A man walks up to a couple at a restaurant, takes one of their french fries right from the table, eats it, looks them directly in the eyes and says: “No one will ever believe you”. That man is Bill Murray.

This is just one of the thousands of stories out there that exist about the legend, the myth, that is Bill Murray. Popping up all over the country and even the world, spreading his joy and love of life with others in countless, seemingly random encounters. For a long time almost all of those stories were just rumors on the internet or whispers heard from a friend of a friend of friend, but thanks to a new documentary, “The Bill Murray Stories: Life lessons learned from a mythical man”, which ties all these encounters together, we now know that Bill Murray is indeed the man of legend that he was always purported to be.

While watching this documentary which featured one of my life-long best friends (yes, I was one of the people in this world that heard the legend direct from a friend), I sat there in complete awe of Mr. Murray and the way he has chosen to lead his life in recent years. It felt so closely tied to exactly how I think a great street photographer should walk out into the world every day and it made me think of three very important things that every street photographer, including myself, could learn from Bill Murray.

Go with the flow

Bill Murray exudes the worldly care-freeness of a man that has all the answers but doesn’t care about what they are. He is nothing if not the definition of “going with the flow” and that is the first rule of street photography: going wherever your intuition, the street or the universe may take you. The Flow.

William Eggleston, one of the masters of early American street photography, said: “I only ever take one picture of one thing. Literally. Never two. So then that picture is taken and then the next one is waiting somewhere else.” I love that notion so much, that your next picture is waiting for you somewhere else. How damn exciting is that?

I personally have spent many days heading out with my camera, so desperate to find that “perfect” thing or person to photograph, forcing it and forcing it, only to come home with nothing but average photos that I try to convince myself are something great. I learned very quickly, that if I ever head out with that intention, then I have already done it all wrong. There are amazing things out there waiting to be captured, but your only job is to be ready when they are presented to you and to go with the flow until they are.

Street photography takes nothing if not patience. Just because you are going with the flow, doesn’t mean that you are going to capture gold every single time you go out shooting, but if you don’t go out ready to be taken by the tide of the unknown and excited about wherever it leads you, you are assured never to strike gold.

Be in the moment

Not only does the legendary Bill Murray follow the wind on a hunch or let the waft of delicious smell lead him into a stranger’s backyard BBQ, but when he gets to wherever it is he is going, he is always THERE.

All of Bill’s various, wonderful and mysterious worldwide entanglements, come with a man totally immersed in the present situation. He lives in the moment and outside of that one thing, nothing else in the world matters to him, which gives it so much more weight, sincerity, and honesty. He allows himself to be wrapped up in the people and places around him and see it for what it is right then and there and you should strive to do the same when looking through that little window.

A great street photograph does not start when you click the shutter, but way before that, in the scene that encompasses that moment. It begins when you walk into that space and you get a sense of its presence. The smells, the sounds, the colors, the people or lack thereof, the way it makes you feel and what you do or don’t focus on to show that feeling to the rest of the world. That oneness, that feeling of being, that every great street photo holds for the person that connects to it, is because you were in the moment when you were there and it is felt like a wave coming through your image.

If you are asking yourself, “Isn’t going with the flow the exact same thing as being in the moment?”, then you wouldn’t be the first, but you also need to know there’s a definite difference. That difference means everything when it comes to being a great street photographer.

Going with the flow and being in the moment are two completely separate things. The flow gets you to the moment and it is your duty as a street photographer, once you are there, to take in that entire scene and show it back to the world in it’s most beautiful and unique state. Be immersed. Be interested. Be empathetic. Be there.

Give back

It seems that everyone that Bill encounters along his way is made better for the experience. He uses his celebrity in the best way possible, to bring people joy. He allows fans to take tons of photos with him, signs anything within arms reach, jumps in engagement photos, does karaoke, washes dishes, dances with party goers and the list goes on and on. He uses his celebrity to show that he is a normal guy and that there is beauty in everyone and everything. Everyone he meets feels that and is touched by it.

This, I believe, is the greatest thing any street photographer can take away from the life of Bill Murray, giving back to those around you and bringing out the beauty in the everyday.

One of my all-time favorite street photographers, Rui Palha, from Portugal, takes this to a very personal level. He is very well known and loved by his community and the world because he exists as part of it and is keeping its memory alive. He gets to know most of his subjects by name and makes the brilliant effort of bringing that photo or portrait he took, back to them, if at all possible, a couple of days or weeks later, and shows them the beauty he captured and thanks them for their time and their memory.

I was so overwhelmed by the realization and gratitude of this form of street photography through Rui, that I followed suit not more than a month after first learning of how he works and it was one of the best experiences of my photographic career.

I had the privilege of being shown at a photo exhibit that featured the world-famous classical Italian jazz guitarist, Alberto Negroni, playing live music for the evening. Being an exhibit featuring photographers, I naturally brought a camera with me and ended up capturing Alberto showing his craft through the strings of a beautiful guitar. I was so moved by his performance and presence, that before I left, I introduced myself and got his information and went home that night to get my print ready.

