Night Street Photography: Capturing Margate & Whitstable

February 17, 2025

I’ve not been out in the evenings quite as much this winter as I have done in previous years. I think it’s that feeling of getting home and just wanting to crash at the end of the week. With all the pressures of work and the emotional baggage of home life, sometimes it feels like the only thing I have energy for is laying on the bed and doom-scrolling on social media. Every now and then, though, self-awareness descends and self-care is prescribed. And so, there have been times when I’ve dragged myself out, not really feeling it, but knowing that the getting out will help with the feeling it.

When it comes to my set-up, I have three prime lenses to accompany my XT-3: the XF33mmF1.4 R LM WR, the XF 18mm f/1.4 R LM WR and the XF 50mm f/2 R WR (this being a fairly recent addition to my kit). I decided early on when I picked up the XT-3 that I was going to stick to prime lenses on the streets. I felt a zoom lens would make me too lazy and, well, you also can’t beat a 1.4 lens. Far and away my favourite lens is the 33mm. Whether it be for night shoots or during the day, it just seems to be the perfect focal length for me. I’ve been using the 50mm quite a lot lately (I put that down to new toy syndrome), and I have enjoyed using it, but the 33 just has the edge (I’ll probably write more about the 50mm in a future blog).

The past weekend I spent a bit of time in Margate and Whistable shooting, looking for low light shots, experimenting with reflections, and looking for abstract shots. The condensation window is, of course, my favourite, but I’m increasingly trying to look for other types of shot. That said, variety isn’t easy in a small town, so I make do with whatever I can find. We can’t all shoot every day on the streets of London, so sometimes you have to settle for making the best of the local streets. Although people may argue the streets of Whitstable aren’t quite as exciting as the streets of Soho, it doesn’t mean there aren’t shots to be had. You can find interesting compositions in any town or city at night. Sure London is vast with every street seemingly presenting an opportunity, but a bit of patience and you can find at least one composition that hits.

Quite often I go out and end up with around 100-200 photos on my SD card, but once I dig into them, there will be less than 4/5 that I’m pleased with. Sometimes I come back with nothing, sometimes with some I’m really pleased with. This last weekend was certainly no different. That said, I did manage to bag one I was really happy with…a shot through a window in Margate, with two figures sitting opposite each other at a table.

I think what I like most about this are the poses of the two individuals. One presumably looking down at a menu, one seemingly deep in thought. It seems to me there is some kind of story here, a feeling in a moment. What is the figure on the right thinking? Has something been said beforehand? Is there some tension? Who knows. The lighting in the background also really helps I think. The blue and the red seem quite a striking combination in the background.

That was definitely my favourite of the shots taken in the evening over the weekend. There were a few others that were ok, but I think this is the strongest of them all. I’ll post the rest below (both Whitstable and Margate), let me know what you think.

When the fog descends...

January 14, 2025

…head to Deal. Or Margate. Or Folkestone. Or…well, anywhere.

Fog is that magical element that we all (I think?) hope for at this time of year. You scour the weather apps, desperate for a sign, anything, that suggests maybe there will be some fog on the way. You build your hopes up when Clear Outside suggests 10 for fog, only to remember all those times before when it was just cloudy. Or you check the Met Office, excited to see a VP for visibility. Could this be the moment? Or will it be another VP that turns out to be E?

Most of the time, you’re hesitant because that forecast for fog hits the morning and, let’s face it, even in the winter, that morning rise can be a bit of a chore when all you have is a hint of hope that maybe you’ll wake to find that you can barely see beyond your doorstep. But every now and then, the forecast is in the evening and when that happens…bingo! No early rising, no dragging yourself out of bed on a cold morning, it’s just a late afternoon drive somewhere, and a leisurely stroll around before getting home in time for tea. Fog in the afternoon/evening is the dream, so often much more elusive than in the morning.

It just so happens that this last weekend, fog was forecast in the evening. So I decided to grab my stuff and head to Deal and hope for the best. Imagine my disappointment as I got ever closer, only to find there was not even the slightest hint of fog. Was I in for disappointment? Perhaps. Oh well, I got out of the house at least…

Found a suitable parking space, parked up, grabbed my coat, my camera bag, my beanie…wait, what’s that? That street lamp seems to be picking up some mist rolling in. Don’t tell me it’s actually going to happen? The very moment I park up, now the fog is going to roll in? This never happens. I’m nearly always in for disappointment. Well, we’re in. Let’s go!

