Take a look at yourself

A popular nuisance – controlling the street photographers

By the mid-1930s the street photography ‘craze’ saw increasing numbers of photographers on Sydney’s streets – all competing for the best locations and the most promising marks.

City of a million faces

The passing of years has given many street photographs greater significance than may have been anticipated when they were taken. Behind each image lies a complex history that we can only partially discover.

Family photo reunion

Imagine visiting an exhibition and discovering a photograph of yourself and your family that you had never seen before.

Ikon Studio

During the public call out for our Street Photography exhibition an extraordinarily rare collection of street photography negatives came to light.

Matching snapshots

The names and stories behind street photographs are often lost with the passing of time, and we were unable to identify many of the people whose images are featured in the Street Photography exhibition. However, we’ve since learnt the moving story behind one image, of two curly-haired children.

Signs of the times

In the background of many street photos are glimpses of Sydney’s architecture, from still-recognisable locations to popular landmarks of the day. Many photos also show signs advertising businesses now long gone, including popular cafes like Repin’s and Sargents.

Snapped! The Ikon Studio street photographer at work

A remarkable acquisition of 5000 street snaps provides a lively and revealing record of one Sydney street in 1950 and offers a rare glimpse through the street photographer’s lens.

Take a look at yourself

What does the city of Sydney and its citizens look like today?

Tawfik Elgazzar

The street snapshot craze

Our exhibition at the Museum of Sydney explores the heyday of this once popular but now forgotten genre of photography.