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Ultimate Best Buys For Street Photography

We’ve updated our guide to the ultimate best buys for street photography with the latest cameras, lenses and accessories so that you can pick the perfect one, whatever your skill level. We’ve got tips on the best focal length for street photography, as well as camera accessories you can throw in your bag for under £100, which also make excellent gifts for a photographer.

Whether you shoot street photography anywhere from London to Glasgow, Brighton to Timbuktu we’ve got you covered with the ultimate best buys to help you hone your skills and compare the gear you need.

Quick links

• Introduction (what is street photography)?
• What makes a good street photo?
• Best street photography camera under £2000
• Best lens for street photography
• 35mm vs 50mm
• Best buys for street photography under £100 (bags, straps, tripods and accessories)
• Inspirational links, samples and galleries

What is street photography?

Street photography is a popular genre where the photographer responds spontaneously to everyday life in public spaces. It encompasses architecture, candid portraits and the art of recognising fleeting moments, that make for decisive images, which can never be repeated.

This genre is more popular than ever thanks to classic street photography masters such as Alfred Eisenstaedt, Vivian Maier and perhaps the best known pioneer Henri Cartier-Bresson, who were capturing timeless images nearly 100 years ago. You can explore the origins of street photography through an insightful article on the Britannica website to gain valuable insights into the historical development of this inspiring photographic genre.

Back to the present day, where we benefit from having far more advanced technology at our fingertips, but let’s explore what makes a good street photo in order to establish what we might need.

What makes a good street photo?

You should always bear in mind, that the allure of street photography is subjective, but just as with other genres, photographers strive to include various elements that all come together into one successful image. For street, these will ideally include:

• An interesting subject
• Interesting light, which supports the subject
• Suitable composition

Other subtle yet potentially crucial elements can also come into play:

• Presence of a social element
• Challenge posed by the image
• Authenticity and lack of staging
• Innovation and uniqueness
• Is it simple to understand

The continuous challenge of creating ever more refined images is one of the primary joys in photography, and a pursuit that propels photographers toward constant improvement. We hope our customers find joy in their street photography and these recommended products, which have been selected to support their passion!

Best street photography camera under £2000

Street photographers often favour a fast, light, intuitive, and discreet camera for optimal shooting. There are so many great options suited to street photography, however we’ve selected some of the best cameras for under £2000, which combine many, or all of the elements listed below.

• Fast pertains to a lens's light-capturing ability, the camera ISO speed, and burst shooting frames per second, as well as how quickly the buffer clears if you burst shoot.
• A light system is ideal for extended shooting sessions, considering street photographers may be on their feet for hours.
• Intuitive refers to a system that is quick, efficient, and easy to operate, allowing for swift adaptation and customisation, in order to capture spontaneous moments.
• Discretion is valued because inconspicuous cameras are preferred to avoid drawing attention and ensure natural behaviour in street scenes without the photographer disrupting the environment.

A specific feature which can be of benefit for street compositions is an articulating LCD screen to capture high, low and awkward angles, along with touch focus while doing just that. Most modern mirrorless cameras offer some form of LCD touch capabilities, including the models listed below.

Although all of these are nice to have, you don’t need the world’s best camera for street photography, which is brimming with the latest and greatest technology. It’s equally important to practice, really look at situations, and familiarise yourself with the camera you have, in order to instantly react to a given moment, and nail the frame you saw, no matter how fleeting. Mastering the basics with an older camera sets the stage for even greater skills when you do upgrade.

That said, here are some of our favourite models for street, all for under £2000.00

Now you’ve got some of the latest cameras to compare, lets discuss which lenses are ideally suited to street photography.

Best lens for street photography

Your lens choice hinges on your preferred camera system. For street photography, many opt for a fixed focal width 35mm or 50mm lens. A prime compared to a zoom lens offers a more compact size, faster aperture, and discretion, which are all key factors for capturing images in urban environments.

50mm vs 35mm for street photography

The enduring question of whether to choose a 50mm or 35mm for street photography often invokes passionate debate, yet ultimately boils down to personal preference. A 35mm lens provides a wider perspective, which is ideal for environmental shots, whereas 50mm lenses bring you closer for tighter compositions, and are widely favoured for this classic field of view.

