Subway Photos, Trial No. 1

Between 1938 and 1941, photographer Walker Evans rode the New York City subway with a 35mm camera hidden in his coat, the lens peeking out between buttons and a shutter release running down his sleeve. Sitting across from riders who had no idea they were being photographed, he made hundreds of candid portraits of New Yorkers lost in thought, tired, bored and unguarded.

Evans waited decades to publish them. The work finally appeared in 1966 as the book Many Are Called, with an introduction by James Agee, and it's now considered one of the landmark bodies of American street photography.

Why subway portraits work

• Everyone is there. Every age, class and background shares the same bench.
• Stillness. Riders sit for minutes at a time, which makes it ideal for portraits.
• The unposed face. In transit, people drop the expression they wear for the world.

Trial no. 1: lessons from a first attempt

1. Light is the enemy and the friend. Subway light is flat and green-tinted, so shoot raw and fix the white balance later.
2. Use a fast prime lens and a high ISO. Grain suits this kind of picture.
3. Sit, don't stand. Evans shot at eye level from a seated position, and it changes everything.
4. Be patient. The best frame usually comes after the train pulls out and everyone settles.

The ethics question

Evans' hidden camera raises questions that matter even more today. Photographing people in public is generally legal in the US. But doing it ethically means not exploiting people at vulnerable moments, deleting images when someone asks, and thinking hard before publishing photos of identifiable strangers. Many modern subway photographers shoot openly and talk with their subjects afterward.

Keep going

A first trial is just that: a start. Go back to the same line, at the same hour, until the car feels like a studio. See more of our photo essays in the Photography archive.