James Maher is a New York-based art and documentary photographer, historian, guide, writer, and educator who dabbles in studio photography. James has 20 years of experience behind the camera and agreed to share some of his expertise in street photography with us.

As a genre, street photography is full of contradictions. "[It's] both a massively accessible and extremely difficult genre," James explains. "It mixes documentary and poetry, searching your surroundings while looking for moments and ideas that pertain to you."'

"The best street photographers bleed their personalities into their photographs over the long run," James adds. "It may seem like a genre of disparate images, and it often is when photographers first start out, but over time the work congeals to have cohesive meaning."

James says that shooting streets involves some of the things that benefit our mental well-being. "It's healthy, physically and mentally, walking to escape the stresses of life and actively looking and thinking is a wonderful mental exercise," he says. "Over time, you start to recognize yourself in your photos."

He says that the photographer's emotions often can be visible in the photos they take. "When I'm feeling anxious, I capture more anxious photos," he admits. "When I'm happy, my photos are happier. It is a flexible genre that allows you to ultimately take it in any direction you want."

Street photography is also relatively easily accessible. "You can do it while you travel looking for spectacular moments or stick to photographing while walking around your block hundreds of times looking for interesting moments in the mundane," James says. He alters his shooting style depending on where he is. He says he'd do more candid photographs than portraits in a busy city.

"People are used to photographers, but I will use a small camera and prime lens so I am fast and light, and make it look like I am not noticing my subjects," James tells Bored Panda. "Instead, [I look] above or behind them as if I am looking at the background (which I am also doing)."

James has more tips to seem incognito while shooting on the street. "When I capture a photograph, I often don't take the camera away from my eye, which can tip the person off that I took their photo. Instead, he moves the camera away from them or lets them walk through as if they were in his way. "I like to stand on street corners to allow people to enter my personal space," he adds.

If people do notice, James doesn't hide or deny it. "I smile, tell them what I'm doing, and if ever anyone is uncomfortable, I offer to send them the photo or delete it if they would like. And, most importantly, I walk slowly, allowing things to develop around me. It's important to walk slow," he shares his tips.

When he's in the quieter parts of a city, James focuses more on the environment and the background. "But when I capture people, I will often do more portraits since it is the polite thing to do," he says. "That doesn't mean I don't take candids, but I am much more cautious when I do. You have to be able to adapt your shooting style to the area," he believes.

We also asked James whether smartphones and social media have affected street photography. He believes that it has. "For photography in general, the algorithm has made many people look for the most spectacular photos that look good on small screens, capturing photos that will capture our attention for a few seconds to click the like button before ultimately forgetting about them forever. This is boring," James shares.

"There are so many subtle and mundane photographs that may not do well with the algorithm that are the most interesting photos," James tells us. "I honestly think the single image is [gone]. We are surrounded by so many spectacular single images that it feels like there's no point in thinking that way."

"The true power of street photography is in the series of photographs, the book, the project," James tells us his philosophy. "This is a way to break free of the algorithm and to really send a message, to capture your area, your thoughts, and to break down the barriers between us."

"As for photographing with a smartphone, the accessibility aspect of that for photography is absolutely wonderful. However, I prefer to use a camera because photography is my time to detach, and I just can't do that with my phone," he admits.

If you found James Maher's thoughts as compelling as we did, you can find more at Glass City, where he writes a column about photography, creativity, and urbanism!