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Characters on the street
Characters on the street
Sebastian Lehner
September 27, 2024
LFI: What is it you like about street photography and the street itself?
Sebastian Lehner: I find people and their unique particularities alluring – the expressions on their faces, their interesting appearances, and the situation and surroundings they find themselves in, whether deliberately or by mistake. I want to capture such unique, brief and chance instances and stories, because they will only ever happen once in such a constellation. I'm also a FOMO (fear of missing out) person, always wanting to be everywhere. I want to see as much as possible, and I can do that best with a camera.
New York and London are popular motif locations for photographers. What “new” things were you able to discover?
I just wanted to cover the stomping grounds of the great street and documentary photographers: Diane Arbus, Gordon Parks, Bruce Gilden, Jill Freedman, Joel Meyerowitz, Jeff Mermelstein… Where better that NYC? Or London? I was always fascinated by the street and documentary work of these legends: raw, direct, human. After the pandemic, I wanted to get out on the street and see people; the longing for interaction and also an active type of street photography was strong. I didn't want to capture the characters in my pictures in a pre-composed situation, but rather approach people and capture them in their moment.
What was your photographic approach?
There are two scenarios: in the case of 'straight up and go for it' street photography, as soon as I see someone I find interesting, I go straight up to them, take the picture and stroll on. For that I like to use my Super Elmar-M 21mm and Summilux-M 28mm lenses on f/8 or f/11, flash on hand, inspired by Bruce Gilden. For my street portraits, I want to get to know anyone I find fascinating, a bit closer. I simply speak to them and ask them if I can portray them. We chat while I'm taking pictures of them, which loosens up the mood, and has also led to a couple of new friendships.
How well does the camera work for your creative process?
My M is the perfect camera. It's small and discreet for straight up street photography. It doesn't have a big body or lenses – I don't get tired spending hours wandering through the streets with it. It's ideal for portraits: it doesn't hide my face: I can chat with the person in front of me and keep eye contact. From the technical side, I can use the same lenses on my analogue M, because I like to be out and about with both cameras... And, then there's something sentimental: the black on my Black Paint and my M6 (2022) wears off with time; every scratch, every spot where the brass shows through, is a souvenir from a journey, a lovely day, or a photo shoot, and proof of the fact that the camera gets used and is loved.
Katja HübnerSebastian Lehner: I find people and their unique particularities alluring – the expressions on their faces, their interesting appearances, and the situation and surroundings they find themselves in, whether deliberately or by mistake. I want to capture such unique, brief and chance instances and stories, because they will only ever happen once in such a constellation. I'm also a FOMO (fear of missing out) person, always wanting to be everywhere. I want to see as much as possible, and I can do that best with a camera.
New York and London are popular motif locations for photographers. What “new” things were you able to discover?
I just wanted to cover the stomping grounds of the great street and documentary photographers: Diane Arbus, Gordon Parks, Bruce Gilden, Jill Freedman, Joel Meyerowitz, Jeff Mermelstein… Where better that NYC? Or London? I was always fascinated by the street and documentary work of these legends: raw, direct, human. After the pandemic, I wanted to get out on the street and see people; the longing for interaction and also an active type of street photography was strong. I didn't want to capture the characters in my pictures in a pre-composed situation, but rather approach people and capture them in their moment.
What was your photographic approach?
There are two scenarios: in the case of 'straight up and go for it' street photography, as soon as I see someone I find interesting, I go straight up to them, take the picture and stroll on. For that I like to use my Super Elmar-M 21mm and Summilux-M 28mm lenses on f/8 or f/11, flash on hand, inspired by Bruce Gilden. For my street portraits, I want to get to know anyone I find fascinating, a bit closer. I simply speak to them and ask them if I can portray them. We chat while I'm taking pictures of them, which loosens up the mood, and has also led to a couple of new friendships.
How well does the camera work for your creative process?
My M is the perfect camera. It's small and discreet for straight up street photography. It doesn't have a big body or lenses – I don't get tired spending hours wandering through the streets with it. It's ideal for portraits: it doesn't hide my face: I can chat with the person in front of me and keep eye contact. From the technical side, I can use the same lenses on my analogue M, because I like to be out and about with both cameras... And, then there's something sentimental: the black on my Black Paint and my M6 (2022) wears off with time; every scratch, every spot where the brass shows through, is a souvenir from a journey, a lovely day, or a photo shoot, and proof of the fact that the camera gets used and is loved.
ALL IMAGES ON THIS PAGE: © Sebastian Lehner
EQUIPMENT: Leica M10-R, Summilux-M 28 f/1.4 Asph and Super-Elmar-M 21 f/3.4 Asph
Sebastian Lehner+-
Born in 1992, the photographer first lived primarily in Guatemala City, before moving to German in 2005. His father gave him his first camera when he was 12 years old. He taught himself photography and film, at the same time as training in the tourism industry. He has been working as Director of Photography at Kreatives GmbH – a creative studio in Munich – since 2018. On the side, he works as a freelance photographer and film-maker for theatre, concerts, weddings and portraiture. More
