How to Shoot Street Photography Without Being Noticed

What’s poppin, people? It’s Dante.

I’m currently standing on a corner with beautiful light and shadow, and I just wanted to describe how I make photos in places like this—when I’m fishing out a scene and being patient, waiting for people to enter the sunlight without it being awkward or feeling weird.

Overcoming the Fear of Being Noticed

Sometimes, when you’re out on the street photographing, you might feel stagnant.
Maybe you think you’re disturbing the scene, or someone notices you, and you start to feel too obvious.

But here’s the thing—if you start by photographing buildings, then pan down to capture a quick gesture or a fleeting moment, it becomes easier to blend into your environment.

This way, you can work a scene naturally, acting like a tourist, snapping photos of different things, and then seamlessly transitioning to what you’re actually interested in.

“Ultimately, I’m not trying to hurt anything. I’m not trying to bruise the scene. I just want to make pictures and move on.”

The Art of Distraction

I don’t need to be stealthy. I don’t need to turn this into a game of cat and mouse just to get a shot. But I do it anyway because it lets me work a scene longer, to just be a fly on the wall.

If you find yourself hesitating—standing at a corner, seeing a perfect moment unfold, but freezing up—here’s what you do:

Look around as if you’re photographing something else.
Pretend to shoot a building, then check your composition.
Pan down and capture the actual shot you want.

It’s a simple trick that works every time. Think of Garry Winogrand—how he would play with his camera, using the wrist strap, never making direct eye contact with his subjects. You can do the same. Instead of locking onto someone, look beyond them—at the backdrop, the architecture, the play of light and shadow.

The Ultimate Tourist

I call this the Tourist Technique—because when you’re on the streets with a small, compact camera like the Ricoh GR III or GR IIIx, you just look like a tourist. And tourists? They take photos of everything.

“Blend in by standing out. Become the ultimate tourist in your own hometown.”

This technique is especially useful if you’re shooting without a viewfinder and using an LCD screen—it makes everything so much easier.

No One Really Cares

At the end of the day, you’d be surprised. No one really notices you. People are caught up in their own world. Sure, they’ll see you, but they won’t see you.

So, if you struggle with pressing the shutter because of some invisible block, remember—there are little games you can play to get closer without being noticed. And this is one of them.

The sun is shining, spring is here—let’s go.