The biter bit: someone takes a picture of you on the street

[Marc-A.]

As a lot of members here, I make some street shots of people without asking permission to photograph them. I often wonder how I would react if I caught someone taking a picture of me on the street.
I think I would react badly; and the guy had better give me a good reason for taking my picture without asking my permission.

How would you react?

 

[M. Valdemar]

I would expose my wiener.

Actually, sometimes someone does take my photo without asking. Since I always carry a camera, I quickly take it out and shoot a picture of THEM.

That is usually disconcerting to them and they stop.

 

[niblue]

I'm not very photogenic so it's not likely to happen, however if it did it wouldn't bother me as long as the photographer wasn't being intrusive.

I take candid photographs however I try to ensure that my subjects don't see me taking the shots.

 

[MickH]

I hate...HATE having my photograph taken. Well, perhaps that's not quite true. I dislike seeing photographs of myself, I can just about stomach the wedding photo's, but I avoid birthday/Christmas get-together/holiday photo's like the plague. I always have. There are so many photographs of me crying and trying to hide from dad's camera when I was but a little 'un that it's beyond a joke. Do any other photog's feel the same way?

If I was snapped in the street I'd just hope that I never saw the final print.

 

[ClaremontPhoto]

I would not not be at all threatened or uncomfortable.

Kids around me with mobile phone cameras are forever clicking. Then deleting.

 

[Marc-A.]

I'm not very photogenic so it's not likely to happen

lol 😀

When I say I would react badly, I'm excessive. It would depend on the circumstances.AFAIR, once I've been photographed by a reporter while I was taking part in a demonstration, and I was fine with that.

 

[MRohlfing]

Happened two me twice:

First time when I was running around in Switzerland with a Tiroler hat, second time I was on my bicycle with big touring luggage after a heavy rain. I must have looked curious both times.

I just smiled and felt flattered. 😀

Michael

 

[ernstk]

I'm somewhat confused by the implied double standard in the question. If it's OK for you to do it then it's OK for them to do it.

Are you really saying that you do it as part of your street photography but you'd get annoyed if someone photographed you? Really?

Ernst

 

[Bingley]

I don't think I would care. And, what goes around, comes around, so I really shouldn't object anyway.

 

[Marc-A.]

Kids around me with mobile phone cameras are forever clicking. Then deleting.

Jon, precisely I hate that. I suspect some people took my picture with their mobile phone; it happened twice (in England, in the train and in the subway) but I had no evidence so I didn't say anything, but inwardly I was mad at them.
Maybe I shouldn't pay attention and react like you do. But you're a wise man , and I'm not 😱

 

[chikne]

I really really don't like christmas/birthday/holidays, basically those pictures where you have to put a plastic smile on, doesn't mean I don't do it, sometimes it's gotta be done.
It's even worse when the person taking the shot has a digital camera since they can go back and look at their snap straight away, usually it doesn't work the first 10 times so it takes about half an hour....

Someone took a street photograph of me once, couldn't care less =)

 

[chikne]

I'm somewhat confused by the implied double standard in the question. If it's OK for you to do it then it's OK for them to do it.

Are you really saying that you do it as part of your street photography but you'd get annoyed if someone photographed you? Really?

Ernst

I find it too to be a strange behaviour, I'm with you on that one 😉

 

[kully]

Before I got into this whole photo thing, I was walking in Oxford with my girlfriend when some oriental lady did a quick snap of us and then ran off.

I remember being rather... I don't know... confused is probably the right word.

I always remember that, and try to either pretend I was taking a photo of the thing next to someone or give a gormless smile (with some drool and my tongue sticking out).


In conclusion - I hate people taking my photo - fecking perverts 🙂

 

[kully]

Ach! I almost forgot, the week before Christmas this year there were some schoolkids filming me (well videoing me) from the top-deck of a bus as I walked, badly hungover and with a bad back to the shop one morning.

I laughed and waved, I knew why they were doing it.

 

[FPjohn]

I document State Street over time with a M and a coll. Summicron. Several years ago a professional photog passed on the other side of the street. A few moments later the soft swish of a Canon recorded me as an anachronistic part of the State Street scene.

No problem.

yours
Frank

 

[le vrai rdu]

As a lot of members here, I make some street shots of people without asking permission to photograph them. I often wonder how I would react if I caught someone taking a picture of me on the street.
I think I would react badly; and the guy had better give me a good reason for taking my picture without asking my permission.

How would you react?

I absolutely do no care 🙂 If I am holding my camera it means that I also agree to be photographied. If i am not holding it I am in the same situation as the people I use to shoot so why worrying ? I have never seen a candid shoot that would ashame the one pictured.

 

[Kim Coxon]

The worst one for me is taking a boat through the locks at Stratford-on-Avon. Stratford is always full of tourists and you can be sure that you will have about 20 cameras pointed at you. S, I let Linda drive the boat and I operate the locks. 😀

Kim

 

[kully]

Ach! One more.

I was in London in the first week of December and saw this bloke with a big telephoto on an SLR taking photos of people sitting in the window of a coffee shop (from maybe 4ft from the window). He wasn't paparazzi (it was a film Pentax) but I could see the girls in the window moving to avoid him and him being slightly embarrased and shifty looking and moving as well to get better photos.

OK, he may have had a reason, but to me - that was some distasteful ****.

 

[Marc-A.]

I'm somewhat confused by the implied double standard in the question. If it's OK for you to do it then it's OK for them to do it.

Are you really saying that you do it as part of your street photography but you'd get annoyed if someone photographed you? Really?

Ernst

Ernst, you got me 😱
The reason why I ask for this is that some photographers around here are annoyed that people react badly when they snap them. So I wonder if they would react the same way if they caught someone snapping them.
If they would, then they shouldn't feel annoyed that people don't like being photographed / If they would not then ...etc.
Now my personal case: I am not annoyed at all when people don't want to be photographed on the street, and I'm very careful when I shoot on the street. But the fact is that I do shoot strangers without asking for permission. So I feel bad but I can't help shooting when I see a good picture waiting for me ... am I a bad person?
Double standard! You're right. The sad truth is that we often apply double standard to moral issue.
Ah I should have put this thread in the philosophy forum 😀

 

[MickH]

The worst one for me is taking a boat through the locks at Stratford-on-Avon. Kim

Get yourself an ugly GRP cabin cruiser like my Dawncraft and you will find that people point their cameras in another direction.😀