I contacted him the next morning, quite to his surprise, and caught him a few hours before he was due to fly back to Italy, to give him his print. We agreed to meet up and once again I had the chance to photograph him, but this time it was after he had just seen a portrait of himself playing guitar the previous evening and he was so happy and so grateful. You couldn’t wipe the smile off either of our faces if you tried and it was in that instant, that I knew I was on the right track and that memory will live forever in my heart.

There are so many ways a street photographer can give back, whether it be by showing someone their true beauty, making someone on the street smile, lending a helping hand while on the scene, or preserving the memory of a people or place. Being there for good and not just for shameless self-promotion, is really the key.

The French photographer, known simply as “J.R.”, does this better than almost anyone out there, and it is this frame of mind that makes his work so incredible and inspiring. In one of his most recent projects, he takes a highly customized van all through the countryside and he gets to know the people of towns and villages across Europe. With this van, that is essentially a large moving photobooth, he takes pictures of their smiling, warm faces and makes giant prints on the spot and glues them to the walls of their hometown, for all of them to see and be in wonderment of, for all time. J.R. makes the “everyday man and woman”, feel special, important, a part of something bigger and isn’t that really the point of what we are trying to capture?

There is actually a documentary about J.R.’s work called: “Faces/Places”, and I HIGHLY recommend you watch it as soon as possible. You may be moved to tears and it might make you re-think how you photograph, just like it did for me.

I feel that if Bill Murray was a full-time street photographer, he would be just like French photographer J.R. and I’m sure there are a million other things we can learn from the life of such an extraordinary human being as Bill Murray, but when it comes to street photography, these three are the most important.

Don’t force your photos, go with the flow.

Don’t use your subjects, be in the moment with them.

Don’t just take a photo, give back with that photo and more than anything….

…Be like Bill.

~ Braydon

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24 responses to “Three things Bill Murray can teach you about street photography”

  1. Thanks for a good read. Giving back is a good way to acknowledge the contributions of the subjects in our picture making.

    1. Thank you Peter! Obviously this is just a different way to approach it and does not work for everyone or every situation, but I really do like to engage in it whenever possible. Cheers!

  2. Great article, man. Great way to start my day, thanks Braydon!

    1. Wow thank you so much! Your really kind words were a great way to start my day! Really appreciate it.

  3. If “do the same thing everyday” isn’t on the list I will be very disappointed.

    1. It’s not…hahaha. This is a quick list and by no means completely comprehensive, but it’s also just about learning from Bill and I doubt that amazing and wild creature does the same thing everyday. 🙂

  4. The anecdote about giving back is just lovely.

  5. Love this article. And, of course, love Bill Murray.

  6. Great article, I love your explanation of “flow” and “in the moment”. Well stated. I have found street photography the hardest for me to get comfortable with and am about to give it a go once again. I think this article may have helped me understand that most important part, don’t force it, go with the flow! Thanks

    1. Hi Dan! Thank you so much. That really means everything to me. Just all of us supporting each other and encouraging and inspiring each other to get out there. That’s what it’s all about. Can’t wait to see what you do!

  7. Bill Murray is the best, thanks for the article. In every movie he’s ever done and in real life, he a… https://t.co/gisdo4PdLv

  8. Great article! Does anybody know what camera BM is using in those pics?
    Mike

    1. The one he is using in the first photo is a Minox DCC 5.1 Miniature camera. A 5-megapixel camera that was supposed to be a mini version of the M3. You can still get them for around $150-$200 on eBay. The second camera, the one from Ghostbusters, is a Brooks Veriwide. A 6×9 film camera. Can get them for about $1,000.

      Thank so much for the kind words about the article as well!

      1. Thanks Braydon, I was hoping it was 16mm,but I’ll check it out anyway, I like unusual stuff!
        Cheers Mike

    1. Thanks so much! That means a lot! : )

  9. Saw him one day at JFK airport new reopen TWA terminal. I was eating lunch with my sister and suddenly this old guy came look around and he pick a table. I was like oh that guy look familiar. He is so cool and down to earth he doesn’t care about anything and just wanted to blend in with everyone else. Lucky for him it’s NYC ppl don’t really care about celebrities.

  10. Is this first one that it helps to be Bill Murray? You know how much I love lists about success. Cheers.

    1. Hahahahaha! The first and unspoken rule is that ultimately everything is better when you’re Bill Murray. Cheers!

  11. Truly inspiring humanistic approach. Thank you. I thought about doing similar things in my microscale. Like I was at the concert of little known Hungarian band. I planned to develop a print and send it to them You gave my extra motivation to do it. I have question regarding your really impressive print. Can you write more about “printing map”? What paper did you use, contrast grade (split-grading?), paper developer, camera, lighting etc.

    1. Hi Maciej,

      This photo and print was made about 4-5 years ago now I think. Let me go through my notes and scour my brain and I’ll see if I can pull up any details for you. I will let you know. Thank you so much!

      -Braydon

 

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