MPB Meets: Street Photographer Craig Whitehead

Street photography is steeped in tradition and controversy, prompting questions regarding ethics, traditions and techniques. Purists claim street photography must be in black and white, shot with nothing greater than a fully-manual 35mm lens. Others say you can shoot in colour, using a 50mm and autofocus. A polarising genre indeed.

Many photographers have made great work defying convention, forging their own route and - in many ways - reinventing the medium. Craig Whitehead is one of those photographers.

Craig's photos are beautifully coloured, all candidly shot with a unique sense of composition and humour. He has been compared to other photographers, like Saul Leiter and Ernst Haas, who paved the way for colour in street photography. Craig, however, prefers to keep his attention on the street and on his work - where it matters most.

We speak to Craig, who goes by the monicker @Sixstreetunder, about social media, inspiration, colour and processes.

MPB: Can you remember when and why you became a photographer? Was there an 'aha' moment for you?

CW: I was always the type to be just making things. I used to make model (stop motion animation type) sets. I would draw a lot, and taking photos was just another creative option. The main reason for me getting a camera was to take photos of friends skating. I was a rollerblader for a long time, I even shot some long exposures with flash on film. I really doubt those photos even came out. But, after that - around ten or eleven years ago - I got a DSLR for my birthday.

MPB: What makes something worth photographing for you?

CW: Before I discovered street photography, I used to just photograph whatever I wanted, whatever caught my eye. Then, with street photography, I got into a bad habit where I'd have the idea of what I was after. It can really limit what you see. It's been a conscious effort lately, but I really just photograph whatever catches my eye now. I'm clearly drawn to certain things. Colour and light is always my first concern, but anything dynamic and out of the ordinary is worth photographing. It doesn’t mean it will make a good photograph, but it’s interesting enough to explore and often leads to something.

MPB: There’s a lot of interplay between your subjects and their direct environments, particularly with colour. How important is this to you rather than the single subject?

CW: I am obsessed with colour, I have been for a long time. I studied illustration at university, where I really developed my eye for colour. I was always very particular over the exact hue of a colour I would use, not because that hue was important, but because of the relationship to the other colours. The colour I’m drawn to when I shoot follows the same ideas as the way I post process. I want the colours to balance.

MPB: Would it be fair to say that Saul Leiter has influenced you somewhat? Almost like you’re carrying on his legacy and reinventing it as you go along?

CW: He was someone I found as I explored what street photography was. I just fell in love with his work.

The first person I came across was Bruce Gilden. Initially, I was shooting very wide and more in his style, but I slowly started to shoot with longer focal lengths. I found Saul around that time.

I've moved away from the longer lenses now, but what will always stick with me is Saul's sense of abstraction and his focus on colour and texture rather than the people on the street. Details, colour, pattern and texture are almost always more interesting to me than a person I come across. I think Saul was the same.

MPB: You mention that you started out shooting longer lenses but have since gone back to a shorter focal length, why is this?

CW: It became too easy, the longer the focal length the more you can introduce into the foreground to construct a frame from. I found 85-135mm became so familiar I wasn’t challenging myself anymore. I decided to go wider to introduce more context, working wider also makes it much tougher to compose something simple.

MPB: You used to shoot with a Fujifilm X-Pro 2 but then you switched to Leica, what was behind this decision?

CW: I still use the Fujifilm X-Pro 2 alongside the Leica. It was just that I had the opportunity to have one, and I didn’t turn it down - and who would? I tend to use them both now, one with 35mm and one with 50mm.

MPB: Many people misinterpret black-and-white photography. Many only use it when images are too grainy or noisy. As you don’t shoot much of it, do you have a good grasp of how to shoot it? Is it something you'd ever explore further?

CW: I have processed images in black and white, and I occasionally share them. The light in many of my photos works well in black and white, but I almost always prefer the scene in colour. I have taken some that are almost in black and white already, the entire scene lacks almost any colour. The small amount of colour the scene does have helps highlight the lack of colour elsewhere or the fact certain patterns not only match in shape but in colour too.

For me, the black-and-white processing of an image will always be second best to the colour version. Occasionally, I have a shot that would be great if the colours were different. Converting it to black and white makes it work, but I see that photo as a failure. I don’t think you should just convert something because it doesn’t work in colour. I find this is often what people do.

MPB: Harry Gruyaert famously said about his own images, “There is no story, it's just a question of shapes and light”. How true do you think this of yourself? Is there a story? Does there even need to be one?

CW: I agree with that completely. Sometimes there is a story - but, for me, there absolutely doesn't need to be. I would enjoy an image of a random object, in great light with the right colour, maybe more than a photo of someone showing strong emotion.

I try to obscure faces as much as possible, as I find them a distraction from the elements I was really drawn to. In street photography, the recent fixation on moments and people has moved things away from the type of work a lot of the old masters produced. I think that is a real shame. I see a few people making an effort to get things back to that idea.

MPB: Can you tell us a bit about your process when you're out on the street? Are there specific conditions that have you out the door in a flash? Do you spot your locations and wait for the right subject for as long as it takes, shivering under an umbrella?

CW: Cambridge is a small place compared to New York or London. It’s not exactly known for being a hub for street photography. To produce the amount I do, I try to maximise my chances - especially as I tend to shoot on my lunch break, or before and after work.

I might make a note of the time of day a certain spot is getting light, and then for a week or two, I'll revisit that spot when it's sunny. If I come across something temporary, I'll camp it out until I get something, knowing I won't get another chance. I try to get to events that might be on. Temporary funfairs, anything that changes the landscape a bit - the same scenery can get dull.

Sometimes I just walk, other times I will camp out a spot, I don’t have a set method. It all depends on the potential I see in the scene, if the moment I imagine playing out seems possible and worth the wait, I’ll wait.

MPB: You're arguably most well-known for your digital work. Why do you choose to shoot film alongside digital? Is it the look, the process or the mindset?

CW: Film is all about the process for me. The colour is great, and it's a positive influence on my digital work. The main reason to shoot film these days is that it slows you down.

It's easy to get carried away with digital and rely too much on the camera. I think everyone needs to get to the point where they can get great shots on film, and then go back to digital knowing the extra features are an aid and not a crutch. Shooting film makes you more aware of timing and it makes you analyse light even more. It also takes away some of your ability to post process. I love that things have to be right in camera.

MPB: You organise a lot of workshops around the world. Was teaching always on the agenda for you? Do you find it fulfilling to pass on your knowledge?

CW: It wasn’t something I had ever considered until someone asked me if I did workshops because they would really like to learn from me. I thought about it and couldn’t see why not.

Passing on knowledge is very fulfilling. If I can save months of someone's time - time they'd have otherwise spent discovering the things that I've discovered - then that's a great thing. If I can lead them to some kind of understanding of what they want their work to be, then that's even better. It's very satisfying when you see someone shortly after a workshop and they're selling a print, winning an award or being written about somewhere. Every time I see someone who’s been to a workshop, and they're out on the street putting in the time, more motivated than they were before, then I know I did my job.

Thanks for speaking with us Craig, it's been a pleasure.

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This article is part of the MPB Guide to Street Photography, our comprehensive look at how to create street photography, with camera recommendations, advice and interviews with experts.