And so into town, down the sidestreets, onto the promenade…the pier is…well, it’s there because I can see the lights. But that’s all I can see. Other than two figures sitting on the wall looking out to sea. Maybe a walk on the pier would be good with the lights…I feel an urge to channel my inner blade runner fandom. Just need the right subject, a person or couple that I can make the subject, with enough distance to other people to make it appear like they are on their own. A couple going for an eery walk down the pier in the evening, with the pier lights shining bright. That will do the job.

Back into town. Fog, cold, condensation…there have got to be some shots to be had here. The ice cream parlour. That usually works. Almost empty, but for a couple sitting at a table, reading a paper. Great. Sometimes you just get lucky. Sometimes the opportunities just scream out at you. Sure, sometimes the shot can be obvious, perhaps there’s more unique shots to be had if you just spend a bit of time thinking about it, but what if the moment goes? What if you lose any shot at all? All the thoughts that buzz around your head before you press down on the shutter. There will be plenty of times to mess around and experiment. Sometimes it’s just about getting the shot, no matter how obvious it feels in hindsight.

A potter back through town, hands in pockets, longing for the warmth of the car. And then it’s done. Got lucky. Got shots. Got cold. Got home. Until next time, evening fog. Whenever that may be…

Street Photography At Night

November 2, 2022

Ok, it has taken an embarassingly long time to sit down and write another blog post, let alone this blog post. Let’s just say a lot has happened since my last post. The main thing is, I’m writing a blog post. I really should do this more often…not least because more regular writing might mean I cut the waffle. Anyway…

I’m sure I’m no different to virtually all landscape photographers in finding landscape photography in the summer a bit of a chore. Sunrise is too early, sunset is too late, the middle of the day is just harsh light and blue skies (how awful). It’s a challenge, and not in a skill-enhancing way. It is because of this that I’m glad I have dabbled in street photography over the years, as the conditions that aren’t great for landscape photography, make for great conditions on the streets.

I’m still learning a lot about what makes a good street photo, but I’ve enjoyed getting out and about and learning more about a quite different way of shooting. Whereas I often find landscape photography to be quite tranquil and often (although not always!!) a relatively sedate process, street photography forces me to think quicker, to spot opportunities and to pay close attention to details. I feel like, as a result, my street photography and landscape photography have helped each other.

I’m still yet to really figure out my “style”, but the one thing I’ve really enjoyed lately is shooting on the streets at night. And fortunately, given we are in October, there’s loads of opportunities ahead! So much have I enjoyed this, I even treated myself to the 33mm f1.4 Fuji lens back at the beginning of the summer and I haven’t regretted it one bit. The things I’ve particularly enjoyed in the evenings is making use of the street lights and, most especially, the condensation on restaurant/cafe windows. As someone who feels a little uncomfortable taking photos of people, having them obscured slightly not only makes my life easier, but also makes the photos more interesting. And then when you have rain and interesting lights to play with…well, that’s the cherry on the cake.

Of course, shooting at night isn’t quite as straightforward as during the day. During the day, I’d happily put headphones on and wander around. At night I’m of course needing to be hyper-conscious of what’s going on around me, whether I’m shooting locally or in a major city. I’d prefer wherever possible to shoot with others in the evening, but if that’s not possible then I’ll still go out but just ensure I’m extra vigilant and avoid any places where there are few people around.

In terms of my settings, I stick to around f1.4 (obviously) and try not to drop below 1/250th unless I’m shooting something static. I set my ISO to a maximum of 3200 and then leave the ISO decisions up to the camera. My priorities are that I keep to f1.4 and 1/250th for the kind of shots I’m looking for to keep the ISO low and the pictures free from motion blur. To cap off the settings, I go for exposure compensation of anything between -1 to -2 to protect the highlights. These settings largely work well for me, although I do sometimes encounter some strobing outside some shopfronts, which I think is largely due to the shutter speed and the LED lighting. Other than that, I tend to find those settings do the job.

With the nights drawing in and more low light conditions to work with (and obviously this time of year is pretty intense with lights up everywhere), I’m looking forward to getting out more often with that 1.4 lens and learning more about street photography at night.