street photography + harassment...

Clearly, you are left with no other option.

You must immediately purchase a Fuji X-Pro-1 (with all the lenses).

...thus equipped, you may immediately dispatch any image that your subject finds offensive.
 
Araakii said:
If it was really a candid, the subject shouldn't have noticed that his/her photo has been taken. If he/she somehow knows, then that means you are flashing your camera in front of the person and it's not a candid anymore.
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That is not always true. If you are close to the subject, they may become aware after they hear the shutter noise, so you can get a true candid. At other times, they may look your way as you are lowering the camera and guess you had already shot a photo.
 
raytoei@gmail.com said:
somewhat related question: would the the reaction have been different if a TLR been used openly instead of a small format camera ?
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Anything that could be construed as "stealth photography" scares me. When I photograph someone, they know it for sure. I always feel more confident knowing no one will ever discover I was trying to photograph them without them knowing it.
 
Was it a situation like this ? :)

5534222457_32cfd6a0c8_z.jpg
 
well

well

I think the "hip shot" where your subject sees you shooting from the hip, probably trying to be sneaky (?) can cause unpredictable reactions from strangers.

Subjects may be:

a) drug dealers
b) wanted for felonies
c) paranoid
d) owe money/in big debt
e) owe alimony
f) a secret agent
g) undercover agent
h) in the witness protection plan
i) mobster
j) yakuza
k) mossad
l) MI-5

etc. Just because you got off this time, doesn't mean the next time you won't get your butt pounded into the ground, not that it would necessarily be a kind thing to have happen... just sayin'


MVCG said:
So I was out on Sunday with my M6 and 24 Elmarit and noticed a character dressed in some interesting clothes so decided to take a hip shot as he was crossing the street. I mostly shoot "hyperfocal" so didnt need to adjust a thing with this lens.

We crossed paths shortly after and were on opposite sides of the street. We were both coincidentally waiting (me for my fiance and him for the bus) although he kept on looking at me with an intense stare. Shortly after he decided to cross the street over to me whilst I was on the phone and stood in front of me somewhat aggressively. I was concerned so cut short my call. He asked me to stop taking pictures of him and to delete the shots I had taken (1). I admitted to him that I had indeed taken a picture of him as I was crossing the street as I thought his outfit was interesting but I couldn't delete the picture as it was not a digital camera. He became rather aggressive (although "sort of" polite) saying that this was rude and that I should have asked him, to which I said, "ideally, you are right, however, had I of asked you, would you have said yes?", I told him I was a street photographer who liked to capture people in their natural environment and I would be happy to send him a print of his picture. He didn't respond but was very dismissive at this point and started crossing the street although kept looking at me for quite a while until his bus came...

My question is to all you savvy street shooters, what should our stance be???? On the one hand, I know I am legally allowed to take pictures of anything I like on the street but how do you handle these situations??? This really puts me off street shooting and has tainted my confidence...
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ampguy said:
I think the "hip shot" where your subject sees you shooting from the hip, probably trying to be sneaky (?) can cause unpredictable reactions from strangers.

Subjects may be:

a) drug dealers
b) wanted for felonies
c) paranoid
d) owe money/in big debt
e) owe alimony
f) a secret agent
g) undercover agent
h) in the witness protection plan
i) mobster
j) yakuza
k) mossad
l) MI-5

etc. Just because you got off this time, doesn't mean the next time you won't get your butt pounded into the ground, not that it would necessarily be a kind thing to have happen... just sayin'
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..

You left out "m) Neighborhood Watch Volunteer"...though "c) paranoid" covers it, I suppose.
 
ampguy said:
I think the "hip shot" where your subject sees you shooting from the hip, probably trying to be sneaky (?) can cause unpredictable reactions from strangers.

Subjects may be:

a) drug dealers
b) wanted for felonies
c) paranoid
d) owe money/in big debt
e) owe alimony
f) a secret agent
g) undercover agent
h) in the witness protection plan
i) mobster
j) yakuza
k) mossad
l) MI-5

etc. Just because you got off this time, doesn't mean the next time you won't get your butt pounded into the ground, not that it would necessarily be a kind thing to have happen... just sayin'
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Now that would be interesting.....surely that just makes it more exciting!! Don't put him off...
 
1. Smile.
2. Explain I'm just out enjoying taking some shots of the place (less so people).
3. Smile.
4. Walk away (smiling)

I try to avoid the awkward fleeting glances after a shot. I generally move on so I dont spent time with someone who knows I photographed them unless there is already an 'understanding.' I have never been pursued either.

I find using an extremely non-threatening body posture helps enormously, but the golden rule is to avoid eye contact if you see those searching eyes coming. If people cannot make eye contact they are forced to make a closer approach or a louder verbal challenge to get your attention (they don't know your name remember), which is a far greater escalation than a quick, quiet question once they get eye contact. I find it important to avoid the first question and, if you cannot, to disarm them with niceness then bolt. Its amazing how a few questions back and forth can head south quickly, which could have been avoided entirely if you'd left quickly, smiling.

These principles hold true almost anywhere. I'm busy shooting street photos in Kabul and quite a few times I have had to thrust out my hand smiling and shake the hand of a young man who is clearly a bit 'upset'. Its not unusual to see someone looking quite angry one minute and then having a lovely chat later on. Anger is normally the product of suspicion and that is the fear of some sort of nefarious activity. Make that fear go away and your problem is usually gone too.
 
I was photographing a busy street market, about 40~50 people in frame, all going about their shopping. A joker, one of the vendors, about 60 feet away yelled out "don't take my picture". I grinned and said 'no no, don't flatter yourself, at this distance your face will be an insignificant speck on the negative.' He turned back to attending his stall.

Actually, the camera was a Kodak Tourist, 6X9 negative, 105mm lens. So it turned out that his face was in fact, recognizable.
 
MVCG said:
We live in a world where trust and civil decency are seemingly harder and harder to come by. . .
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I completely agree. It used to be considered impolite to stare at people on the street because they were unusual; now people think it's just fine to shoot photos of them, too, and then they wonder why their subjects object. Decency is, indeed, dead.

It's sad to live in a world where people's treatment of others is defined as proper if merely "within the law", without considering others' feelings at all.
 
I was outside a bookstore that had a table offering rescue greyhounds. As I was walking in I snapped a shot of the dogs. 5 minutes later a lady walked up and asked if I shot of picture of her and her kid. I said no, just testing the camera. Then she explained the kid was autistic, and that it was against some "rule" for her to allow photographs. I told her not to worry, my wife works with autism, and such. After a few minutes it was clear she was just trying to do her job, as a caregiver, she was not the parent. Anyway, sometimes subterfuge and discussion isn't a bad thing. And another point, if you see a crazy looking guy, or a cop, or a hells angel, do you Really want to take that picture and risk trouble?
 
mdarnton said:
It's sad to live in a world where people's treatment of others is defined as proper if merely "within the law", without considering others' feelings at all.
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A few RFF members and I go out an photograph at times. There will be situations where we say "That was a great photograph" without taking it... and the concensus as to why we didn't take it is because we don't want to make the person feel like ****. Someone rummaging through garbage for food comes to mind as a typical scenario.
 
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