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Street photography without pissing people off?

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maybe you should think about how YOU would feel if you were photographed
on the street without your permission ?

i know I don't like it ...
 
And a hilarious tip I heard about.....Wear a reflective vest. People will think your a surveyor, and take no intrest in you. This guy did it all the time.
 
If the Bruce Gilden videos can teach us anything, it is that you can get away with a lot, don't use a long lens, be quick on the draw (deliberate) and have a fast wit paired with a faster mouth. I will say that I don't think I'd be comfortable doing what he does, but his technique yields great results.

I think the single most important thing though is being quick with your shooting. You should be able to put the camera to your eye, take the picture and lower it within 2-3 seconds. Any longer and you're pushing your luck or you've probably already missed the shot. Oh, and you've gotta smile!
 
If people ever confront me about my camera, I just say "it's some old thing that I found in my dad's closet, and I'm not even sure if it works or I'm using it right". Which is technically true so I don't feel bad about lying. It really takes any edge of seriousness off the mood.
 
chrismoret said:
And a hilarious tip I heard about.....Wear a reflective vest. People will think your a surveyor, and take no intrest in you. This guy did it all the time.
Click to expand...

It actually works, I have 2 reflective jacket for my old job. One of the thing i had to do is go take photos and check out the condition of the foreclosed houses, and that including the ones in the hood. If you don't want the drug dealer next door come out and shoot ya thinking you're taking photos of him, wear a big yellow jacket. :D
 
jnanian said:
maybe you should think about how YOU would feel if you were photographed
on the street without your permission ?

i know I don't like it ...
Click to expand...

Yeah I know i don't either.
 
2F/2F said:
Maybe a homeless person would object to you taking pictures because you refer to homeless people as "bums."
Click to expand...

Bum can also be homeless, but they don't have to be. lol :smile:

Actually, for the ones that come after you for change, i thought about offer them change for a shot. But, I am so broke that I can't even afford to do that. Wait, maybe I am a bum, with a camera. Haha.
 
@jnanian - I agree, but that just goes back to the issue of "intent". I don't ask permission to do street photography (not generally, anyway) but I also am not pulling a fast one, or intending to disrespect anyone. I think this intent colours my work, as it would anyone.
 
Colin Corneau said:
@jnanian - I agree, but that just goes back to the issue of "intent". I don't ask permission to do street photography (not generally, anyway) but I also am not pulling a fast one, or intending to disrespect anyone. I think this intent colours my work, as it would anyone.
Click to expand...

In kinder, gentler Canada, people might actually pause to listen to your "intent" statement. This seems to work even in Toronto but elsewhere?
 
I'm pretty far from Trawna, dude. And I photograph in a downtown area that has, to put it diplomatically, seen better days.

The people are tough, quite a lot of them are weird and I don't claim to be able to predict anyone's reaction...you just know how to handle yourself, I guess, and that can't be taught, only gained through experience.

I'm not out to do a freak show, disrespect anyone by crafting an image of them, or torque a point-of-view. I just photograph what's there.

I'm not sure what you consider so airy-fairy about that -- as jnanian says, it's all about respect for others. I happen to think that's important. It's a statement of principles that applies to human beings everywhere.
 
jnanian said:
maybe you should think about how YOU would feel if you were photographed
on the street without your permission ?

i know I don't like it ...
Click to expand...

Funny you should bring that up. I have been.

Once I was setting up my 8x10 (a Calumet "Black Beast" - not a moniker lightly given) and I noticed a young lady of perhaps 17-18 years of age standing off at a respectful distance. She had a DSLR of some sort with a longish lens sporting one of those tulip hoods.

When she put it to her eye and pointed it at me, I suddenly realized I was getting a taste of my own medicine. I did my absolute best not to laugh at the delicious irony and thereby ruin her efforts. I figured her to be a high school student working on an assigned project, so I just continued on as if she wasn't there.

You know, John, honestly it didn't bother me one bit. More than anything else I took it to be a "My Name Is Earl" moment where karma was most definitely kicking my photographic ass. And given the number of times in the past I have been her, I figured the most appropriate thing to do was just to suck it up for the greater good and play the Crabman.

After getting a few of me setting up, and later under the darkcloth (good for her to know enough to realize that this particular visually defining moment was coming, and then wait for it), she disappeared. I made no attempt to acknowledge her, nor she I. In spite of my curiosity, I felt that to also be part of my appropriate response.

Hopefully we both walked away with some interesting photos. At least I thought mine were.

Ken
 
Last edited by a moderator:
So my question is, how do you stick a camera in someones face without them picking a fight with you?
Click to expand...

Know your equipment so well that you take less time to make the photo than it takes for them to get a complete sentence out of their mouth.
After that, just walk away. Or stay put. If they harass you, call for help. If you weren't meant to be making photos there but decided to anyway, walk out of that area (that is, if you start getting questioned about it.)

Don't think — just do. From my experience, once you think, you've lost.

