What do you do when people react badly to the fact that you took a photo of them?

What do you do or tell them to make them cool down?

I tell them that they need to relax, because I now have their soul on my little CF card, and if they don't stop yelling at me, I'll delete it.

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But seriously, I try to be a better judge of people than that... and avoid taking shots or working in circumstances where such confrontations will come up in the first place. And if you know that you're going to be deliberately provoking reactions from people you don't know in circumstances you can't control, then you really do need to have this sorted out in advance and have a rational explanation for why you're taking a shot that someone might perceive to be "of them" rather than one that happens to have them "in it." And of course, some people aren't rational, so it's a completely lost cause, even if you take care to size them up in advance.

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I take pictures of people with shotguns doing violent things to game birds. Believe me, I do think about this. I take a mental picture of the body language long before I take a picture with the camera, and there's plenty of times I just simply put the camera down until the potentially edgier or more wary subjects have seen me interact more jovially with someone else. That completely disarms people (um, so to speak!).

Three choices:

 

Apologize using short words only once, and not more times as that usually escalates into a discussion or confrontation.

 

1. walk away fast,

 

2. run away fast,

 

3. give them a $100 bill and beg for mercy. (~!~)

 

Getting into any discussion with them only makes things worse.

I move on to other subjects as quickly as possible, with as little fuss as possible.

Happens so rarely I don't need to rely on a plan. Guess I just smile and walk on...

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<p>As I mentioned in another thread - I generally just walk away.</p>

<p>However, sometimes I mumble something about "I'm a photographer," and continue shooting. Very often, the person asking doesn't even want to understand an answer, they just want to hear one - it's a dog-sniffing issue of establishing dominance, not that they're really concerned about me.</p>

<p>As Brad mentioned, I try to keep a smile on my face or at least a neutral expression.</p>

<p>Generally, once a subject reacts to my presence, I am no longer interested in the photo anyway, so no point in pursuing it.</p>

<p>But sometimes, I take the photo anyway, and too bad for them. I not the biggest guy in the world, but I'm willing, and it's pretty much down to attitude sometimes.</p>

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I never smile at them. Just stare at them then walk away (slowly). If you do this try to keep an eye out for a sneak attack. Have always gotten away with it. Remember you can knock someone out with a Leica to the jaw if need be.

maybe it's because i'm tall and scruffy and have a naturally scowly face, but i've never had

anyone react badly. most of the time on the street, when people realize that i've just

taken a photo of them, they just keep walking. sometimes they give me a wierd look like

they don't understand what's so interesting about them. sometimes they smile or laugh.

sometimes they stop and talk. if you trust your instincts - you have them for a reason -

you'll know who you can jump in front of with a camera and who you maybe should talk to

first.

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"i've never had anyone react badly"

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Give it time, you're young.

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And trust me, not that scowly.

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Just after I took his picture he dropped his pants and mooned Market Street.<div></div>

Wigwam hit the nail right on the head. In many cases, it's a control drama.

 

You have to ask yourself if this is a battle you want to "engage" in, or just walk away.

In life you sometimes have to revert to defining things as "your problem" vs "my problem".

 

Realize their reaction is their problem and not yours. Simply walk away.

 

Remember you are not impacted. And if you minimize the confrontation, you minimize their problems as well.

Hey, I thought Spike Milligan was dead ?

Depends on the circumstances.

 

Generally, avoid confrontation.

First respect their feelings even if you believe they are being irrational. Apologize as a

gentleman would. Don't get into word battles because it's a self-feeding fire. Leave.

 

Sometimes it can get quite bad, but that's the price of living in a society of individuals.

 

Last month I was working on a story about factory-worker pool-playing clubs. The games

are held in various bars in town. At one point a fellow (looked like a biker wannabe)

jumped off his bar stool and shouted "You can't be taking pictures in here like that!" and

he walked towards me with the clear intention of causing harm. I thought, "Damn. I'm

going to get beat up again." and tucked the cameras into my bag. But the whole club got

between us in an instant and the bartender threw him out. Now, that's what I call subject

rapport. :)

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Some folks just don't want to be photographed. My local biker bar always sports a couple of cars that are backed into the slots. That means that even their license plate numbers are obscured. (No tags on the front in Arizona). But the local cops automatically select those vehicles for scrutiny, so its actually a bad move. I never photograph at this place, its too close to my house.

Did anyone else notice this The person asking is a woman? This probably makes a difference since it's only guys responding (with exception of Jan who just made a cheesy comment).

 

It might just be a Male vs. Female thing like, "Hey, how dare that woman take a picture of me. I'm a white trash wife beater and how dare she take a photo of me." Where if it was a guy taking the picture (a big surly guy), it might be a different story.

In the above photo, the two women had just had some sort of negative encounter

with the guy in the middle. They both had their backs to me at the time. As they

turned to walk away I snapped this. Ck out the guy with the raised fist. Photos can be

deceiving. :-)

Bob J - I guess every photo does tell a story ... but some of them get the facts wrong. :-)

I suppose it's about developing good technique. If you are going to follow someone with a cam or stick a lens in their face...well, would you like it?

 

Like most things in life it's a question of good manners and a professional approach. A nice smile also helps.

I had some little kids hit me with small rocks and yell at me "for taking their picture" in front of a big museum which was my actual subject on the weekend of it's Grand Opening of a major entrance renovation. I caught one of the four or so kids as they ran away, but I hadn't actually seen which one(s) threw the rocks, and I couldn't see a police officer at that moment so I let him go after a minute.

Maybe I live in a different society and i am very new at photography, it is easier for me to cope with people that don't want to be photographed. I simply smile at them and tell them it is ok and most of the time have a small chat. At the end they usually allow me to take their photos. And I still have doubts whether it is ok to take photos of people without letting them know... I mean, there are copyright rules protecting the photos but what about those who are being displayed in the photos?

Once while taking photos in a small village in northern Pakistan, I sneaked a shot of a

large bearded guy walking towards me with a bullet belt and an AK47 slung over his

shoulder. Unfortunately he saw me (I am rubbish at being sneaky) and he came over and

started pushing me in the forehead with his finger and shouting in Urdu. After about a

minute of me mumbling some kind of pathetic apologies, and during which time a rather

large crown gathered, I decided to take my life in my hands and so I punched him quite

hard in his neck under his chin (my first ever punch). He staggered back a step and then

slapped me on the back, laughed and walked off. Hmm.... This was perhaps the most

stupid thing I ever did, but I guess I was just lucky to get away with it.

 

Usually I have no problems taking street photos, I think the longer you hang around in the

same place, the more people start to ignore you, but sometimes people do get a bit upset,

and I usually just kinda put my hands up, make a little pathetic smile and walk off,

although (truthfully) I feel really bad, and I need a while to regain my confidence again.