the most often asked question i get when mentoring an emerging photographer is, "how can i get closer to people?" ..they tell me how shy they are when it comes to putting a camera up to their eye to photograph a stranger on the street or in a bar or social gathering…
several times in my travels i have suffered from "room lockdown" ….unable to leave my hotel room, watching CNN, ordering room service, and fearful of going out on the street to learn the local "ballet" of street shooting…eventually i just must GO, but it is not always easy….and so it is with many students i have in my workshops…
the "art" of photographing complete strangers close up and personal who started their day not thinking they were going to be a photo subject, is indeed a skill to be learned and perfected….some photographers have a natural flair for this, but most find this an often unbearable challenge….
i once spent an entire week in Chile with a fisherman and his family….i met the fisherman by chance, as i do with most of my photo subjects…. he was on a beach early one morning and was fixing his nets…..i asked if i could take one picture….he agreed…this led to more pictures and me finally asking if it was possible to actually go out in the boat with him and fish…one thing led to another, and hours and hours and hours of fishing in bad light went by and i spent most of my time helping him haul in his nets…two days of this…..then meet the wife and kids for a family "gift picture"…..and then and then…but, what do you think this fisherman would have said if i had asked him upon our first meeting on the beach, "excuse me sir, do you mind if i spend an entire week with you and your family ??"
it is all in the approach… the handshake … the "body language" and voice….and the most important thing of all…eye contact….the "language" of eye contact is universal, international and cross cultural….your intent is most often mirrored in your eyes…..this is when you are "judged" by a complete stranger…..
for those of you who want photograph people in an intimate way, what do you do? how do you overcome your "shyness"? how do you make the photographs you want and yet leave everyone feeling good about the whole experience??
David I’ve been a fan of yours since you came to speak at temple university about 3 years ago and really inspired me to pick up my camera and get out there. You probably don’t remember but I asked you for some book recommendations and because of your talk and those books I’ve been in love with photography since. I’ve been lurking on your blog from the start but this is my first time posting.
to the matter at hand:
eye contact and a smile seem to do the trick. I usually have a smile on my face when I’m shooting and people seem to appreciate it. Also being totally aware of your surroundings helps. The second you get in the way is the second people become irritated your shooting.
AARON…
i do remember recommending some books for you…i am so pleased this has led to your continued work…so you are one of those “lurkers” !!! i am pleased to have you here, invisible or out here in the open..
keep smiling!!!
cheers, david
David,
You’re wicked! This is definitely something that I deal with. I have a very hard time photographing complete strangers, in a way I feel like I am violating someone’s privacy or that they will think I am trying to sell them something or superimpose their picture on something pornographic. The current general paranoia doesn’t quite help. Example: I went down to the Jersey shore last Sunday in the hopes of overcoming that fear. I told myself that I would approach someone and ask, can I take your picture? I would do a whole series of photographs on people that said yes. I really couldn’t do it. I felt that I needed to break the ice somehow, establish some type of “contact” before I can ask that question.
I felt like I needed some type of subtle permission.
So I decided what I would do is sit on a bench and let the picture come to me. It often happens if I sit around or walk around with an expensive looking camera around my neck people approach me and ask me questions. This is usually followed by some rapport and then I ask to take their picture. They always say yes.
This time at the shore, I was approach by a dog. This massive great dane approached me, shortly followed by his owner, a petite, wavy haired blonde woman, who assured me of the dogs good intentions. I struck up a great conversation with her and eventually got to take a couple of pictures. Unfortunately, I couldn’t really get the picture that I wanted since the dog kept on moving as well the the owner trying to control him. That is another talent. Getting the picture that you want, as opposed to something nervously hurried.
Thanks for bringing this up. Wicked. I always wondered if introducing yourself as a National Geographic photographer made it easier for people to allow you to take their picture.
