How to do street photography in the rain?

Any type of photography outside, like street photography, makes you dependent on the elements. Depending on where you live, rain will be a part of the weather you’ll need to encounter. So, how do you keep your gear safe from the rain while doing street photography?

You can, of course, choose to stay inside while it rains. But that means depriving yourself of many photo opportunities. And, if you live in a rainy country like me, that would limit your opportunities a lot.

So going out in the rain to do street photography is a great idea.

But water and electronics don’t always match, so…

How to protect your camera from the rain

Keeping your camera and lens dry is essential. You paid good money for your favorite tool, so you want to ensure you can use it for a long time.

First, check if your camera is weather-sealed. It’s usually mentioned in the specs and should be easy to find.

But of course, that weather-sealing still shouldn’t be tested to their limits by your rainy-day street photography. So, some proper handling is still in place.

Try to keep your camera as dry as possible by keeping it under an umbrella with you or in/under your coat while you roam the streets.

You can also buy or make a camera cover or sleeve. There are plenty of (DIY) solutions to choose from.

Next to the camera, you also have the lens. Put on the lens hood to protect the front element from any drops. That’s not only to save your gear but will also keep your photos sharp and free of smudges.

While walking around, keep the lens pointed down so no rain can fall on it.

When you inevitably need to change your cards or batteries, ensure the camera is dry before you open the latches. Carrying a (small) towel in your backpack should help. This prevents any drops from getting inside the camera and causing mayhem.

Protecting yourself from the rain

Apart from the gear, you must also protect yourself from the elements. Wearing a good raincoat can already help with that. An umbrella might be handy, too, but it usually requires handling, which might interfere with your camera’s handling.

Putting on waterproof and comfortable shoes will also help you out while roaming the wet streets.

Camera settings for rainy street photography

In general, there are no specific camera settings you can use for every type of rainy photo. It’s highly dependent on what you try to show and do. So, knowing your exposure triangle is still the base.

That being said, there are some best practices, of course.

Shutter speed for rainy street photography

Shutter speed depends on whether you want to capture motion. Wet streets are excellent for ICM since the reflections often add light and color to your images.

But you’ll need a shorter shutter speed if you want to freeze that splash from a car driving through a puddle.

Aperture for rainy street photography

Again, it depends on how much of your scene you want to show and have sharp in the image. However, if it’s still pouring while you’re out, you can lean into more open apertures (f1.8, for example) since visibility will be low anyway.

It’s likely darker than usual, too, so shooting wide open can help get enough light into your sensor.

ISO for rainy street photography

ISO has become less of a creative tool since digital photography. Though often it’s said to keep your ISO as low as possible to prevent digital noise, it’s becoming less of an issue. I usually even shoot auto ISO, as it no longer matters.

Finding inspiration for rainy street photography

The same street can look very different, dry or wet. This allows you to take other photos on a rainy autumn day than on a sunny summer evening.

People are wearing umbrellas, which give different shapes to their silhouettes, pops of color to the street, and other textures to work with.

Using puddles for reflections gives you a different angle on the same scenes. You can use the puddles as a frame for your composition or to provide you with a different angle. Of course, the water can also add different textures to your photos with the ripples.

Also, the wet concrete often reflects the lights, adding more light and color to your scenes.

Now go out and take those rainy-day street photos!