Avoiding Tourist-type shots of famous landmarks

[RobM]

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I don't know how famous the Forth Bridge near Edinburgh is, but there are hundreds of tourists taking shots of it almost every day, more in the (non-Covid) summer. Well, my wife and I just recently bought a house near the bridge - I can see it out of a few windows - and I set myself the task of avoiding tourist-like shots of the bridge. Here it is in a more normal guise, followed by a few (for me, if no one else) more interesting shots. Maybe I'll just give in and become a tourist!

M9 Monochrom with 7Artisans 50mm 1.1 lens.

 

 

 

 

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[FrozenInTime]

... admit it #2,3 and 4 were taken after a good night in the Hawes Inn 😉

The last one is great - looks like a miniature model in your front room.

I envy your location - you are all set for some great night and early morning shots when the fog rolls in.

Donald.

Edited October 18, 2020 by FrozenInTime

[Einst_Stein]

This is indeed a very annoying topic. I feel the same frustration every time I went to Yosemite. The worst is not like the common tourist.

The best complement I get is  "Wow, excellent, it's like Ansel Adam". 

[Herr Barnack]

In a place like Yosemite, I would make the "standard" or record shot - and then I would do something different.  I have never been to Yosemite, but I have a hard time believing that a place of such magnificent beauty is incapable of offering the discerning eye an almost endless buffet of image making opportunities.

As Ernst Haas once said, "There is only you and your camera. The limitations in your photography are in yourself, for what we see is what we are."

Edited October 18, 2020 by Herr Barnack

[Einst_Stein]

4 minutes ago, Herr Barnack said:

In a place like Yosemite, I would make the "standard" or record shot - and then I would do something different.  I have never been to Yosemite, but I have a hard time believing that a place of such magnificent beauty is incapable of offering the discerning eye an almost endless buffet of image making opportunities.

As Ernst Haas once said, "There is only you and your camera. The limitations in your photography are in yourself, for what we see is what we are."

It is surely capable of creating creative shots. It just takes more thoughts. The tourist intuitive photo reaction can be "master-like".  

Want till you've been there.

Edited October 18, 2020 by Einst_Stein

[mmradman]

35 minutes ago, Einst_Stein said:

This is indeed a very annoying topic. I feel the same frustration every time I went to Yosemite. The worst is not like the common tourist.

The best complement I get is  "Wow, excellent, it's like Ansel Adam". 

Ever since past Master Photographers have taken seminal photos of the Earth Landmarks we are all tourists. What would be the purpose of any new photograph of a well photographed landmark?  Record of being there, recording event or some noticeable/notable change, expressing inner mood or emotional state, perhaps just blowing cobwebs from the camera shutter.

In the times of restricted travel and socialising during Covid-19 it may be less likely to aim camera at different places or events, reason more to  give "everyday" special treatment.  Many years ago i saw in an exhibition, i think, Swiss photographer's work who shot series of pictures of the same "ordinary" scene weekly and also daily over a period of one year, it was actually very interesting to look at as a record of ever present cyclic change.

Edited October 18, 2020 by mmradman

[pippy]

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1 hour ago, FrozenInTime said:

... admit it #2,3 and 4 were taken after a good night in the Hawes Inn 😉...

And what a splendid watering hole it is! Clearly RLS thought so, too....

Congrats on the fabulous New Address, Rob!

Philip.

Edited October 18, 2020 by pippy

[Einst_Stein]

14 minutes ago, mmradman said:

Ever since past Master Photographers have taken seminal photos of the Earth Landmarks we are all tourists. What would be the purpose of any new photograph of a well photographed landmark?  Record of being there, recording event or some noticeable/notable change, expressing inner mood or emotional state, perhaps just blowing cobwebs from the camera shutter.

In the times of restricted travel and socialising during Covid-19 it may be less likely to aim camera at different places or events, reason more to  give "everyday" special treatment.  Many years ago i saw in an exhibition, i think, Swiss photographer's work who shot series of pictures of the same "ordinary" scene weekly and also daily over a period of one year, it was actually very interesting to look at as a record of ever present cyclic change.

