Taking photos of strangers

[Aggie_Ama]

I can't recall that I have myself other than some really cool performers at Fisherman's wharf. DH did take a picture of an woman walking in Red River, NM. We both felt very weird doing it but she looked like the so called "mountain people" and we were in the mountains. We just haven't shared the photo, but it did remind us of a funny night walking in the cool mountain air.

I personally can be very weirded out by strangers so I try not to be weirding anyone out. I would probably ask if I had the nerve.

[Cataboo]

I sometimes take photos of strangers - I tend to try to do it surreptitiously and in a non-creepy way.

There's times when I'd really like to take photos of a child, but I generally don't unless I'm far away & it's not obvious what I'm doing, because that's just creepy.

I took these today of some girls running on the beach near my kayak:

[Zen]

Where is that water?

[Cataboo]

Where is that water?

Chesapeake Bay - I paddled out to Thomas Point lighthouse.

Let me know if you wanna be bored by 80 photos of the front of my boat in water.

[OnTerryOh]

I ask and most people say yes. It does detract from the spontaneity of the compostion -- you get more posed and less candid outcomes, but it feels more honest.

I've always been bothered by that famous shot of the woman with the green eyes on the cover of National Geographic -- was she from Iraq? -- my thought being that she probably made nothing from that picture. I'd guess the photographer made enough to buy a house or send a kid to college.

One time I shot a father and son in a red canoe about 100 feet below me in a river. I shouted down to them for their address, and I sent them a copy of the shot. About two years later a neighbor introduced me to the father and he told me how grateful he was for the picture, that he has it hanging on the wall of his office.

Once I took my neighbor Priscilla's picture with her dog, Rudy. I hardly knew Priscilla at the time.

Just a few weeks later, on the fourth of July, Rudy got a heart attack and died from the stress of hearing all the fireworks in our neighborhood. The poor dog was indoors with his owners, but the noise was too much for him. The picture I took was the only one Priscilla had of herself with Rudy.

Last summer, the movie, "Public Enemies", starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale was shot in Chicago and other locations in the midwest. I got close-up pix of quite a few of the extras one night in downtown Chicago.

There were a dozen or so 1930's cars in the film, and I also took pictures of some of them. The owners of the cars actually drive their cars in the movie.

One of the car owners asked me to send him my photos, and because they were night shots they didn't turn out too well. So, I called him and managed to get on the movie set again during the day for a few more pictures, which I sent to him. He sent me a kind note of thanks.

"Public Enemies" will be released June 30 and it will be interesting for me to see which cars and extras I photographed will actually be visible in the movie.

By the way, I did get to see Johnny Depp, but not close enough or long enough for a picture.

[Grog]

I've always been bothered by that famous shot of the woman with the green eyes on the cover of National Geographic -- was she from Iraq? -- my thought being that she probably made nothing from that picture. I'd guess the photographer made enough to buy a house or send a kid to college.

Sharbat Gula. Afghan woman in a refugee camp in Pakistan.
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/20...irl/index-text

I am also very shy (ETA: Not shy in general but about taking people's pictures.) but I do try to avoid taking photos of people without asking. (I lost many good opportunities.)

One issue in Vancouver, pre-Winter Olympics (in early 2010) is all the attention that the Downtown Eastside gets. It's basically a place with a lot of drug addicts, some street prostitution, and a lot of people having a really hard time in life. It's the poorest postal code in Canada. And journalists are pouring there from all over the world to take pictures of the homeless. There's a good side to it (exposing a problem) but now there are women's groups educating the women who work on the street about their rights and how to turn away journalists. Just because they are prostitutes doesn't take away their right to control their image.

[OnTerryOh]

Thanks, Grog.

[badger]

When I was 28 I went on a spur-of-the moment, nothing-reserved-except-for-the-flight-trip to San Patricio Melaque and Barra de Navidad (near Manzanillo).

I wanted the total non-gringo experience so where I went, I had to rely on my pathetic Spanish. There were some stark scenes of poverty (and pure joy when children were playing) and wanted to capture those images.

Some of the more blatant ones I asked for permission (pointing at my camera and at the person) and they always said yes. If I find time I'll scan them.

[Cataboo]

Unfortunately in most poorer countries I've been to, a lot of the people have found that they can charge tourists for taking photos of them... In Peru they were dressing up in native costume with llamas, waiting for a tourist to take their photo to demand money. It just adds to the hassle factor.

I made sure never to take a photo of someone & their llama for that reason, but did take some pics of people from far away with a telephoto. We did ask a bunch of porters on the inca trail that were resting on a rock if we could take their photo - they agreed, one guy covered his face.


Or in vietnam they dress up as a cowboy or as a monkey and wait for you to take their picture to ask for money. It's awfully odd.

[redrhodie]

Once when I lived in NYC, I was walking through Washington Sq and a couple of young Japanese guys approached me and asked if they could take their picture with me. I was flattered, and let one pose with me. Later, I told my bf, and he joked that they were going to tell their friends "This is my American girlfriend!" I was dressed in a vintage outfit that day, so I guess I looked interesting.

[shootingstar]

Several months ago, I just discovered a videoclip that is on the Internet and posted by our regional transportation government dept. on cycling in Vancouver that was promoting a particular cycling route that was created a few years ago. Now it has been recently extended for extra few kms.

Within the lst 8 min. of the clip, to my surprise, it included a video clip of 3 cyclists filmed in summer of 2005... 2 of them ..were myself and my dearie on our bikes! It was an aerial shoot of us from several hundred ft. above probably from a balcony somewhere. We were merely going somewhere on that day. There was no cycling event. We were not aware of being videotaped/photographed.

I nearly freaked since neither he nor I had any knowledge of this video clip existed at all. So nearly 5 yrs. later., I discovered it.
But I now treasure this video clip. It really is a rare cycling treat for he and I have this.

[loki234]

I never had the chance to take a photo of a stranger for any reason. I just take photos with my relatives and friends. Taking photos of strangers is really a strange thing for me.