active participant in life itself, making sense of the chaos. The essence of street photography lies in capturing the multifaceted complexities of every day life. 

Give Life Meaning

Photography is a method of affirming life itself. It has given me a way to view the world and to appreciate the mundane nature of life. It’s a reminder that even in the repetition of daily life, there’s beauty and meaning to be found.

Lust for Life

I believe that your photographs are a reflection of your lust for life. My desire to experience more and reach ever greater heights in this human experience is fueled through the medium of photography. The creation of photographs has become my greatest superpower. It allows me to view everything from a fresh pair of eyes every single day, and never stop lusting for more and moving onwards towards the sky!

Painting with Light

What is photography but merely painting with light? Use the power of the sun to your advantage when photographing. Wake up early for sunrise and catch the golden hour during sunset. Observe the looming shadows that are scattered upon the walls and the street. Follow the light, and you will discover beauty.

Curiosity is the Goal

The ultimate goal of a street photographer is to simply remain curious. By making new pictures each day, we create our own world. To be inside is where souls go to die, but when you are outside, photographing, you exist outside the passage of time. Wield the camera as a sword, strike through the heart of chaos, reveal the soul of the street, and create visual order and harmony through the spontaneity of everyday life. Before you head out with your camera, ask yourself this one simple question: What will reality manifest to be in a photograph?

Dante Sisofo

Photography Philosophy

1. The joy of photography
2. Why your photography matters
3. Street photography as a personal diary
4. Why you should start making photographs
5. Photography is a universal language
6. To photograph is to remember
7. Photography and the stream of consciousness
8. Autotelic street photography
9. The world is our canvas
10. A photograph is an instant sketch
11. How I see the world
12. Love the process
13. Champion humanity
14. The camera as a passport
15. The gift of photography
16. Photography as an excuse
17. Be a tourist in your hometown
18. Street photography ethics
19. Why so serious?
20. Don’t please the masses
21. Don’t focus on the outcome
22. Why photography is the best art form
23. Your photographs display your lust for life
24. Photography is my superpower
25. Why all photographers should travel
26. The grittier the better
27. Why snapshot?
28. Why sublime
29. Embrace the elements
30. Uplift the discarded
31. Explore your conscious and subconscious mind on the street
32. Digital world
33. Treat everything as a potential photograph
34. What is a photograph?
35. Photographers are visual artists
36. Why photography is my superpower
37. Anybody can become a street photographer
38. To photograph is to be
39. Create more
40. Just do it
41. Mind, body, and soul photography
42. The power of photography
43. Strength and street photography
44. Street photography meditation
45. Street photography motivation
46. Find meaning in the mundane
47. Frontlines of life
48. Why make pictures everyday?
49. How slow can you go?
50. The art of street photography
51. Street photographers are conquerors
52. Strong photographer, strong photographs
53. Would you still take photos if you could not see the results?
54. Setting limitations is good for creativity
55. Snapshot your way through life
56. Photography requires a lot of time
57. You can’t live forever, but you can make photographs
58. Photography is a muscle that you must train daily
59. Luck VS Skill
60. Conquer your domain
61. Why make photographs?
62. Just follow the light
63. Shoot everywhere and everything
64. Don’t prepare
65. Composition is intuitive
66. Bring the camera along for the ride
67. No preconceived notions
68. I seek the simplest solution possible
69. Everything is street photography
70. Take more bad photos
71. Why JPEG is the future
72. Forever an Amateur

Pod people like pod people things

Just block the rest of the world out? What happens in your immediate town, city, or state is what truly matters. Everything else is noise to me.

Waking up around 4:30-5AM, I am always surprised at how much traffic there is at this hour. I predict by 2030 self driving vehicles will become the norm, and maybe even mandatory? The amount of blinking lights I see from my window is actually hilarious.

Humor derives from laughing at chaos or tragedy?

An indescribable feeling. Use the power of photography to evoke the sublime.

The word “sublime” has a fascinating etymology that traces back to the Latin term “sublimis.” This term is composed of two parts: “sub-” meaning “up to” and “limen,” which means “threshold” or “lintel.” In a literal sense, “sublimis” could mean “up to the threshold,” suggesting something that is elevated or lofty.Over time, “sublime” evolved in meaning to describe not just physical elevation but also a high degree of excellence or grandeur in quality, something that transcends the ordinary or the mundane. In English, “sublime” came to be associated with awe-inspiring beauty or grandeur, often of a nature that elevates the mind and spirit to a higher level of thought or feeling. The term is frequently used in the context of nature, art, literature, and philosophy to describe experiences that are profoundly moving or that elicit a strong emotional response due to their beauty, majesty, or grandeur.

