rednecks and other unfriendlies

[erin.e]

Could also mean "Shit, the marijuana patch is just behind that tractor!" and a shot from the road could encourage a like reply from the farm if they have something serious to hide!

 

A nice friendly conversation with the camera kit still in the car and a small flip folder of some of your better images maybe will get better results.

 

Don't give up, just remember that a percentage of people are going to decline but more will be prepared to give you a chance if you have an open and friendly approach.

 

If you are walking up to the 'Redneck Hillbilly with the rusty junk' and a wrong attitude it will show befoe you open your mouth.

And if you approach in a whiny, suckholing manner they will just want to kick you because you are inviting them to.

[tholte]

Stephen Lewis and Jack, you guys are correct! Ray, you must not be aware that sensitivity is a sign of true strength. Did'nt you ever read the book "Real Men Eat Quiche"? I really hate it when I have to be the educator on these forums.

[average amateur]

I only ask if it's absolutely necessary and I know that I'm being blatent. 90-95% of the time I shoot first and handle questions later. It may seem underhanded and sneaky, but if I had to ask every person and property owner their permission before shooting, I'd never get any work done. Make no mistake about it, being a "fly on the wall" and staying unnoticed is an art form within itself.

 

In the rare instances where I do get confronted, I smile, say "I'm sorry, I didn't realize, it's just a little hobby", turn and walk away.

[Alex_Es]

Look all you have to do is take a picture of the guy with the semi truck and say, "I've got your soul in this little box, nyau-haw-haw."

 

Seriously, there is a always a reason why people don't want themselves or something of theirs photograph. Erin is right: invariably they have something to hide. A lot of times it is not something sinister but simple shame. While a photographer would find a rusted 60s semi truck cab exotic the owner might find it embarrassing. A lot of times people hate it when they seem themselves as gawked at or being exploited.

 

I suspect that it wasn't easy for Walk Evans to shoot those families for Let Us Now Praise Famous Men.

[________1]

"I really hate it when I have to be the educator on these forums."

 

The rest of us aren't too crazy about it either, Tim. ;-)

[spanky]

I guess in some respects it's like shooting in a foreign country. Just a different mindset like someone posted earlier. As to Walker Evens, he had the US government backing him up. Photogs like Bill Owens (who ran adds in local papers in order to gain access into peoples houses) and Chauncy Hare both were working with various grants that gave them a sort of validity that most of don't have at least in the eyes of those subjects we wish to photograph. Thus I think it's important to above all else be a people person. If your not, then I think the deck is really stacked against you. When I approach people on the street there's a reason why. They interest me. I ask all about them, where they grew up, what they think of current events, what's on their minds these days and so fourth. I'm really interested in what they have to say. Everyone has a story to tell. Everyone knows something I don't. Finding these things about people is just as important as knowing when to click the shutter and is part of the fun I have when shooting in the streets. Furthermore, some people do not like having their picture taken. This just means you have to work at winning their trust more.

[vivek iyer]

"Did'nt you ever read the book "Real Men Eat Quiche"?"

 

I have read a book titled, "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche".

[________1]

"I suspect that it wasn't easy for Walk Evans to shoot those families for Let Us Now Praise Famous Men."

 

I suspect he paid the subjects. Evans was a sophisticated person who knew how to bend the world to his own ends. If the image is important enough, if ones intentions are clear, a method for getting the shot will present its self. If, on the other hand, we're just mooching around the obstacles will seem insurmountable.

 

Nice to see you Matt, I hope you'll be posting some of your recent China pics?

[phyrpowr]

Ditto Alex and Jack Lo, this goes way back beyond 9/11, and it's not just "rednecks" or country people. Most cities are just amalgams of insular villages

 

You take my picture and I have no say in what's done with it: an "Ugly People" thread on w/nw, an illustration of "what a yuppie oppressor" looks like, hell, I don't know a dozen things that cast me in an unfavorable light, and if the shot is "editorial" rather than "commercial", I don't have much right to redress, short of an expensive lawsuit against somebody who's broker than me

 

That rusted out truck could have ended up in the local paper with the caption "daring investigative reporter finds source of pollution/eyesores everywhere/unlicensed jukyards", and don't say it hasn't happened before, or won't again, and that guy knew it

 

I'm a shooter of just about anything that catches my eye, looking for forms and patterns more than "editorial content", for my own enjoyment, and don't like it when I'm viewed with suspicion, but I can understand the position.

