Virtual Street Photography During the COVID-19 Pandemic
The coronavirus pandemic has made impossible for street photographers to document the streets — which is why some of them are looking for alternative ways to hone their skills.
Locked inside their homes, a small group of street photographers has found a new venue to practice their craft: the virtual streets of Red Dead Redemption, Grand Theft Auto, The Last of Us, and Uncharted.
Some of them are using the PC version of Red Dead Redemption 2 to take real photographs, having fun modifying the shots with filters and effects.
The works of Craig ‘Sixstreetunder’ Whitehead, Nick ‘sleepingastronaut’ Fabian, Sean Tucker, Nico Froehlich, Ondřej Vachek, among many, have focused on the landscapes, the settings and the characters that populate the game of Rockstar Games, particularly suitable to be portrayed in a photo. The professionals worked on shadows and light effects to create unique and intense shots, not all the moments immortalized are perhaps noteworthy for the purposes of the story of the epic of Red Dead Redemption 2.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is one of the most suitable games to make the most of the potential of Photo Mode thanks to the presence of lush settings and fascinating landscapes, as well as prominent characters who stand out well in single or group photos.
The trend has swiftly shaped up into a movement on Instagram, where photographers are sharing their snaps from games with the hashtag #virtualstreetphotography.
“The movement encourages photographers to stay at home, at a time when some are still going on photo walks and trying to justify that as a form of exercise. As long as we can get stubborn photographers to stay indoors — consider it job done,” says Froehlich.
