Candid photography

It can be used to capture candid moments of life, such as people walking on the street or in other public places such as parks and beaches, children playing, or family gatherings.

The person who is generally credited with being the first available light "candid" photographer is Dr. Erich Salomon who photographed the social elite in Berlin, Germany and politicians and diplomats during the late 1920s and early 1930s with a 1 3/4 x 2 1/4 glass plate or cut, sheet, film camera called the Ermanox, fitted with an f/1.8 Ernostar lens.

It was said by the French Minister of the Colonies Aristide Briand, that "There are just three things necessary for a League of Nations conference: a few Foreign Secretaries, a table and Salomon".

Henri Cartier-Bresson might be considered the master of the art of candid photography, capturing the "decisive moment" in everyday life over a span of several decades.

How subjects react to photographer's presence with the camera depends on how knowledgeable the artist is on the craft, the approach and the execution of the shot.

Candid photography also typically requires use of available light since flash alerts subjects to the camera and may startle them, causing them to react or become self-conscious and stage their photo appearance rather than behaving naturally.

[3] Full-frame DSLR cameras have brought high-ISO noise to historically low levels, allowing for clean, saturated images at higher ISO.

A candid photograph, made in Chicago in 1988
Candid photograph by YBA artist Henry Bond
The 35mm Leica camera first introduced in the 1920s is associated with candid photography.
One of a 1908 series of candid photographs by George W. Harris titled The Evolution of a Smile ; just after a formal portrait session, William Howard Taft learns by telephone from Theodore Roosevelt that he has been nominated by the Republican Party for the office of President.