Street Photography in Singapore

Little India is the most colorful part of the city, in the buildings and in the clothes. Nathan Allen shot here on early walks with a Ricoh GR II for the soft light. Start at Tekka Centre, a wet market and food centre where the stairways throw deep shadows. Buffalo Road outside sells fruit and flower garlands for temple worshippers. The painted house of Tan Teng Niah on Kerbau Road is the most photographed facade in the area. Place a passerby in front of its colors, or use the big murals near Little India MRT. Caution: take your shoes off in temples and ask before photographing people at prayer.

Chinatown mixes restored shophouses and old temples. Shuttergroove started at 7:30 am on a cloudy day and caught vendors setting up. The writer spent four hours on Temple Street and Trengganu Street, finding wall art in the back alleys. Galabada recommends watching the Chinese chess players near Maxwell on weekends and weekday afternoons, and taking Exit C from Chinatown MRT to People's Park Complex for old shops. It works at night too. Composition idea: shoot along a five-foot way so the arches repeat into the distance, then wait for one figure. Caution: the main tourist lanes get packed from late morning.

Kampong Glam is the old Malay and Muslim quarter, built around the golden dome of Sultan Mosque. Eric Kim picks Arab Street as his Singapore spot. Haji Lane next door is narrow and covered in murals, with young shoppers and cafe crowds. Come early for empty lanes and soft light on the mosque, or in the evening when the cafes fill. Use a mural as a flat, colorful background and wait for someone in plain clothes to cross it. Caution: dress modestly and avoid prayer times near the mosque. Haji Lane is also very busy with people doing photo shoots, so work around them.

The financial district gives you office workers and glass towers. Galabada notes that it is crowded on weekdays but can be almost empty on hot weekends, especially around Robinson Road. Come at lunch or around 6 pm when people pour out of the towers. Look for reflections in the glass, and for shafts of hard light between buildings. In the evening, Lau Pa Sat hawker centre and the satay stalls on the street next to it draw big crowds. Caution: some building plazas are private property, and security may ask you to stop. Just move to the public sidewalk.

Marina Bay is where the skyline lives: Marina Bay Sands and the Merlion. It is the place for evening crowds and blue hour. People jog and take selfies against the view, which gives you silhouettes against a lit city. Jamie Chance stayed a night at Marina Bay Sands to shoot the area. Shoot from low on the promenade so people cut into the skyline. The nightly light show pulls a crowd to the waterfront. Caution: it gets very hot and humid in the afternoon, and storms come fast, so check the sky before you walk out on the open promenade.

Hawker centres are where Singapore eats, and the best place to get cooks and diners in one frame. Maxwell Food Centre on the edge of Chinatown is the classic. Come at the lunch rush, about noon to 1:30 pm, for queues and full tables. Stand at the end of a row of stalls and use the long line of signs as a leading line. Or shoot a cook in steam from the side. Watch for small local habits, such as tissue packets left on tables to reserve seats. Caution: people are eating, so do not put a lens in anyone's face. Ask a stall owner before photographing their kitchen, and buy something first.

Geylang is rougher and more local than the tourist quarters. Galabada rates it one of the best areas for street photography in Singapore. The road runs about 2 km from Paya Lebar to Kallang, lined with old restaurants and fruit shops under neon. Come in the evening when the food stalls fill. After dark, use the neon signs and shop lights to shape faces. Guillemard Road and Sims Avenue run parallel and have the same mood. Caution: some of the side lanes are part of a licensed red-light area. Keep your camera away from people there.