The Existential Guide To Street Photography

In partnership with
Charlie Kwai is living proof that you don’t need to be obsessed with craft or top of the range equipment to take great photos. For the Londoner, it’s simply about being curious – and getting really, really close.

“Why are you taking my picture?’’ demands a surly, middle-aged woman after street photographer Charlie Kwai puts a camera up in her face and hits click. “I had to”, he replies, full of mischievous charm. “Your face brightened up the morning.”

It’s fair to say that when it comes to taking photos, Charlie’s approach is direct – almost confrontational. With the Londoner’s work, there’s no lurking, no furtive captures: if he sees a picture, he jumps straight in there and shoots it.

While you might think such a method would result in a bunch of disgruntled subjects, it doesn’t. Using this honest, straightforward modus operandi, the results are overwhelmingly positive. The pictures speak for themselves, encapsulating the dynamic relationship between the subject, the photographer and the city that surrounds them both.

Charlie – who is East London born and bred – is self-taught, so has avoided many of the pitfalls that can often come with a formal education. He’s not obsessed with notions of craft and cares little about equipment, nor is he interested in developments in photographic technology. Likewise, when he shoots, he’s unburdened by the weight of photography’s short, intense history.

“I explored myself through the way I engage with people and how I photograph them, so my approach was just an inevitability,” he explains. “And that’s always evolving because what I create is just a reflection of my personality.”

“I’m fascinated by the choices people make, and that’s what I photograph. And I want to make work that influences people’s behaviour, and opinions.” Charlie Kwai

The way Charlie works is driven by an instinctive curiosity. When he started taking pictures, he remembers, there was a long period of time in which he made every mistake in the book. After countless days spent hitting the street, dedicating at least five hours a day to shooting (on occasions, covering up to 30 km in a single session) he discovered, a setup that suited.

Frame after frame, scene after scene, his process has been stripped back. Now he simply walks, watches and shoots. This is photography as a physical practice, art as existential dance. And it works.

Look at the Londoner’s images and you’ll be met with the tight, saturated street portraits that have become his trademark. He’s so close to his subjects that you can practically feel their breath. Charlie is living proof that good street photography isn’t about a fancy camera or equipment; it’s about an honesty, attitude and commitment.

At the root of it all, though, is the fact that he is genuinely curious about people. He is fascinated by their choices, their habits – and hungry to explore their way of being in the world. There’s an exploration at the heart of his practice. He breathes the same air as his subjects. Amazing pictures emerge from this process as surely as night follows day.

“Photography lets me engage with everyone, and understand them better.” Charlie Kwai

“I’m fascinated by the choices people make, and that’s what I photograph. And I want to make work that influences people’s behaviour and opinions. So photography is perfect, because I get to explore both,” Charlie adds.

“I think these intrigues stem from growing up in a massively diverse area. It’s all I’ve ever known. Photography lets me engage with everyone, and understand them better.”

Thank you to Charlie Kwai, who's insatiable appetite for street-level stories made the film possible.

This story was originally published in 2019.

Read more stories from This Is Off The Wall, an editorial partnership from Huck and Vans.

Enjoyed this article? Follow Huck on X and Instagram.

Latest on Huck

Red shop frontage with "Open Out" branding and appointment-only signage.
Activism

Meet the trans-led hairdressers providing London with gender-affirming trims

Open Out — Since being founded in 2011, the Hoxton salon has become a crucial space the city’s LGBTQ+ community. Hannah Bentley caught up with co-founder Greygory Vass to hear about its growth, breaking down barbering binaries, and the recent Supreme Court ruling.

Written by: Hannah Bentley

Cyclists racing past Palestinian flag, yellow barriers, and spectators.
Sport

Gazan amputees secure Para-Cycling World Championships qualification

Gaza Sunbirds — Alaa al-Dali and Mohamed Asfour earned Palestine’s first-ever top-20 finish at the Para-Cycling World Cup in Belgium over the weekend.

Written by: Isaac Muk

Crowded festival site with tents, stalls and an illuminated red double-decker bus. Groups of people, including children, milling about on the muddy ground.
© Alan Tash Lodge
Music

New documentary revisits the radical history of UK free rave culture

Free Party: A Folk History — Directed by Aaron Trinder, it features first-hand stories from key crews including DiY, Spiral Tribe, Bedlam and Circus Warp, with public streaming available from May 30.

Written by: Isaac Muk

Weathered wooden building with a tall spire, person on horseback in foreground.
Culture

Rahim Fortune’s dreamlike vision of the Black American South

Reflections — In the Texas native’s debut solo show, he weaves familial history and documentary photography to challenge the region’s visual tropes.

Written by: Miss Rosen

A collage depicting a giant flup for mankind, with an image of the Earth surrounded by planets and people in sci-fi costumes.
Culture

Why Katy Perry’s space flight was one giant flop for mankind

Galactic girlbossing — In a widely-panned, 11-minute trip to the edge of the earth’s atmosphere, the ‘Women’s World’ singer joined an all-female space crew in an expensive vanity advert for Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin. Newsletter columnist Emma Garland explains its apocalypse indicating signs.

Written by: Emma Garland

Three orange book covers with the title "Foreign Fruit" against a dark background.
Culture

Katie Goh: “I want people to engage with the politics of oranges”

Foreign Fruit — In her new book, the Edinburgh-based writer traces her personal history through the citrus fruit’s global spread, from a village in China to Californian groves. Angela Hui caught up with her to find out more.

Written by: Katie Goh

Huck is supported by our readers, subscribers and Club Huck members. It is also made possible by sponsorship from:

Accessibility Settings

Text

Applies the Open Dyslexic font, designed to improve readability for individuals with dyslexia.

Applies a more readable font throughout the website, improving readability.

Underlines links throughout the website, making them easier to distinguish.

Adjusts the font size for improved readability.

Visuals

Reduces animations and disables autoplaying videos across the website, reducing distractions and improving focus.

Reduces the colour saturation throughout the website to create a more soothing visual experience.

Increases the contrast of elements on the website, making text and interface elements easier to distinguish.