Have the police on speed dial or something, just in case someone does pick a fight with you.

Also, try not to have too many things hanging off of you, just in case someone really tries to chase you home.

Always be aware of your surroundings. An obvious one would be something like "don't stand in the corner and make photos if there's a chance your subject will harass you, because then you have no chance of escape."

‘I always feel like I’m a prisoner on the run’ — HCB
 
I gathered everyone's advice and put it to use earlier today.

Bought a Petri 7S range finder with 2TMY- Preset Focus and F stop for the DOF so i know what distance of my subject will come in focus. Also Pre metered using a light meter so i can adjust according to the lights. That worked out very good, I was able to take shots of people without them knowing most of them time, as if i am just waving my camera up to my eye, shoot it and bring it back down. Even got the homeless peoples sitting around, I don't think they noticed me taking photos of him but when some of them spotted the camera I know they didn't like me around. But then I remember everyone told me, just keep walking, which I did. And to my surprised, a couple stopped me when i was walking around, they asked me what i was doing, once again someone on the thread told me to think about why I want to do street photography etc, which, I thought about it before so without stuttering i told them I just like to document the people on the street blah blah blah. We exchanged conversation and they actually wanted me to photograph them, that was a bonus. Then me and my friend kept on walking, he ran out of film so I gave him my last roll i had in my bag. After i ran out in the rangefinder I had to bust out my Yashica 230AF. And you guys were right, people do notice me a lot more carrying an SLR around. I still shot people on the street but then I will try to act like i am photographing something else and let the 'victims' walk right into the frame themselves, or, once again, just keep on walking, haha.

Developed both rolls just now, the ones from the rangefinder looks ok. Only thing i have to improve is, maybe i shouldn't do such a 'quick draw' too often, couple of them ended up blurry from camera shake. Overall I enjoyed walking around today. Half the time I was just joking with my friend how I can take photos without people noticing , and the speed. Turned out more like a game. But i guess it also helped first he was running around with a Kodak Duraflex, then a Minolta 7000. So he kinda got most of the attention, or distraction if you wanna think of it that way.

Anyways, Thank You for all those contributed to this thread, your comments are much appreciated and will continue to work on all your advice.
 
Shoot from behind.

I followed this guy for quite a while waiting for his pants to fall down. :laugh:

 
tokengirl said:
Shoot from behind.

I followed this guy for quite a while waiting for his pants to fall down. :laugh:

Click to expand...
.
I'm always amazed by street scenes from the 1960's.
Everyone always seemed to be dressed "properly", not to say that this
gentleman is dressed improperly. It always seemed that everyone was
dressed to go to church, or some special occasion. The last time I was in a
church I happened to sit behind a woman whose thong was peeping out.
Not that I'm offended by such sights. I don't like being criticized for my
opinion, so I always have to remember to allow others to express themselves.

I just woke up, maybe on the wrong side of the bed ...


Ron
.
 
Colin Corneau said:
@jnanian - I agree, but that just goes back to the issue of "intent". I don't ask permission to do street photography (not generally, anyway) but I also am not pulling a fast one, or intending to disrespect anyone. I think this intent colours my work, as it would anyone.
Click to expand...

yes ...

it is all about intent ... and respect.
too many people with cameras these days
think it is a "real photography" to take cheap-shots.

its one thing to show what the humanity of place is like, in living color,
and another thing to throw a 10$ bill at a homeless person or street-drunk
to put on a flickr page ...
 
tokengirl said:
Shoot from behind.

I followed this guy for quite a while waiting for his pants to fall down. :laugh:

Click to expand...

Shoot the behind?

This is just tooo good...

Ken
 
tokengirl said:
Shoot from behind.

I followed this guy for quite a while waiting for his pants to fall down. :laugh:

Click to expand...

Some place I have a photograph from years ago of a sign, "Tattooing in Rear"

Steve
 
hirokun said:
A waste level finder on a medium format camera works wonders. Nobody ever thinks that you're taking a picture from "down there". Just focus with the camera to the eye, then let it hang down your neck, look into the viewfinder, arrange scene/composition/subject.. and shoot. That's what I do :smile:

Norman
Click to expand...
I agree but TLRs are the best IMO, , medium format SLR s make too much noise .
 
How can I violate the personal space and privacy of street photographers without being noticed?
 
First off, don't ask -- either silently or out loud -- that is not street photography, as you lost the moment of spontinaity that Street photography is supposed to have. Use a smallish camera if possible and either a 35 or 50 mm prime lens. I use either a Contax slr with a fast Zeiss 50 prime or the Konica Hexar AF with its 35mm f2 lens. The hexar is etremely fast and quiet. I've been shooting street for years and still get the "looks" from time to time and on occasion I get confronted. But for the most part people are cool and they normaly don't notice me. If they do notice me I look past them, shoot and keep going. You have to think that you as a photographer have the right to create art and no one has the right to prevent you from doing so. And by the way, you will piss some people off just by walking down the street even if you don't have a camera.
 
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