Of course, one way to get away from that frustration it to accept the way it is. That is, to record "See! I've been there!". 

If it is not easily avoidable, be happy to be "Like Ansel Adam".

[adan]

This is one of the reasons I try to avoid making pictures of "things" - "people" as a subject are much more variable and unlikely to have been caught in the exact same configuration ever before. They are always new and different and stochastic from moment to moment.

And why I try to make/take pictures that are "about" the subject, rather than "of" the subject.

No offense to the architectural and engineering genius of the FoF Bridge. But I can't think of any reason I would want to photograph such a hunk of iron. Except as an incidental backdrop to people "doing something" far more interesting......

Who needs yet another picture of the Arc de Triomphe/Étoile? But.........

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[FrozenInTime]

5 hours ago, adan said:

This is one of the reasons I try to avoid making pictures of "things" - "people" as a subject are much more variable and unlikely to have been caught in the exact same configuration ever before. They are always new and different and stochastic from moment to moment.

And why I try to make/take pictures that are "about" the subject, rather than "of" the subject.

No offense to the architectural and engineering genius of the FoF Bridge. But I can't think of any reason I would want to photograph such a hunk of iron. Except as an incidental backdrop to people "doing something" far more interesting......

Who needs yet another picture of the Arc de Triomphe/Étoile? But.........

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Martin Parr is one who specifically photographed the global tourism culture by focusing on the tourists rather than where they were.

The French seem to think of their mass of iron, specifically it’s lights , as art and the company will attack posting of images  - I wonder how abstract you need to go to keep clear of legalities. The above photo also likely falls fowl of Droit d’image - so best to photograph only overseas  tourists.

[Ken Abrahams]

I like to capture the iconic locations where possible and then present my rendition to the multitudes. I think most of the "likes" received for these type of images are because of its Iconic status but if your did your best and added something original then kudos to you. I like the glimpse of the bridge from your perspective RobM.    

Forget the common variety "tourist perspective" capture it like a alien from Mars might see it.  

[RobM]

Well, I made the original post before going to bed last night, and am gratified to see so many responses this morning. 

I did laugh at the thought of having a few drinks at the Hawes Inn before taking a few shots 😂 Sadly they have got rid of the RLS room, through lack of interest. For those not in the know, Robert Louis Stevenson set part of his novel, Kidnapped, in the Hawes Inn. 

As for the bridge not being interesting enough as a subject, I completely disagree! It's a stunning construction to take in, but it is what it is. I can see the value of Martin Parr-like images of the tourists, wedding parties, etc, but I never or hardly ever take images of people. I just never feel comfortable doing so. 

I'm not complaining, of course, as it's a great place to live, and there are lots of good walks to be had along the coast and inland. I'm interested in how my usual voice or style will cope, though, with such an iconic view. I'm enjoying a fresh challenge to my photography. 

 

[2slo]

The best shots I got of the bridge were from a boat ride on the 'Maid of the Firth' which departs from the pier next to the bridge and lets you get some good angles from underneath.

[RobM]

Yes, I've done that before, and will do so again...when the weather is better.

[andybarton]

Here's my 2p's worth.

Part of being a tourist who takes photographs (which is probably 95% of people these days) is to bring back souvenirs of the places visited. Often, that will be the one and only time that they visit a certain World Heritage Site or tourist hot-spot. Of course they/we are going to take a "tourist" shot, because at the end of the day that's all that's on offer to them/us.

We have been to plenty of places in our lives, most of them "obvious" tourist places. When in a city for a long weekend, you pretty much have to go with the flow and take what you can and there are 101 other pressures on your time, beit lunch/dinner/theatre/museums or whatever. The weather might be bad, the place might be crowded - who knows? If you are into taking photographs of gnarled old folk leaning on their sticks chewing the cud with their friends, then you might be able to take shots of them, rather than the church or waterfall, or whatever, but not everyone wants to or can do that. And that kind of shot could be taken anywhere, from the Outer Hebrides to Greece to Peru - the people are the same.