Perhaps it is wise to think into the future and work backwards from there.

Why confine yourself indoors in a box?

Just my opinion! Maybe they can be done, but in general…

• Old cars, gas stations, and abandoned buildings
• Anything vintage or nostalgic
• Lights from house windows
• Blasé portraits of people
• Moody night shots

The connection between improving your fitness and photography go hand-in-hand. The stronger you become, the stronger your photographs will be.

I expect that I won’t wake up the next day.

Would you sit inside all day if this were the case? Or would you go conquer every moment?

Ignore the current trends, mainstream, and create your own world.

Embrace the Unknown

The unknown is where I thrive. I’m always looking to challenge myself, embrace change, and walk my own path. By embracing the unknown, I allow serendipity and my intuition to guide me. In this space, I find myself at my most creative and productive.

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What Do You Value?

What I value most in life is time spent exploring and creating. I feel like I was born for adventure since I was a child, spending time biking in the forest, building forts with sticks, bridges with stones, climbing trees, and blazing my own paths.

When I explore, I value going out into the world without preconceived notions. I never do any research about a place, plan for any events, or worry about the weather. I simply go with the flow. This is how I’ve always been. There’s no rhyme or reason why I’ve explored the places I’ve been to other than my gut telling me to.

Perhaps this child-like curiosity is what brought me to the streets of Baltimore, a kibbutz in Israel, the mosques of Palestine, funerals and baptisms in Zambia, the slums of Mumbai, the sea in Napoli, the streets of Rome, the mountains in Mexico City, and the bustling markets of Hanoi, Vietnam. I’ve always known there’s something more to life than just my hometown and that I need to explore this world. My imagination is something that has always kept me wondering why and what is out there. I hold certain virtues such as courage, curiosity, and honesty closely. I believe that, in order to explore and create anything, these virtues have helped guide me.

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The Frontlines of Life

When I review my photographs, I believe that determining what is “good” and “bad” is a lemming mindset. Instead of these basic notions of what determines a successful photograph, such as lighting, composition, and moment, I find it much more interesting to ask myself these questions:

• How much courage did it take me to make the picture?
• How curious was I?
• Did I throw myself onto the frontlines of life?

My thought about photographs is that they showcase your lust for life. What you see in the photograph is merely a reflection of how much you love life itself. When I wake up in the morning, with my eyes wide open, I hit the streets like it’s my first day with a camera. This helps fuel my insatiable lust for life, always prepared to take in all of the beauty. Every single day I hope to become closer to life itself, fueling my curiosity through the medium of photography.

When it’s all said and done, I want my photographs to display that I have thrown myself onto the frontlines of life, embracing the unknown, lusting for life with all my mind, body, and soul.

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Cave Dwellers vs. Sun Warriors

I have this funny theory about cave dwellers vs. sun warriors. The idea is that in this modern world, we are becoming much more comfortable spending time indoors rather than under the sun. Whether it’s working in an office, spending time at the computer at your desk, sitting at home and watching TV, or going to a movie theater, sitting in darkness while watching a flickering light cast images upon the display. We’ve even become accustomed to wearing sunglasses and sunscreen, blocking our connection to sunlight. I find this all concerning because it goes against our natural biology and affects our health in a negative way.

When I was in high school, I would often skip class, and sneak out of the back door of the school. From there, I would just explore. I enjoyed walking around the lawn, by the trees, and in the neighborhood. School felt like an assembly line, preparing me to be the perfect factory worker. Wait for the bell to ring, sit down, listen, do your task, rinse, and repeat. I always found it much more engaging to be in the real world, outside.

Last year, around this time before Easter Sunday, I woke up in the morning and looked out of my window. When I saw the city in front of me, I thought about it very differently. To me, it looked like a big prison, and I was living within a perfect prison cell in my nice home with amenities, technology, and luxury. This realization particularly hit me because I spent so much time indoors during the pandemic. I then went into the hallway, looked at the vents, and saw how dusty they were. Something didn’t feel right, and I realized that I should not be breathing this air all day.

