We were able to catch up with the very talented street photographer, Newbery Rosario, from West New York NJ for a interview. He talks about what kind of equipment he uses, people who have influence him, and his post-process methods.
Newbery Rosario
IG: @newbery.nyc
E: newbery@photoninjanyc.com
Q: What kind of gear do you use?
A: Most of the time I shoot with my Nikon D600 along with a 50mm lens for everyday shooting. I’ll use a 35mm for many portraits, a 24mm for many of my wide shots and an 80-200mm for many zoomed shots. If and when I shoot flash photography, I use a Nikon SB-700. I keep Hoya UV filters on my lenses just to soothe some of the harsh UV light. If I’m shooting in a studio I usually keep a Oben Tripod on me. Super light and durable and I keep my equipment in an Oakley kitchen sink backpack. It isn’t your traditional camera bag but it stores most of my equipment and it’s built like a tank.
Q: Which is your favorite lens and why?
A: I rarely take off my 50mm f/1.8. It’s excellent in low light, super fast and excellent for most of my shooting.
Q: When you go on one of your city travels what will you take with you?
A: When doing urban exploration, I’ll bring my D600 with my 50mm for most of the shooting and my 24mm when I need go get a wider angle like landscapes and bridges. A phone charger, an extra camera battery and cleaning material for my lenses incase of any accidents. You have to take most of your basic equipment everywhere, you never want to miss out on any shot. It’s one thing not to what own a certain piece of equipment, it’s another to own it and not have it on you.
Q: What is your nationality? Where were you born? Where in the world would you love to shoot?
A: I’m Dominican, born in Washington Heights and raised between there and West New York, NJ. I believe there is no better place to shoot than New York City but I would love to see Greece or Amsterdam through my camera.
Q: In the field, what are you settings?
A: I mostly shoot in shutter priority mode (Nikon) while shooting throughout the city with a shutter speed varying from 1/50th to 1/800th depending on the time of day and how harsh the light is. My ISO from 100 to 1600, Aperture from f/16 to f/1.8 again, depending on the day’s lighting. I’ll keep my manual focusing from getting rusty from time to time but I usually keep it in auto along with an exposure compensation of about -2/-3. All my shooting is done Raw. I shoot Raw.
Q: What kind of tools do you use for post processing?
A: Most of my processing is done in Adobe Lightroom. I try to nail it as close as possible so there’s minimal processing involved. When processing, I usually adjust my white balance a bit, play with a little contrast and clarity for detail. Portraits may require a little more detailed editing compared to street photography. You want to keep the imperfections of the streets alive. I refuse to crop too much from a full frame sensor.
Q: How do you educate yourself to take better photographs?
A: First I try to surround myself with other photographers who I respect and challenge me to get the next “banger” the next shot that’s going to make your eyes stare. It is competition in a motivational way. I know they’re constantly creating in their minds, sizing up the next shot so it pushes me. I also try to read many books of famous photographers, trying new techniques and new ideas from them. Photography is an art, creativity is key but no idea is original, you feed off of older ideas and techniques.
Q: Among you works, which one is your favorite?
A: It has to be shooting France. It’s one of the most architecturally beautiful countries in Europe. The culture and people are beautiful. The buildings have been scarred by history and the history is amazing.
Q: Whose work has influenced you most?
A: I don’t think I can pin it to just one photographer. I started seeing my father at work first then started seeing works from Bruce Gilden in the streets, Jill Freedman, Jamel Shabazz all the way to Zack Arias. You start as a blank canvas and you pick a little bit from everyone before you. Then you sort of create your own style.
Q: What is one thing you wish you knew when you started?
A: My father made a decent living as a photographer so it’s been around me since I can remember. I guess I just asked questions as I went as a kid. I put the camera down for years while I was occupied with high school so I guess I wish I ‘d never put the camera down.
Q: Any advice for beginners such as to what camera or lens to start with?
A: Learn the way light works. You can have the best camera on earth, but if you don’t understand light, you’ll have one expensive paperweight. But seriously, start off with any entry-level dslr. Flip your screen so that you can’t see you shot preview and shoot like they with film. Keep a notepad and pencil or even on your phone and take 36 photos jotting your settings after every shot. This will get you to understand shooting in manual mode. You don’t need the most expensive equipment out there. Like I said before, photography is an art, there is no right and wrong way to create art but you need to understand how it works so you can create mistakes on purpose.
great interview with insight.
Many Blessings. It’s good to see people progress and succeed in life!!!