Where are you from and how did you get into street photography?
I’m French. Oddly enough, I got into street photography because I was struggling with finding a creative voice after ten years in landscape photography. Once you hit the spot, set your tripod, you don’t get to choose what is in the landscape scene or where it’s placed, so you need to find new ways to be creative, whether through your choice of focal length or the creative use of post-processing. Not to mention that some locations have already been shot over and over again these days.
I love the challenge street photography represents because it’s easy to shoot in a predetermined light and place but to compose on the fly in a single attempt is not. Plus, you don’t have to deal with Photoshop.
How would you describe your street photography style? What do you hope to transmit with your images?
I wish I could say my ability to use light, shadows, and angles in a way few people have tried before! But all kidding aside, I have a hard time describing my style because asserting a photographic vision is a slow process that is still ongoing for me.
There’s a saying that a photograph tells more about the observer than about the person observed. Therefore, I would say that my style, made of hesitant photographic trials and errors, is just a reflection of who I am. To support my point, I’ll quote Henri Cartier Bresson: “When you look through the viewfinder, the open eye looks at the world while the closed eye looks inside yourself.”
I hope that through my images, one will get to know me better.
Are there any street photographers in particular that you draw inspiration from?
It’d be impossible not to mention Saul Leiter who immortalized the streets of New York for more than half a century, as well as Sergio Larrain and his brief yet meteoric career.
Also not to be forgotten is Alex Webb for his rich, layered, colorful and complex compositions and Trent Parke for his sharp lighting style.
Where is your favorite place to take photographs and why?
Anywhere in Asia, but especially in the Indian subcontinent. That’s where my photographic journey began 40 years ago in 1981. India holds a special place in my heart because it’s where I spent four months after successfully passing my first year of medical school. I bought an Olympus OM-1n, a 50mm lens, and 40 rolls of Kodachrome 64 just for the occasion.
Nowadays, we’re inundated with street photographs. With feeds flooded with images, what do you think it takes to make a street photograph that’s truly interesting?
Striking and memorable images are often the simplest. Those that sum up an idea, a feeling or an impression, in a single gesture.
It’s not just about pressing the shutter. For street photography to be truly interesting, you have to ask yourself whether the image you want to show can be summed up in a single sentence or a single glance.
What are the biggest challenges you’ve faced in street photography and how have you overcome them?
Being out on the road with absolutely no idea of what you are going to come back with.
I’ve learned to let myself go, to forget even that I have to bring back images and not to force things, only to help bring together favorable circumstances for things to happen on their own.
What is your most memorable photo from street photography?
This one:
After taking the picture, I bought all the flower necklaces she was selling and offered them back to her. I was thanked by a look worth more than words.
What has street photography taught you?
The joy of capturing a unique moment when light, texture and elements come together perfectly and are only visible for the smallest span of time before it all disappears forever.
Editor’s Note: To learn more about Rocco and see more of his work, be sure to visit his Flickr photostream. This photographer was selected from our Flickr group (Street Photography Magazine), where we regularly choose photographers’ work to be published in our magazine.
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