Regardless of which you choose, you can master that lens by consistently photographing with it, and explore various scenes to hone your skills with that specific focal length. After a while, you can always trade in your lens for another and decide which better complements your shooting style. You could even get a cost effective second-hand lens and work with both to find your perfect partner.

The key is to practice, really look at your photos to appraise what works, which elements of a story are you telling and how did the lens focal width support that story. Ultimately you can use virtually any street photography lens and come away with engaging images that capture unique moments in time.

Best buys for street photography under £100

Whether as a gift for a photographer or for yourself, these carefully selected camera accessories can make for a more comfortable and effective street photography experience. From camera bags to straps, spare memory cards, and more, any of these will elevate your game and make brilliant street photography gifts.

1. Capturing stills isn’t as demanding as video, but you can still have fast SD cards on hand to ensure your camera doesn’t get stuck clearing the buffer after a continuous burst of frames. We recommend the Lexar 64GB Professional 1800x 270MB/S UHS-II card, or an even faster SanDisk Extreme PRO 64GB SDXC Memory Card for added storage space and high-speed capabilities.
2. Although most new cameras come with a strap included, they are rarely as comfortable as a specially designed third party camera strap. There are dozens of excellent options to choose between, however we particularly like the universal slide system from Peak Design. These are available in signature colours like the classic Slide Camera Strap in Black and Slide Lite Camera Strap Midnight Blue, which are differentiated by their broadness and stiffness to suit individual tastes.
3. A shoulder or camera messenger bag is often preferable for shooting in urban environments as you can sling one over your shoulder whilst still having quick access to your gear. Once again there are plenty to choose from, however a couple of models stand out as an ideal street photography bag. The Manfrotto Advanced Shoulder Bag L III is compact, discreet, and offers enough space for a camera and additional lenses without being bulky. Another versatile solution is the Lowepro ProTactic MG 160 AW II (Black), which additionally holds a small laptop or tablet, and offers split storage for daily essentials.
4. A lens blower and lens wipes or a lens cloth are good to have when you shoot in wet or dusty conditions. Although droplets and dust spots can be cloned out, they can be tricky if particularly prominent in the frame.
5. Often street photographers will play with reflections from glass surfaces, on shop or vehicle windows, and watery reflections in puddles. If this is an area you’re keen to experiment with, a circular polarising filter helps to control the intensity of reflections, and also doubles a vital lens filter for other types of outdoor photography.
6. In spite of sometimes being overlooked, a spare camera battery or two are inevitably required to continue shooting through a long day and into the night. There’s nothing worse than running out of power when the light changes in your favour, or something happens that would have made the perfect shot.
7. Lastly, it’s worth considering bringing a mini tripod for cityscapes and long exposure photography. Joby makes a range of excellent flexible mini tripods, which can be attached to vertical supports like a lamppost, as well as free-standing on a flat surface. Alternatively, Manfrotto offers a number of tabletop models, which include the Manfrotto PIXI EVO Mini Tripod Red. We’d go for the Joby GorillaPod 3K Flexible Mini-Tripod for the ultimate in versatility, however as long as its lightweight and fits into your bag, you can use any that fits your budget.

Inspirational links, samples and galleries

The Lens Culture Street Photography Awards 2023 winners gallery is an inspiration for any up and coming photographer. This gallery features artists from around the world with each having a series of images which tell their particular story. Often documentary street style images are released as a series to tell the unique story according to the photographer’s viewpoint.

Another excellent resource is the Paris photo competition dedicated to street photography, which includes endless examples of truly inspiring images across the entire spectrum.

There are of course loads of brilliant artists on Youtube to watch for relevant tips, including this video where Gareth heads around London to share five tips on shooting cityscapes.

Street is an incredibly engaging genre with many inspiring photographers to follow who capture unique images of our urban environments. It’s an opportunity to immortalise a single moment in time, which may otherwise have gone unnoticed, through innovative framing, striking light or other elements, which the photograph conveys.

You can take your street photography skills to another level by practicing, familiarising yourself and mastering your camera body and lens, whether a 35mm, 50mm or any other. You can also enjoy a more comfortable and sustained experience by using a handful of photo accessories, such as a spare battery and memory card, as well as a comfortable strap.

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By Nick Dautlich on 17/12/2023