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Just started photography and I like street photography and city spaces. Then this idea came to my mind: Taking pictures of people that are sitting inside a restaurant eating food. So I am in the street shooting through the windows of the restaurant! Do you think it is a stupid idea? or it can be actually nice? And if you think it can become an interesting subject, then what creative ideas, moments, will you be thinking about if you wanted to do this?

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Have you think shooting them eating can violate privacy? \$\endgroup\$
    – Romeo Ninov
    Commented Jan 15, 2015 at 19:47
  • \$\begingroup\$ @RomeoNinov I had read about street photography and privacy in here, people were saying because I am standing in the street as a public area I can shoot whatever I like including windows of private homes! So I think a restaurant won't be a private place... That is my assumptions but can be wrong \$\endgroup\$
    – Brandon
    Commented Jan 15, 2015 at 19:49
  • \$\begingroup\$ honestly I am not expert in law, but common sense tell me you can shoot house, but not inside. If you are outside \$\endgroup\$
    – Romeo Ninov
    Commented Jan 15, 2015 at 19:52
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    \$\begingroup\$ @RomeoNinov It all depends on what legal jurisdiction you are in. In the United States generally anything visible from public areas is fair game. That doesn't always mean it is wise, however. \$\endgroup\$
    – Michael C
    Commented Jan 16, 2015 at 4:22

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I usually avoid taking pictures of people eating food. It's more or less considered to be not polite.

This is because people usually do not look good while eating. Having mouths open, feeding yourself, some spinach between your teeth, bread crumps in your beard etc.

I accidentally took images of people while they were eating (in the background) and received some barbed remarks.

So in terms of street photography style shooting, people could be quite pissed. I wouldn't like to see some guerilla photographer show up in the window taking pictures of me eating stuff either. This may or may not be one of your concerns.

If you want to combine food and street, I imagine you could start with people at takeaways. Take one kind of portrait image all over again, but with a different person, eating different food at a different location. This could make a nice series.

Or be a little more out there and invite somebody into a restaurant. (you pay the food, they are the subject) I can image interesting pictures of homeless people with what they usually eat every day in a posh restaurant environment but doubt that any restaurant will allow this.

To sum it up: Try to communicate your idea with the subjects.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ ah good thoughts, so you mean shoot people taking food from those food trucks? \$\endgroup\$
    – Brandon
    Commented Jan 15, 2015 at 20:07
  • \$\begingroup\$ This really depends on your goal. I imagined a simple portrait from the belly up. You are face to face with the subject. The table is between you. The table with the food in the middle fills maybe the bottom third of the image (rule of thirds), the rest is the person. Think of many similar pictures this way. It would be similar to those images for children that are sliced in thirds so you could swap out one head for the other, or one body for another (not sure what the name of these images is). In your case there would be two parts: the person and the food in front of them. \$\endgroup\$
    – null
    Commented Jan 15, 2015 at 20:18

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