Toivo Tenno is a street photographer residing in Tartu, who wanders around with open mind and open eyes. He is also a member of the board of the NGO Estonian Street Photography and helps to run things on behalf of Tartu.

We talked with Toivo about getting into street photography and about its nature. We discussed about taking photos in Tartu, his own work and little bit about the camera gear.

How did you find street photography for yourself?

Oh, it could have been some 4-5 years ago in the winter, when a good friend, who at that time was interested in street photography, gave me this crazy idea, that we had to drive from Tartu to Võru right at that night, at around 11 pm, to buy a Canon camera from hand to hand at the Statoil gas station there.

So, I got my first camera kind of late. Although yes, I was surrounded by loved ones who had been working with a camera for many years before that. When I already had a camera and my friend added me to the street photo group, the time came when my first photo also found its way into that group. And as most of those who have joined, know, the day will come when someone will submit the first comment under your photo, which sounds something like this: “Why do you think this photo is street photography?”. This comment was submitted by Airi Leon. Not knowing who Airi is and what the point of the question is, a bright flash went through my mind. What´s the matter? Who dares to doubt it? Can’t you see that “Daddy is back in business”.

Be that as it may, but after a couple of hours of messenger chat, I became interested in who Airi is and what street photography is all about. Later there was a day, when street photo walk was happening in Tartu. There it turned out that Airi is very nice person and street photography enthusiasts are generally extremely nice people, and I would like to be one of them. Since then, I started exploring this topic and discovering this world on my own. And now here I am.

What does street photography mean to you?

The question seems simple at first glance, but it is oh so difficult to answer. What does street photography mean to me? It is said that a photographer is like a hunter who stalks his prey with a camera. I think I am a storyteller, who goes here and there collecting new stories and then tells them. And these fairy tales are about life itself.

You have interesting observations and pictures with socially critical content or messages again and again. How do they come about, are they random observations or is it a definite theme for you?

Thank you for noticing. I myself have not thought that in my case that it may seem that i am such a “whining old man”, but if so, then so be it. I believe I would be lying if I said it was a coincidence. There is certainly some randomness here and there, but to a small extent.

After all, the subconscious is the one that guides and then you start to notice things that attracts your senses. People are different and their perception of the world is different. This is great! It would be boring if everyone liked cats and orchids. And you would only take photos of that. A photographer should be free and bold in what he captures.

Someone has said something like this, that: “90 percent of my photos are pure shit, but it’s great to take pictures”. This also applies to me.

If you go into the street, what is that thing, that you are hoping to find? How do you approach it usually?

This going out into the street is not quite like I step over the threshold and start clicking. It´s different every time. The most important thing here is time. None of us wants the other party to squeeze time to communicate or be with us. It’s the same with going out on the street. The street also needs 100% of your attention. You have to be there.

I don’t set high expectations and hopes when I walk out the door. It has happened that yes, I think in advance about what to do and how to do it, but the street has its own realities. I try to be open-minded and keep my eyes open. I don’t avoid the places I’ve already visited, but I try to discover new perspectives there. It’s nice to let your surroundings speak to you.

What inspires you the most in photography?

Good question. I think that again and again I am forced to pick up the camera by the barely predictable connection between reality and playfulness. I photograph real things, but the final photo can be an unrealistic ideal landscape.

It is like the delicious aroma of a perfume in the room. We can feel it, but we never know who left it here or who was in this room.

Do you have any favourite spots, where you like to take photos?

Not directly. And at this moment in time, figuratively speaking, I like streets, where there is one house, bench, tree, dog and a person.

I guess it’s because I’m not good at getting a good shot in crowded places. I thoroughly enjoy those photographers who know how to find their shots there. I can’t.

However, I have my dream location. It would be a “disappearing world”. With a place where grandmoms, with bright scarves on their heads, sit on milking benches by the white currant bushes. And they would be wearing sweatpants with patched knees, picking juicy berries into an old containers.

Tartu is a city of good thoughts, is it also a city of good pictures? How does it feel, does everything seem common to you or do you find new interesting shots around the corner?

Tartu is a city of good thoughts. See, you noticed as well. Let’s be honest, every city has its charms. So does Tartu. I have once said that Tartu is boring, but I should bite my tongue. This is not the case at all.

Tartu is a very versatile and developing city. At the same time, there is much more here that plastic mass and Lidl have not reached. I still find something new even in places I’ve been to before. I believe that the charm of this city is also that everything is close by and there is no question of walking from one side of the city to the other.

But can you find new and interesting shots of our city? Well, look at mine, can you find it?

What gear do you usually use when you shoot on the street? How important is it to you?

Let’s make one thing clear right away, the camera makes the photo, but what will it be, that happens between two ears of the photographer.

Now I have to eat my words, unfortunately I’m not clean of a sin and I’m still being attacked by the evil. Yes, I know and I agree that the technical base is not the most important thing, but it still attracts me to try different cameras.

I’ve had a Pentax K3 and a Fujifilm XF10. I liked Pentax for its ergonomics, but I didn’t become friends with it. I really liked the Fujifilm, but at the same time, I have relatively large hands, so it was not comfortable to handle it. Now my “everyday pocket camera” is the Ricoh GR and I really like it. I also have Canon 5D mark 3 and some film cameras. The latter for experimenting with analog photography.

I’m happy with my technical base, but I’d also like to try out some of the newer hybrid cameras just for the thrill of it. It is not expected that this will bring a qualitative jump to my creation, rather it is a matter of a technical interest.

Should the image still be in color or black and white?

The image should attract the viewer’s attention, whether it is in color or black and white, it doesn’t matter.

Do you have any good advice, how to become better street photographer?

Practice, i.e. constantly walking on the street with a camera, is definitely a driving force. Also following what other street photographers are doing.

Can you please describe how did you make one of your photos?

This photo was taken during last year’s street photo walk on the theme of ”holiday sparkle”. The walk was already over, but my friend and I decided to take one more tour on our own.

While walking along the banks of the Emajõgi towards the Delta Centre, I noticed that someone’s careful hand had picked up the floor lamps and put them in a row by the window. It was strongly reminiscent of beautiful ballerinas on a stage, and that’s how “Swan Lake” was born on the banks of the Emajõgi River.

This kind of photo and situation is to my taste. Someone might say that this is not really a street photography. That the necessary factor – a person – is missing. I’m not going to argue. For me, street photography does not contain the definite presence of a person. It is enough that I perceive that the person has existed.

You can explore more of Toivo´s work in Instagram @manlikehuman.