As an example, we were lucky when we went to Tromso to see the Northern Lights - we actually saw them and had an incredible night on the snow watching them develop above us. Millions of people go looking for them and never see them. But I have two "touristy" photographs on my wall to remind me of a great few days and lots of people don't.

You can go to Venice or Rome and it's almost impossible to take a photograph that hasn't been taken before. So what? If you are wanting to take "non-tourist" photographs, you have to spend so much more time than the average holiday allows, especially in places like Edinburgh, or anywhere in the UK, where the weather changes frequently and cannot be relied upon.

Only by investing time NOT taking photographs, waiting, will you have any chance of capturing something that is "different".

But, let's face it, the world has been photographed to death. There really is nothing new, any more.

And, frankly, I don't care.

[RobM]

I'd like to clear up one possible misapprehension: I have nothing against tourist shots. They can be great reminders of emotional times in one's life, and I have many of them. The difference I am discussing is when you live next to a tourist hot spot, and have a preference for more personal, even experimental photography. One can either ignore the Big Thing that everyone else is photographing, or try to bring it into your own aesthetic, which can sometimes be a real challenge. Anyway, I'm looking forward to playing with that challenge over the coming weeks, months and years.

[pgk]

If I'm visiting somewhere I try not to research existing images of it. So when I'm taking photographs once I am there I am not being led into taking images similar to ones taken before. Inevitably I do, which probably tells us something about how many photographers approach the same subject matter. But what does it matter? The view from Capel Curig across Llynau Mymbyr towards Snondon has been taken millions of times from almost the same spots by photographers great and unknown. Its ever changing with light, clouds and weather endlessly shifting and despite this is still a fabulous view worthy of photograph.

There are always new subjects to photograph. This includes scenes, and is one of the attractions of photography.

[andybarton]

8 minutes ago, pgk said:

Capel Curig across Llynnau Mymbyr towards Snowdon has been taken millions of times from almost the same spots by photographers great and unknown

Hand up  

[FrozenInTime]

3 hours ago, andybarton said:

Here's my 2p's worth.

Part of being a tourist who takes photographs (which is probably 95% of people these days) is to bring back souvenirs of the places visited. Often, that will be the one and only time that they visit a certain World Heritage Site or tourist hot-spot. Of course they/we are going to take a "tourist" shot, because at the end of the day that's all that's on offer to them/us.

We have been to plenty of places in our lives, most of them "obvious" tourist places. When in a city for a long weekend, you pretty much have to go with the flow and take what you can and there are 101 other pressures on your time, beit lunch/dinner/theatre/museums or whatever. The weather might be bad, the place might be crowded - who knows? If you are into taking photographs of gnarled old folk leaning on their sticks chewing the cud with their friends, then you might be able to take shots of them, rather than the church or waterfall, or whatever, but not everyone wants to or can do that. And that kind of shot could be taken anywhere, from the Outer Hebrides to Greece to Peru - the people are the same.

As an example, we were lucky when we went to Tromso to see the Northern Lights - we actually saw them and had an incredible night on the snow watching them develop above us. Millions of people go looking for them and never see them. But I have two "touristy" photographs on my wall to remind me of a great few days and lots of people don't.

You can go to Venice or Rome and it's almost impossible to take a photograph that hasn't been taken before. So what? If you are wanting to take "non-tourist" photographs, you have to spend so much more time than the average holiday allows, especially in places like Edinburgh, or anywhere in the UK, where the weather changes frequently and cannot be relied upon.

Only by investing time NOT taking photographs, waiting, will you have any chance of capturing something that is "different".

But, let's face it, the world has been photographed to death. There really is nothing new, any more.

And, frankly, I don't care.

By sheer coincidence, I went for a walk yesterday afternoon through the Dalmeny estate and along the front to South Queensferry.

I think I was lucky with the timing; not sure I managed avoid all the cliches, but at least the last three are moments in time that I will remember.

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I think what Rob is seeking is commendable - timeless abstraction

 

Edited October 19, 2020 by FrozenInTime

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[RobM]

Well, (almost) neighbour, those are fine shots indeed. I like how the sheep are all staring at you 🙂