-Sherman
SHERMAN…
very good question….simple answer….most of the people i photograph, as in the fishermen i mentioned, have never heard of National Geographic or cannot relate, as in my “boyz in the hood” for hip hop…
only a small percentage of the time, in my work, does the National Geographic name help…and even then, only for quick recognition…if you are going to really “get in there”, the NG will only get you so far and sometimes even hurts because nobody ever realizes how much work you are going to have to do…it all ends up being very personal…
i do often take NG copies to show and now, of course, i have my books to give…but, this is usually only good for high level officials for getting certain kinds of permissions or press passes etc etc, but out in the street, where things are moving instinctive and fast, you have nothing but YOU…
david
I’m an introverted photographer, and I think it comes through in my work. Not that I’ve suffered much as a result, but I would like to broaden my abilities as far as engaging people. There can be so many different approaches, but say for nightlife photography, it’s almost better to leave the camera in the bag, make friends and throw back drinks with people, then introduce the camera.
I’ve had girls who are completely drawn to the camera like a magnet, and others who get that look like “who’s the creep with the camera and what’s he doing with it in the bar?” The stigma of “will this end up on the internet” is a new drawback to deal with.
I’ve been working on a club project that could greatly benefit from a series of portraits of the kids, but for some reason (and this is my problem) I just haven’t broken through on that level. They are aware that I’m working on a project and are receptive to it, but I can’t get personal with them to a certain degree yet. It’s odd—I feel as awkward among high schoolers as I did in high school myself. You really just have to ask, but try to get shots that don’t look to effected by the camera.
For people to be photographed by you involves an act of trust on their part. Most people just don’t get the whole photography thing and think you just want some inane snapshot and become confused when you keep taking pictures of something they don’t think is remarkable (themselves, their home, etc.).
But once they get a sense of what you are doing, they can become your collaborators–not that they are posing for you but that they trust you enough just to be themselves and do their thing (whatever it happens to be) while you photograph.
It’s all a process. You introduce yourself, you hang out, you snap a few pictures (you have to act like a photographer). Everybody becomes more comfortable. They get used to you and the fact of the camera.
If you are genuinely interested in other people, they will respond. You can’t fake that kind of sincerity.
It’s also about being a good guest. Most of the world’s cultures put a premium on hospitality. I can’t tell you how much food and alcohol I have consumed in my photographic pursuits. Your subjects respond to you as a person first and a photographer second. If you are good company, they’ll want to stay in your company. And as the hours go by, you develop a real relationship–and photography is about relationships.
David,
Everytime I go out to shoot I feel like it is almost an immpossible undertaking. As if the very act is a futile endevour. After about 3-4 hours of wandering and waiting, things start to happen. After a day or two of shooting, I look back in amazement, everytime, at the people I’ve met and our brief relationships. I think to myself, if I never got up and did it, even for mere hours at a time, I would not have a wealth of new material (yes good and bad material, new material nevertheless). It is always hard, but very rewarding.
I guess that great feeling of “doing”, is what keeps me going. The dance between subject and recorder keeps me wanting more.
IMHO I believe empathy is your passport into the lives of others. For me it’s very important to never feel as if I am exploiting a situation or people/persons. Hopefully my emotional barometer in this matter is calibrated sufficiently. If your intentions come through in your movements, body language, eyes of course, people pick up on it. Great question David!
Chris
David,
well, it’s true that the question “how can i get closer to people?” goes in my mind everytime i go out to travel.
Well, and there is one question in my mind also if i see someone on the street which catch my attention. “Do i want to know more about this person? Or do i want just to make some pictures from the person? and What good does it make to the person? Would my pictures able to help him?”
I always asked my self those question and sometimes i choosed not to take a picture at all. I met a transsexual in my city in a karaoke contest and she was a good person who like to laugh and she was also open to other people. And we arranged an appointment that i go to her 2-rooms house just to visit her as friend.
