Location, location, location
Google recently unveiled Street View for both Porto and Lisbon. Privacy concerns apart (I actually believe Street View fits nicely in a discussion of photographers’ rights, in which my personal view is that public spaces are precisely that - public), I think Street View might actually be quite an interesting tool for scouting locations for indie films. Of course, it’s insane to go shoot somewhere without checking it out for yourself first, but SV does allow me to see if there are interesting streets worth a visit in person, besides being very useful in checking out details that might have been missed.
I take pride in trying to know as many places here in Porto as I can, but a certain shyness of taking the camera to the streets prevents me from being less conservative in the street locations I choose for my short films. I always try to be aware of lighting conditions, parking, and the residents’ nosiness towards people with video cameras (to prevent the type of situation which really ruins my day, such as having an actor giving a great performance while some old bastard across the street decides to stop and stare at the camera). Shame that Street View can’t help you with that.
