Street Photography in Amsterdam

Dam Square is the big open square in front of the Royal Palace. It fills with tourists, locals, pigeons and street performers, and there is always something happening. Shoot in the morning when low sun comes across the square, or late afternoon for long shadows. Stand near the National Monument and look toward the palace for a clean, pale backdrop. Composition idea: a burst of pigeons with one person caught in the middle. Caution: it is a tourist hub, so pickpockets work here. Keep your bag closed and your strap on.

More than 250,000 people pass through Centraal every day. The long front plaza opens onto the city, with trams and cyclists in front and ferries behind. Go early morning for commuters and the light on the facade. Stand by the huge bike parking area to catch riders pouring in, or walk through to the free ferries on the IJ side and shoot passengers with bikes. Composition idea: a line of cyclists crossing in front of the station's red brick. Caution: the bike paths here are fast. Never stand on one.

The Jordaan is a former working-class neighborhood of narrow streets and quiet canals, now one of the most sought-after areas in the city. Come at 7 or 8 am, before the cafes open and delivery bikes start. Pick a canal bridge with a straight approach from both sides, and wait as cyclists cross in clusters. The Noordermarkt runs on Saturday mornings. Composition idea: a cyclist on the arc of a bridge, with the canal house reflections below. Caution: this is a residential area and people live on the houseboats, so do not shoot into windows.

De Wallen is the oldest part of the city, with the 14th-century Oude Kerk and a steady stream of tourists and stag parties. You can photograph the canals and the crowds. You cannot photograph the sex workers in the windows. The ban is enforced on the spot, and visitors who ignore it risk being confronted or removed from the area. Go at dusk for the red light on the canals. Composition idea: a crowd on a bridge with the neon reflected in the water, windows out of the frame. Caution: keep your lens away from windows at all times.

Albert Cuypmarkt in De Pijp is the busiest market in the Netherlands, with around 300 stalls selling fish, fabric, spices and stroopwafels. It runs Monday to Saturday, and Saturday is busiest. A 35mm at around f/4 lets you move with the crowd and keep both face and stall in focus. Stand by a stall with a lot of action and let the flow pass you. Composition idea: a vendor handing over a hot stroopwafel with the steam backlit. Caution: vendors are working, so step aside when customers need to get through.

IJ-Hallen calls itself the biggest flea market in Europe, with hundreds of stalls in and around old shipyard halls at the NDSM wharf. It runs one weekend a month, and there is an entrance fee. Check the dates on the official site before you go. Take the free ferry from behind Centraal, about 15 minutes. The industrial setting gives you raw light through big doors and graffiti backdrops. Composition idea: a buyer examining an object, framed by piles of junk. Caution: some sellers dislike photos of their goods, so ask before a close shot.

The Nine Streets are small shopping streets crossing the main canals between Singel and Prinsengracht, full of boutiques and cafes. Go on a weekday morning. By midday in summer it is packed. Stand on a bridge where a shopping street crosses a canal and shoot along the street, or turn around and use the canal as a leading line. Composition idea: a well-dressed shopper framed in a boutique window with the canal reflected in the glass. Caution: cyclists come through fast and silently, so look both ways before you step back.