Monika S. Jakubowska - Street Photographer Extraordinaire!

I love street photography. It's unpredictable, everchanging, and it shows our every day world in a brand new light. One of the reasons I love being a photographer, and am extremely grateful that I chose this path is because it taught me to see the world differently. No matter how bad my day is going something will always bring a smile to my face. Whether it's an amazing sunset or a simple thing like this garbage can kissing the wall!

One of my favorite street photographers is my very good friend Monika S. Jakubowska! She's from Poland and lives in London. Her amazing ability to capture mood and cause emotion is inspiring. Check out her facebook page by CLICKING HERE and her website www.three-dragonflies.com!

Here is her article:

THE PRIME MEDDLER!

Closing my eyes and it’s like going back in time again… Oxford, Watersones – a three storage bookshop in High Street. A very thick book in a shop-window with a black and white photo of a smiling boy on it, carrying two bottles in his arms. The boy wasn’t much bigger than those bloody bottles, a pair of daring eyes and somehow cheeky smile on his face. The picture appeared so candid and honest to me. Sudden struck – it was like love from the first sight; sudden urge to get the book and discover contents immediately!

The book was published by Taschen and it was “20th Century Photography Museum Ludwig Cologne”. At first I wasn’t reading any info, names, nothing, just flipping pages and looking at the photos with some true amazement. Most of them monochrome, all of them with this special something within the frame. Something that gave me the very first photographic thrill I like to call it.
Today I know they were photos by Cartier-Bresson, Doisneau, Brassaï, and Kertész but back then they were just emotional landscapes full of people frozen in time, living their simple lives. That was the first time I discovered Street Photography for myself and straight away was fascinated with it. Reflection of everyday life, photographers documenting the truth. On one hand they seemed to be a little nosey, meddling around but on the other they captured all these things that you don’t notice in your daily grind.

After moving to UK and then to London I understood how fascinating and addictive photographing the streets can be. You honestly get hooked and before you realise, you never leave home without camera. Walking around the city, travelling by tube, visiting local markets - you should have your camera at all times as you never know what you may witness! It came to me my index finger is glued to the shutter release button so I am always ready for the most unexpected and always on the verge of anticipation. It seems to me the camera is an extension of my eye… So it can be yours but before you go out and start capturing the street scenes you need to remember of some things…

Apart from good mood and patience, you have to pay loads of attention to detail, attention to scenes. It’s much easier to photograph when you have your mind wide open. Think of yourself as of a mirror – always reflecting true, unstaged moments. Sometimes you need to wait for hours then the next time things just happen in front of your eyes. It all depends on you and your sensibility, readiness as it is all encrypted in these moments that you grow to recognize subconsciously.

People often wonder if I ask for permission to shoot, if I am not scared to take photos at someone’s face in the street… I must honestly say I was more than a little reluctant in the beginning. I was never sure what reaction I will get. My first street photos show people’s backs or people captured from the great distance. Then I learned a simple fact – when you are in the middle of a scene, people do not pay attention to you as they are involved into something else. Sometimes it feels like you’re a nosey git, a meddler, covered with an invisibility cloak but I just get on with it! I take a few shoots and carry on with walking. I hardly ever ask for permission to photograph people. Why? Because when you ask, you lose that special something what street photography is about – candidness. You have to capture the mood in a fraction of a second or you lose it forever;  you need to freeze the moment before it is forgotten in a blink of an eye. So my answer is NO. I DO NOT ask for permission as I would totally destroy the moment which I hunt for. In my opinion it’s always better to ask for forgiveness than ask for permission :o) Just make sure you always carry that irresistible smile with you!

While in a mood for a shoot & stroll I wear my comfy hiking shoes so I can walk for hours. I like using my prime lens with a focal length 35 mm, 1.8. Will you be shocked if I tell you I quite often shoot with my phone? Hope not, as it does happen if I am not equipped with my DSLR. After all your camera is a tool which you use to capture the moment, same tool as a brush is to a painter, a wood chisel to a sculpturer, a grand piano to a pianist… It happens all the time – some pretty bad concerts are played on instruments worth millions, so it is YOU who matters – your eye, your soul, your perception, not the brand of your camera.

I’ve always been inspired by the greatest photographers of all time but most inspiration I find in life and people surrounding me. It’s always the same… I walk down the street then suddenly something appears in front of my eyes… Adrenaline is pumped into my system, butterflies in my stomach. Next my camera becomes an inseparable part of me, an extension of my eye – we’re connected. Breath held, shutter release pushed. Then once more, and once again…  The scene is over, I start breathing again… The feeling of desertion fills me inside out.

I think I am addicted to this feeling. It feels like constantly being in love, having a passionate love affair… An affair with streets of London, with photography… I wish you all to discover it for yourself – fall in love with your cities and its streets :o)

So make sure you check out more of her work by following her on her website www.three-dragonflies.com and her Facebook CLICK HERE