Stop Here On Red

         

Recently, I realized that I have a tendancy to rush things while photographing.  Yesterday, while on my lunch break, I captured the shot shown above.  The van parked below the sign marked "Stop Here On Red" caught my eye.  I took about three shots in all, but this one worked out best in my opinion.

In the first attempt the traffic lights were green, but I thought the image would look better with a person walking through the frame.  That was a problem because there weren't that many people on the street at the time.  So, I had to patiently wait for both the red lights and a person to complete the picture.  The use of selective color helps to tell the story.

What I learned from this instance is that sometimes you simply have to slow down, or better yet, stop taking pictures.  I've heard this before but the thought passes once I get into shooting mode.  Slowing down (or stopping) before trying to get the shot forced me to stop and think about composition, framing, and trying to tell a story.  I'm really excited about doing more street photography, and I can't wait to hit the streets again!