 

Best I can do is try to explain, but it often falls on deaf ears. I test lenses for sharpness and contrast on shots of a local water tower, and you'd be surprised at the number of intelligent appearing people who ask what I'm doing then don't really seem to buy the explanation, and this dates back to the early 1990s. If floks can't understand a simple technical explanation, how in the world are they going to handle "I think the lines and colors (of the rusted truck) look very interesting": it's just a piece of junk!

 

Well, that was explanatory as hell, but no real help. Good luck, bubba!

[Alex_Es]

That should be <i>Walker</i> Evans. It was late. Evans was with a federally funded

project, which no doubt helped.

 

The problem does go back a long time. I recall how on my Trans-Siberian trip on the

<i>Rossiya</i> Russians would complain to me about foreign tourists photographing

traditional log cabins in the small towns where we stopped. The tourists found them

quaint; the Russians were ashamed of them.

 

That said, unfortunately 9/11 has made a bad situation worse--I mean it's not just a few

people worried about us taking their souls away and putting them in little black or sliver

boxes. Now it is official paranoia that sees a potential terrorist behind perfectly innocent

photographers. It also has given undue license to less than enlightened cops--especially

in less than enlighted areas of the country--to harrass people. Any cop who bothers a

pedestrian over a T-shirt ought to be fired.

[stephen hazelton]

Another way to look at this issue: Start reversing roles and asking what if?

 

I live in a house, and most of what I own is IN the house, not outside. So if someone wants to take pictures of my junk, he's got to come in my house. So suppose the doorbell rings, there's Bubba with his camera, saying "Can I step in your bedroom and take a few shots of the pile of junk in the corner?" What would I say? What would you say?

 

Suppose every few days you step outside and here comes another carload of, say, Russians, all aiming their cameras at you and pointing and clicking. What would your attitude be? (And this pretty much explains why some of the pueblos of NM are closed to outsiders, I believe).

 

Suppose you're in an office in downtown high-rise building, and some ol' hick with overalls comes plodding down through the cubicles, looking you over. What's your reaction? "This guy obviously doesn't belong here, something is up!"

 

Anyway, as suggestions to the photography: My guess is that it helps if you are older, it helps if you are local. Explaining why you want to take the photo first might help, instead of just asking if you can (and ask about what model, is he a truck driver, how many miles did it make, etc). I figure on the cowboy boot issue, I'm not gonna fit in no matter what I wear, so sneakers & jeans are as good as anything. Class consciousness may play a part, so if you're driving a Mercedes, you might get less cooperation than me in my Escort, don't know. I suppose some people, if they thought you were going to make money off a photo of their place, would say no just to spite you.

 

On some Boy Scout trips in Arkansas, I've found people were not necessarily unfriendly, but rather, leary. After being around them a bit, they were both friendly and helpful, but not in the first 30 seconds.

[john falkenstine]

That happens when you don't wear those cowboy boots... :)

[davidv1]

People don't appreciate being mocked. There was a photo book out a year or so ago called "Passing Gas" or similar. The photographer looked up all the towns in the US with funny names, and then drove there and took portraits of the locals. The portraits weren't very good, and his commentary was typical city slicker condescension. I can't imagine that many of those folks would be happy with the way they were portrayed. Even if you live in Dogpatch, it's still your home town.

[mike_scott2]

This sort of a reaction to my camera existed long before 9/11. Either you can find a way to produce the images you would like to or you can't.

 

...and getting hung up on the current administration just looks like ax grinding from where I sit.

[jeff_drew4]

I have run into many types of people over the years. Some love to be photographed; some hate to be; and others will allow it for a price. There are many that fall somewhere in between each of those 3 categories. Just because a creative thought strikes when you are out using your camera does not necessarily translate into cooperation or interest to others! Let the sour ones go and move on! There are lots of people & rusty trucks elsewhere.

