I’ve largely viewed “street photography” as photography that exhibits some trace of humanity, even if a human is absent, even if it is outside an urban setting. The term is ambiguous enough to accommodate a broad range of styles, and the boundaries of its definition are somewhat porous.
As for candids, this is photography of life as it is happening, and it is often fleeting, whereas the elements of composition, lighting, angle, lines, action, positioning, expression, and such allow for one exposure and only one.
The issue of rudeness and invasiveness is undoubtedly a sticky one, and I have imposed a number of restraints on my own style. This said, I would not demand others to follow such restrictions, and it is ultimately up to the photographer to decide.
The justification behind candids need only consider the converse scenario, where humanity’s photographic record consists of only posed or ultimately consensual (even if “candid”) shots. And again, many moments cannot wait for consent, assuming one is even linguistically capable of it, should the photographing be in a foreign country, for example.
Besides, how often does a person actually encounter a camera in his or her face; having lived in several cities, I can think of far more intrusive or annoying issues that occur far more frequently. This is not to say that two wrongs make a right, but when I think of the array of photography that would effectively vanish had candid street photography been proscribed from the start, then I question how much interests I would have in photography altogether.
And yes, while living in Tokyo, twice did I see guys with cameras at chest height (as opposed to the hip), pointing and clicking away at me. Camera geek that I am is probably the only reason I noticed…and a gaijin walking around with a rangefinder might be the only reason they pointed at me. In any event, I took no offense.
(And somewhere, someone has a candid photo of me getting my first-edition of Leave Home (w/Carbona Not Glue) signed by Joey Ramone in 1987...please contact me if reading this)
Also, as an introvert, photographing a stranger who is close enough to take notice can prompt a personal sense of accomplishment, at least in terms of overcoming congenital social inhibitions. Hopefully, though, I’m quick and discreet enough to avoid detection. But in any event, as others have pointed out, it’s not some machismo endeavor to see who can out-Gilden another.
After all, the backstory of a photo can be important to the photographer, or it can make for good conversation, but ultimately, a good photo is a good photo irrespective of how it was taken or what was used to take it. With this in mind, there are numerous excellent photos of folks with their backs to the camera, because again, it’s often more than just about the human in the photo, but all of the visual components at work to create a compelling image.
