Street Photography in Dallas

Deep Ellum was an industrial area of warehouses and is now full of restaurants, bars, clubs, galleries and tattoo parlors, as Mary Chong describes. Murals cover the walls and the columns of the highway underpass. The murals change often, which is part of the appeal for locals. By day, work the murals with passersby. On Friday and Saturday nights, the neon and the crowds outside music venues give you strong street scenes. Keep an eye out late at night, when it gets rowdy.

Bishop Arts, in Oak Cliff southwest of downtown, has more than 60 independent boutiques, bars, restaurants and galleries, according to Calculated Traveller. It is walkable and friendly, with murals and older brick buildings. Weekend mornings bring brunch crowds and queues outside cafes. Stand across from a cafe window or mural and wait for people to pass. The side streets are quieter and good for residential scenes, with old bungalows and porches. Evenings bring a second wave of diners and string lights on the patios.

Klyde Warren Park is a five acre deck park built over the Woodall Rodgers Freeway, linking downtown and Uptown. Food trucks line up at lunch while office workers eat on the lawn. Weekday lunchtime is busiest. Frame people on the lawn with the Arts District towers behind, or shoot the food truck queues. The park is privately managed, so check its rules for tripods and commercial shoots. On summer evenings, events and concerts draw a different crowd, and the lit towers make a strong backdrop.

Dealey Plaza is where President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, overlooked by the former Texas School Book Depository, now the Sixth Floor Museum. Visitors stand on the grassy knoll, and tour guides tell the story. It is a place of quiet reflection and constant traffic. Frame visitors looking out from the knoll toward Elm Street. Never step into the road for a photo of the X marks on Elm Street; cars do not stop. Morning light from the east falls on the knoll and the pergola.

Pioneer Plaza, downtown near the convention center, has a large bronze sculpture of longhorn cattle being driven across a hillside by cowboys. Visitors climb and pose among the steers. It is one of the most photographed spots in Dallas. Come early or late, when the light is low and warm on the bronze. Shoot from low among the cattle with the skyline behind, or catch visitors posing. The old cemetery next door adds quiet contrast, and the city hall designed by I. M. Pei is a short walk away.

The Dallas Farmers Market, southeast of downtown, has an open shed of local vendors and an indoor food hall. Weekend mornings are busiest, with shoppers and families. Frame vendors behind their produce, or people eating at the food hall tables. The surrounding neighborhood has new apartments and older warehouses. It pairs well with Deep Ellum, a short drive east. Look for vendors weighing produce and families sharing tables, and use the shed's columns to frame them.

The Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, designed by Santiago Calatrava, is a white arch bridge over the Trinity River west of downtown. Stefani Ciotti calls the skyline view with the bridge one of the most popular in Dallas and suggests shooting early or on weekdays to avoid crowds. Trinity Overlook Park nearby adds tall grass and walking paths with the skyline behind. Come at sunset and include runners and cyclists on the trails as silhouettes. For locals, it is worth returning in different seasons, when the grass and the sky change completely.

White Rock Lake is a large city lake northeast of downtown, with a trail loop used by runners and cyclists. On weekend mornings the trail is full. Sunset from the east shore puts the skyline across the water. Shoot figures on the docks or the shoreline against the sun. It is a local's place, not a tourist one, so it rewards repeat visits in different seasons. Anglers on the piers at dawn make quiet, patient subjects.