MonoChromatic Street [ENG-PT/BR]

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While color street photographs offer endless chromatic possibilities that capture our attention, black-and-white photographs strip the message down to its essentials. Removing color as an option eliminates distractions and focuses on what truly matters: light, geometry, and the human condition. These are the three pillars that, in my opinion, matter most in constructing a photographic street narrative.


This series I’m submitting to the #monomad contest isn’t about nostalgia or aesthetics. It’s about staying true to the original intention, reducing reality to its essence. The human element is fundamental to providing scale and contributing to the message’s content: the hurried movement of daily life caught between two planes, between light and shadow.

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When I take photos on the street, I try to be as invisible as possible; my movements are quick and discreet, and I avoid eye contact. I don’t seek closeness or friendliness; I don’t think about the people. They are merely elements in the composition of the photograph. But when I edit the photos, I always wonder where those people were going. What they were going to do. Where they’re from, what they do.


📷 All the photographs were taken in the city where I live, Coimbra, Portugal, using a Fujifilm X-T3 camera, and edited using Tonality software.

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! [PORTUGUESE VERSION]
Rua monocromática

Enquanto as fotografias de rua coloridas apresentam infinitas possibilidades cromáticas que apelam à nossa atenção, as fotografias exploradas a preto e branco reduzem a mensagem ao essencial. A remoção da cor como opção faz eliminar distrações e foca no que realmente é importante: a luz, a geometria e a condição humana. São esses os três pilares que, na minha opinião, mais importam na construção de uma narrativa fotográfica de rua.

Esta série que apresento ao concurso #monomad não é sobre nostalgia ou estética. É sobre ser fiel à intenção original, reduzir o real ao essencial. O elemento humano é fundamental para fazer escala e contribuir para o conteúdo da mensagem: o movimento apressado do quotidiano apenas entre dois planos, entre a luz e a sombra.

Quando faço a captura de imagens na rua tento ser o máximo invisível, os gestos são rápidos e discretos e não quero encontros de olhares. Não procuro proximidade nem simpatia, não penso nas pessoas. São meros elementos na construção da fotografia. Mas, quando edito as fotografias, interrogo-me sempre para onde iriam as pessoas. O que iam fazer. De onde são, o que fazem.

Todas as fotografias foram feitas na cidade onde resido, Coimbra – Portugal, com uma camera Fujifilm X-T3, e editadas no software Tonality.

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12 comments
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Hello @cryptoreforma.
Please do not forget to add the #monomad tag to your post (together with the other tags), or we might accidentally miss it while going through all the entries.

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My apologies. Since it appears twice in the text (English and Portuguese) and in the publication description, I thought that was sufficient. I will do it correctly next time.
Thank you for the heads-up.

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The tags included in the post body don't work as they should.
If you click on the #monomad tag right now you'll see that this post doesn't show up.

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