Street photography, despite being a mainstream form of capturing a moment, is not

a clear concept in many people’s minds. Even though the term street
photography/candid photography is commonly used amongst most teenagers and
young adults, the true aim of this art is still not known to many. Although mostly
street photography is done candidly, it isn’t always necessary. The whole idea of
street photography is to capture emotion, humanity and soul.
My research revolves around our society’s understanding of this type of
photography, and their misconception of what the true aim of candid/street
photography is. As Bangladesh has grown economically in the past decade, the use
of internet and social media has risen significantly. An important feature of most
social media websites is being able to upload their pictures and share it with their
friends and families. For the past two to three years, the trend of uploading what
many people like to call a “candid” picture has spread rapidly amongst the youth.
There are often friendly debates as well on the pictures actually being candid, or
what many like to call a “fake candid” –that can be seen on the comments section
on many pictures. My research aims to acknowledge people’s understanding on
street/candid photography and furthermore to clear their misconception on what
this form of photography really aims to capture.
I strongly believe that many people will simply state that they were unaware that
candid photography was similar to street photography, as well as stating that they
believed that any picture taken of them while they were unaware of it is a
candid/street photograph. It is indeed common to see that often people follow the
actions of their friends and peers. As their friends take the so called candid pictures
and caption them as “candid”, they start the practice of doing the same without
taking an approach to understanding what that concept really is.
For my primary research, I shall be carrying out a survey along with a short
interview with individuals from North South University, as well as questioning
some teenagers outside the campus to have a clear understanding of their thoughts
on this topic and their idea and approach to the concept of street photography.
Furthermore, being a dedicated member of the North South University Art and
Photography Club, I’ll be seeking opinions and information from my seniors on
what they have to say on this mainstream form of photography.
For my secondary research, I aim to use the internet to assist me with my research.
I shall also be using the following books for more detailed information; Bystander-
A history of street photography (1994) by Colin Westerbeck and Joel Meyerowitz
and Grim street (2005) by Mark R. Cohen.
My research paper shall be laid out into many parts which will include the abstract,
introduction, background and emergence of street photography, the research
questions asked to the surveyees along with the statistics I receive, my analysis of
those statistics, a summary of my research findings and finally a conclusion along
with the references.
I aim to complete my research by the given deadlines towards the end of this
semester.
I therefore request you grant me permission to being to carry out my research on
my topic of interest. I shall be grateful to receive any feedback on my proposal as
well as my research methodology and I truly believe I will be able to carry out a
successful research under your guidance.