[will_woodford1]

I want to get a bright yellow t-shirt that says, in big black bold letters "OFFICIAL

PHOTOGRAPHER" and see if anybody cares that I'm taking pictures.

[average amateur]

I wouldn't recommend the "official photographer" shirt unless you're really into candids. It's been my experience that if people think you're an "official" photographer for an event, they'll become unbearably obtrusive to YOU, constantly asking for you to take their picture and mugging for the camera every chance you get. This is especially true for small town festivals, if they think you're working for the local paper.

 

I'm the type of photographer that likes to get my shots and get out. If I strike up a few friendly conversations in the process, then ok, but I don't necessarily want to spend my precious hours chatting it up with Billy Bob because he thinks he'll make the front page.

[j.w.]

Matt, back to your original post. You may be aware, having been nurtured (or, perhaps "reared") in Arkansas, that many of these rural communities with close-knit relationships and a strong sense of self-reliance are a bit shy of outsiders, whom they may regard as truly foreign.

 

A colleage of mine was participating in a sporting event in Arkansas, several years ago. He specifically commented about the perceived lack of openess to outsiders by the locals.

 

It goes to show that often, cultural differences are perceived to be bigger than nationalistic differences. In this case, a non-Arkansan may be seen to be just as foreign as someone from Mongolia.

 

Sometimes such differences have to just be accepted. In other situations, you may have to make a concerted effort to form a meaningful relationship of trust with a local, in order to secure the priveledge to photograph.

 

Probably referring to them as "rednecks" doesn't help foster that relationship of trust.

[citizen.stuart]

Thanks EVERYBODY. I really enjoyed reading this one. Amazing, the different takes on what's what. One thing's for sure, you walk around long enough with a camera sooner or later you're going to be a target.

When I was in my twenties, I think I had a lot more guts, but by my mid-thirties I just got to the point that I felt like it wasn't worth it. Now I'm older still and I don't let it bother me. There is a lot of good (some of it very funny) advise above. I too carry a little portfolio around with me, and I try to keep it friendly no matter how much of an arse someone might seem. I always find it amusing how some people presume they're interesting enough for me to take a picture of them.

[lee_shively]

A good attitude goes a long way. If somebody tells you they don't want their picture taken, it's only someone declining to be photographed. It's not a social commentary on the state of the nation or a reflection of someone being a stereotypical "redneck". People all over the world decline to be photographed every day. Just thank them and look for other subjects.

 

But you also have to remember we live in a world that has 24-hour news channels, Jerry Skinner and reality TV. Everything is sensationalized by the media. Many average, otherwise naturally friendly people don't trust the media anymore and someone with a camera looks like "the media". If they ask, "What for?" you should have a good reason.

[andrew_wells1]

Can't remember where I read this, but one suggestion was to carry an official-looking document saying, "This person has my permission to take pictures here", with an illegible signature. Apparently even just saying "here", rather than naming a particular locality, can work!

 

Andrew

[keith__richard_terry]

I live in the south east of the UK, about 60 miles east of London. I find this a very interesting forum as there is an ongoing debate in the UK magazine 'Amateur Photographer' about the very same subject.

Every week there is correspondence from someone who has been out with a camera and has been accused by police/irate parents/security guards of being a potential terrorist/paedophile/industrial spy etc. I was somewhat dismayed to learn that the problem is very similar in the USA.

The Mayor of London's office actually considered posting notices in public parks warning parents to be on their guard against anyone with a camera. There was a recent incident where police where dispatched to interrogate a guy spotted on CCTV taking shots (for his own collection) of Canary Wharf Tower.

On a personal note, I have never been challenged while taking photos in a public place - YET ! Last summer when I spent a few hours shooting black and white in the city of Canterbury, no one seemed to be taking any notice of me. Possibly, because Canterbury is visited by so many tourists (pilgrims) a camera is considered to part of the everyday scene.

I don't really know what the answer to the problem is, every situation is different. Here in the UK the police are usually OK if you are polite, don't get annoyed with them for asking questions, and explain exactly why you are taking photos.

Incidentally, we don't have rednecks in the UK, we have chavs.