Lost in Transit: How Street Photography Captures Human Introspection

Fleeting moments in a subway

Lisbon- — Photo by the author

With everyone packed in like sardines, there’s no room for vanity. Plus, since nobody’s going anywhere, they have to make the most of the time they have — zombie scrolling, reading, sleeping, eating, and daydreaming.

Taking photos on public transportation is an effective way to capture moods and create a story with the help of the viewer's imagination. The street actors in your play are confined to a small area, making it “easier” to capture a variety of interactions and scenes that will be eventually worth keeping and bringing home. It's a great laboratory for street photography. 😉.

I often prefer taking a different type of photo, capturing a more distant view of the subject. My style leans towards architectural street photography, incorporating dynamic diagonal lines, silhouettes, shadows, reflections in puddles, or perspectives through glass doors, all with a conceptual approach close to fine art photography, but without any staging involved.