If you are a street photographer and want to explore the opportunities in Hyderabad, here are some places you must check out -
Streets Around Charminar
The most favourite place to hang around for a street photographer is around the Charminar. I have spent countless days here and still waiting for more. Its an unending repository of pictures.
You can go there on Sunday morning to see and shoot the flea market. You will find several interesting subjects there.
Macca Masjid which is located adjacent to the Charminar is a great place too. Families come here early morning and feed the pigeons.
Gudimalkapur Flower Market
This is one of my most favourite places to shoot. Flower markets are very vibrant in India. if you go to any Indian city, You must find the local flower market and visit there. the flower markets of Kolkata Bangalore and Chennai are very famous. The market in Hyderabad is also no less.
Buyers are the resellers who buy the flowers and carry them as far as 50 kilometers and sell them in their local neighborhood in front of temples for Dargah.
Flowers play a very important role in Indian culture. they are used to make garlands to offer to the Gods and also used in weddings to exchange them. women in South India where flowers on their hair.
Kothapet Fruit Market
This market is one of the largest in Hyderabad and a lot happening there. at different times of the year, you will find different fruits being sold here. if you reach early morning you will also see the process of auctioning. men and women work together to offload the fruits from the larger vehicles to the ground or the smaller vehicles. There is a lot of human activity happening here.
Laad Bazaar near Charminar
The Laad Bazaar opposite the Charminar is another interesting place. it is quite crowded in the evening and gives some great opportunities for street photography.
there are a lot of bangle shops in this area and they attract a lot of customers. it Is very interesting to observe how the shop owners attract the customers by calling them and inviting them to their shops.
Monda Market Secunderabad
The Monday market in Secunderabad is another favourite place of mine. a very interesting thing about this place is the play of light and shadows that you get in the morning. as the oblique sun rays enter through some of the open areas, it creates some great opportunities for pictures.
Kumharwada Pottery Hyderabad
This is Potter's town. With the advent of plastic, the use of clay and clay vessels have plummeted over the years. Nevertheless, This small community of potters have survived the test of time. they get really busy during the festival times like Ugadi and Dipawali. that is the time when a lot of people need traditional earthen vessels. Also, now during the Ganpati festival, they make a lot of eco-friendly Ganpati made of Earth. though it is more expensive then plaster of Paris, money eco-conscious citizens are opting for these.
Jumerat Bazaar
This flea market happens on Thursday morning. another great place for photographers to observe and shoot the human interaction between the buyers and sellers. Here, they sell anything from old artifacts to the latest MacBooks. Of course, a lot of them are stolen or refurbished. You will find a lot of bicycles here.
Begum Bazaar Hyderabad
Begum Bazar is a community Rajasthani (Marwari) people who migrated here more than a hundred years back and are now settled here. you will find here a lot of very traditional houses and Rajasthani women in their traditional dresses. Some of the houses are very old and colourful. You can shoot the people with some interesting houses in the background.
Karwan Goat Sheep market
This is a relatively unknown place and no photographers go there. I was fortunate to stumble upon this place accidentally and loved the atmosphere. this place has great potential for street photography. this place is located on the way from Golconda to the Charminar. Karwan comes from the word Caravan. This was a very popular route from people travelling between the places.
Tips for photographers
You need to like walking to become a good Street photographer.
Spend some time observing to understand the human interaction. You will definitely be able to capture better.
Anticipate what is going to happen next.
Have the right settings on your camera according to your anticipation and expectation.
These people here are very friendly and most of them won't bother you. Some people might be curious about why you are taking the pictures and it is absolutely okay for them to ask so.
You can just tell them but this place looks very interesting. If people ask why you are taking their picture, you can tell them that the person looks interesting in the whole environment. You'll never face any problems in Hyderabad.
People are generally very friendly and don't mind getting photographed. be careful when shooting ladies. Some might get offended. it is better to ask them with a smile and gently no one will refuse.
Once they feel that you are harmless, they will give you that space.
Best Places to Visit in Hyderabad for Photography HERE
Thanksgiving
Thanks to my friend Rajesh with whom, I have been to these places multiple times, and also to my students who joined me for the several walks we did here.
Spend Time Learning Photography, my 5 Day Online Photography Course (only Rs.550/-) will definitely help you .
This post is written by Saurabh Chatterjee. He is a travel photographer and a photography trainer.He strives to make every camera-owner a great photographer through his Photography workshops and Photo Tours and Photowalks. All rights reserved. No copying without permission of the author Saurabh Chatterjee