From that day onward, I made an effort to spend the maximum time possible under the sun in the great outdoors. I’m becoming a warrior of the sun, harnessing its raw power, and channeling it into the creation of my new photographs. I no longer see the world as a prison, but feel like I’m just a big kid in a big playground, painting with light. The sunlight helped me return to this childlike, naive, and optimistic spirit that I’ve always had deep down inside. Perhaps your perception of reality is what holds you back from pure bliss, change, and the unknown.

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The Reflection in the Water

When did a human being first look at their reflection in the water?

I thought of this recently, during a walk in nature along the Schuylkill River Trail in Philadelphia. I looked into the reflection, wondering if an ancestor of mine thousands of years ago similarly looked at themselves and questioned what they saw. Perhaps going forward, we should embrace our reflection in the water and be proud of who we are.

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How to Change the World

To change the world, I believe we must change ourselves first and foremost. I believe we could all benefit from becoming more selfish and spending more time alone. I think there is a difference between solitude and loneliness. Being lonely is unintentional and typically makes one feel depressed and disconnected. Solitude is a choice that helps you find peace, clarity, authenticity, and deeper meaning in life. I believe embracing solitude for at least a period of time is the only way you can truly find yourself and why you are here in the first place.

Upon much reflection, I have become abundant. Now whenever I’m in the world and around other people, I can’t help but smile and spread small acts of kindness with other people. These small acts of kindness, such as complimenting strangers, holding the door open, and listening to others, can make a big difference in the world.

I think deep down everybody wants to make an impact on the world at large. Perhaps after we all find our true vocations, we can then positively impact other people. My goal is to use my camera to seek the truth and share my perspective with others. Even if my photographs, videos, or words can impact just one other person, I’d say that I have successfully changed the world.

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You Give Life Its Meaning

I believe that it is up to the individual to give life meaning. For me, the creation of new photographs and videos is what brings me meaning in life. I have found something that I truly care about with all my soul.

I find that art affirms life. Without creativity, I feel like I simply float through life without orienting myself towards a tangible goal. I desire to create, destroy, and rebuild again and again. I need the stimuli of exploration, and thrive when I am in a state of production.

The power of photography is the fact that I can give meaning to anything I see, as the world is my canvas. When I view a rock on the ground, I can give it meaning and purpose in my life. I can photograph it, throw it into the water, or even kick it around and make up my own game. However, it’s up to the individual to view the rock this way. The rock can either be boring and useless, or the source of all of your joy, and something that you can use for a new creation. I believe it’s important to remember that we give life meaning, and that nobody else is going to do it for you.

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Heaven and Hell

Philadelphia is my paradise, or heaven on earth. I have two beautiful rivers and trails to explore in the forest. There are bustling streets filled with people, parks, beautiful architecture, rich history, and great museums.

It’s up to you to create your own paradise while you are here during this short journey of life. It seems that it is much easier for people to complain about all of the negative aspects of their city, but why do this? This becomes similar to creating your own hell on earth.

However, I can walk the same mundane lane every single day, and still find it to be the most interesting, beautiful, and blissful experience that I’ve ever encountered in my life. This is the power of affirming life through art. Heaven on earth.

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Break the Rules

To thrive as artists, we should break the rules and create our own. I am currently at a turning point within my photography practice. I have already made a body of work that I am proud of, crafted compositions that are strong, captured moments that are impactful, and explored different places in this world that I could only dream of.

However, going forward, I find that I must break the rules and limits that I have set for myself in the past. I’ve always made an effort to make the best pictures possible and really strived for greatness within each frame I made. It was a game that kept me going back out there, and I would only ever look for one thing—a better picture. You see, the hunt for the next best shot actually isn’t worth it in the end.

My new rule is that the next photograph I make is my best photo.

I don’t even look through the viewfinder or LCD screen half of the time. I’m photographing in a liberating way, stripping down to simple light and shadow, and embracing the snapshot as my technique and approach.

I’m more curious about longevity and remaining in the state of production without any limitations whatsoever. Perhaps going forward, it’s best to remember where we’ve come from as creatives—just children, playing in the woods, tinkering, exploring, and innovating. I want to forever be an amateur, a child, in a stream of becoming, always learning and never stop exploring.

Move forward with authenticity, seek truth, and embrace the unknown.