But soon as i got there, it was not so welcome for me because the people there see me as outsider. And even though i brought a camera with me, i couldn’t take a picture because they seems for me not ready to be photographed. So i choosed not to take picture. From the dialogues with my friend, and the neighbours, other transsexuals i began to understand what their problem is. And i still haven’t made any photograph from them. The problem was Personal ID card. My idea was to make pass photos for them for free. And I don’t know how, but i’m sure that those picture has made it easier for them so that they didn’t have to pay for any photo, soon some of them started to open their house for me and accept me. I still working on my project about those transsexuals right now and still continuing to visit them as friend.
Sometimes i thought also that the camera is a barrier to get closer to people. I saw some photographers with one or two or more cameras hanging in front his/her chest with the heavy long lenses. Sure their face seems so proud. But soon as they want to get closer to people, they can’t. And they have to walk away from them to take pictures with those long lenses.
regards,
suryo
I just came from a place where people are very tired of pictures, where people think that you want to trick them and get a benefit from their images. A place where it is very difficult to take pictures of strangers at the street. But I came back with lots and lots of pictures of people that accepted very friendly and happy to be in my pictures. Why? because I gave them that eye contact first with my big smile, because I offered them a honest heart, because I sat down with them and treated them as equals. Because I explained them that it was just my way to share my soul with them…. So the first main thing is to achieve their trust on you. It is like a deal: you give them your esteem, they will give you theirs.
But, regarding to this point, there is a question I often do to myself. Even if they agree to be in the picture, should we always ask for a signed paper to allow the publishing?? I never do that as it makes me feel kind of awkward….
A big smile!
Ana
generally I wait until the moment when it becomes impossible for me not to photograph a certain situation when there’s people involved. the moment when the thought of making a possibly good picture wins it over the shyness; when you think about the result and forget about yourself. then I start taking pictures from a safe distance to eventually come closer and closer. most of the time people don’t really mind anyway, but sometimes they do and then you have to explain yourself… I prefer not to communicate, though I sometimes find myself saying ‘sorry’ after shooting someone. how strange is that ?
the first workshop i ever did, the first assignment was to go out and take formal and environmental portraits of 6 different people – no kids, no old people and no tourists! that was one of the hardest days i’ve ever had photographically. i didn’t do very well, but got good feedback from the instructor.
sometimes you get lucky though, one of the people i photographed that tough first day took a liking to me for some reason. she spoke no english and i spoke no italian – she dragged me to the nearby tourist office and asked the people there to translate for her.
it turned out she was inviting me to photograph a group of scouts that she was chaperoning on a trip. i went to the campsite the next day and got some decent shots. why did we make a connection? i still have no idea – i just try to remember that experience every time i’m out shooting and get nervous about approaching people.
Think of the number of times you’ve been walking out on the trail or sitting at a bar or in a coffee house, book store, what have you…and you find yourself in a conversation with a complete stranger. It happened rather naturally and pleasantly, right. It’s relatively easy to do.
I just try to take that natural way of communicating with others now when I have my camera. They’re often interested to see if I am a “professional” photographer. What kind of photography I do. Most of the time when I express an interest in what they are doing they are more than happy to allow me to photograph them. If it goes smoothly we get together again…and again!
By the way, I learned much in the way of this approach from DAH himself at a workshop over a year ago. I’m not the most outgoing of individuals, not an extrovert (though, I’m also not what you would call shy!) But just having that new and different outlook genuinely helped. Just wanted to say, for me at least…it works!
Thanks David.
I hate having my picture taken, loath it partly it’s because I don’t want reminding that I’m not that handsome 16 year old anymore but mostly because I feel uncomfortable being scrutinised and focused on that much.
It’s important for me to remember that most people don’t mind. I try to make the experience fun. I’m currently taking pictures of pheasant shooting and I love hanging out with a load of old country folk drinking whiskey for breakfast and talking bollocks. I guess most of them don’t really understand what I’m up to but don’t mind me as I have an almost bottomless hipflask full of expensive booze.
David what do you do if someone looks amazing or is important to your story but is camera shy?
