Is street photography dead in the Western world?

[michali]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I spend half the year in developing world countries and half in Europe.

 

Each time that I return to Europe I find that it is increasingly challenging to do street photography. IMO a number of contributing factors, many mentioned here already;

 

Paranoia- terrorism related, internet related, loss of cultural identity etc.

Too many damn cars- even in places where the pace of life is slower; e.g. rural France & Greece, the number of shots that are ruined by rows of cars is countless and depressing.

 

I find it easier to work street scenes in Africa, people generally are far more relaxed & less paranoid. However there are other challenges, the chance of being mugged (if you're lucky) or even killed for your equipment is far greater in Johannesburg than say Paris.

 

I apply the same rules of engagement wherever I am, if I sense tension, a little humor goes a long way to calm things down. Sometimes I'll ask say a vendor at a market if he minds if I takes his pic and then I'll hang back for 15 or so minutes until he forgets that I'm there and then fire away.

 

I do agree that often the photographer coming from the outside sees and visualizes things very differently from the resident photographer, with some exceptions.

[Brent1965]

I've been giving this topic some thought - especially after all "the end is nigh" posts from those affected by Sec 44.

At the same time I was reading Susan Sonntags 1970's book "On Photography" - and it did make me question some aspects of street photography and the various elements of privacy - what privacy means to some.

 

Firstly - she does comment at length about our belief in our right to "take" an image of a person or a thing happening or involving a group of people. And how we as photograpers believe it's quite acceptable. We laud the fact that anything we see happening in a public place is anyones business and our right to "take" the image - but is it? The person or group involved will often know we're present and until recently they've pretended to not see us, or not feel intruded upon - despite the fact they're having a moment, or might feel embarrassed, humiliated or upset. There is the fragile balance between our 'right" to take - and their right to be taken.

 

The pendulum has swung back in recent years for many reasons - Political correctness, ill-considered privacy fears, every white adult male within 20 meters of an unescorted child being considered a potential sex offender until proven otherwise. And its up to us to behave with dignity and accept this for now.

 

Sonntag's book made me think abit about our transaction with our subjects. I "take" less now...and "make" more.

 

When I go out with the intention of taking street images now, I wear my camera obviously - my 1959 iiiG sometimes starts amusing conversations with people - all people love old cool cameras. I stop & watch scenes and wait for interesting things to happen in front of me. Sometimes I simply ask - I then hold up my silly old camera, and make a picture, I smile at them & say thankyou. The other images just happen as they do. And I feel better about the whole process as a result.

[yanidel]

I

Firstly - she does comment at length about our belief in our right to "take" an image of a person or a thing happening or involving a group of people. And how we as photograpers believe it's quite acceptable. We laud the fact that anything we see happening in a public place is anyones business and our right to "take" the image - but is it? The person or group involved will often know we're present and until recently they've pretended to not see us, or not feel intruded upon - despite the fact they're having a moment, or might feel embarrassed, humiliated or upset. There is the fragile balance between our 'right" to take - and their right to be taken.

I believe the main disconnect here between photographer and subject is that we do not shoot people for who they are (Mr. Dupont), but for their role within a composition. It's like going to the movies. "Is it Sean Connery or is it James Bond you see ?"

So to me it is not about the right to take their image, because it is not them "as a determined person" that I shoot, but a scene, feeling, moment, story. And I think most people do not understand that and why they sometimes complain about being shot as they feel that it is Mr. Dupont being portrayed.

Obviously, there are limits to that reasoning, mine is to never to breach the human dignity of my subjects without permission. Which obviously brings up to the borderline of what breaches one's dignity and what doesn't. Here only common sense can help.

[wilfredo]

I'm jumping into this discussion very late in the game. I don't think street photography is dead in the Western World, but for many of the reasons already stated, it has lost significant appeal. I myself stay open, when I least expect it, something always falls into place perfectly, not very often, but it does happen.

[Digitom]

A very interesting thread!

My opinion about, if the street photography is dead in western world - maybe, or: is going to be.

 

IMHO it is not a thing of paranoia from terrorism - the terrorism is not guilty for all the problems in the world, believe me! But nowadays the people are very sceptic if someone is going with a camera through the streets. When you take a foto from a child you are suspected to be a pedophile person, when you make a foto of a good looking lady, you are a stalker, when you make a foto of people in front of a display window, you are a product pirate and the owner is coming out shouting. When I just took a foto of a skyscraper under construction on a travel trip, some security men were coming in my direction - maybe they were thinking I am a spy...

 

When I made fotos on the christmas market last year I get some problems: the glassblower did not want that I take fotos, he declared that I have to ask 1st if I make a foto. But this is not a snapshot I think. I told him that I only wanted to make fotos of his doing, and this is because I like these traditional art, I do not want to take fotos of him as a person, I just want to show his hands - but he gets very aggessive then and I stopped conversation before the situation escalated. With that experience, I went to ohter sellers and asked before - and most of them said "yes, of course you can make potos - why are you asking? So sure that depends on the person. But every time after asking the behaviour was different, not natural. With that background, one can loose the fun making fotos of scenery.

 

I have to say that I also do not like if someone is taking a foto into my direction and I also turn sometimes my head away or cover my face because I also do not want to be photographed always. So I can understand people acting like that. One reason for that: Today you can find also many -so called- street fotos where people are in situations which are some kind of offending. And the web does not forget, as we say.

 

How to handle the problem? I do not know anyway. But it becomes more difficult every year.