H
I’ve found that, although I have the same problem as everyone else (and it is truly encouraging to read that even you, David, after years or work still have the occasional “room lockdown” day…) when I can approach my going photographic “expedition” with a light heart, almost a playful attitude, everything goes much better. For some reason dancing comes to mind: you can be stiff and stomp on everyone’s toes and people will get upset, or you can gracefully (if not elegantly) move through the “floor” and people will either not pay attention or smile at you.
One aspect that helps me achieve that is to be focused on the situation at hand rather than inwardly centered on how I’m feeling: when I am able to look at the place in am going to shoot in, and feel it, thoroughly, deeply, becoming a part of it, attentive and responsive to how people move and shift, how they relate to each other (do they look in one another’s eye when crossing paths, or just look in front of their feet), how “things” move and drift and change (the natural flow of the place), and get in tune with them, I inevitably am able to get better photos and have a much more enjoyable experience.
Thanks for the question, David! It is a very central one and it is very much about relation with the subjects on more dimensions that just the shooting-in-public one…
Giancarlo
I think the most difficult is always firsth step… to go and start to talk with people… later is easier and easier…
and smile is very usefull :-)
This was precisely my goal in my first workshop with David. I wanted to increase my comfort or at least find techniques to help me take photographs of people that were something other than removed and pure documentary/street photographs. David of course is a master at this however I was surprised to learn several things from him… that new situations/places can overwhelm even someone of David’s caliber and experience. When David told me about sequestering himself in a hotel room putting off the obvious, that helped me understand that I am not alone in these kinds of feelings. I learned that just as David says, you start small and people open up at their pace… some never do but many do.
Bill Allard said at the Charlottesville LOOK Festival that he explains to people why he wants to take their photograph and why that its important to him. David and Bill both come to their work with honesty and respect. That respect means so much and opens doors along with just being friendly.
I have been working on a project photographing HIV/AIDS patients. When starting, I made it clear why it was important and what I hoped to do… bring a face to the numbers behind AIDS in my community and do so with respect. Due to the stigma still attached to HIV/AIDS, I have been surprised how people have responded by allowing me to photograph them and show their face. But it is because they knew I was sincere and respectful.
It can still be painful to insert myself into new situations that I must do to capture something important but I have learned that it will not kill me and many times I have ended up making new friends in the process. Often I find that if I get a couple of “gift” or posed shots out the way, then people will end up loosening up and that is when the better opportunities open up.
Thanks for the gentle prodding along the way David!
A very rich subject that very few don’t take at hearts, even to explain why they don’t shoot people up close.
I apologize to the ladies here, the whole thing my be different for them, but for me, I find in that discipline of people portraits/approach, it’s very much like boy meets girl stuff. Every example cited here can be transposed towards how best flirt, introduce yourself to have a chance at taking it further. And the inhibtions and shyness match too. Often the saying is right on: you hesitate, you lose!
David, indeed, what girl is not going to run away, at least think you are a creep, if you come up straight to her and say you are going to marry her or you are going to make love to her?
Some guy have that contact thing, that inner innate confidence that does wonders with gaining the subject’s sympathy. But if you like people, even someone like me who started shy, can practice and improve your approach. Age maturity along with playfulness/childlikeness does help a lot for the more introverted amongts us.
It’s not automatic for most of us, and enjoying the “journey” beyond trying to “get it” is paramount. People sense you are not just hitting on them for a selfish gain. Though some are good at agressive candids (Klein?) and anyone will lie just to get that shot, we are predators still, just not eating flesh!
David, a question for you. Let’s say you are out with pupils, some/one of us maybe, and you see him/her failing to engage someone. Do yopu think you have in your experience “arsena” the know how to succed where we have failed?
Great discussion. It is so much at the core of who we are, deeply inside, our contradictions, our inner selves. I think it takes 40 years to take a shot sometimes (and miss it therefore), not just aim and 1/125th.
Sorry:
arsena= “arsenal”
Gratitude..genuine and complex gratitude for the ability to follow my heart and desire/need to enter into this relationship with individuals. It is really a strange thing to expect that anyone would want to participate in my relentless drive to put the world as I see it into these little squares, but they do.
And for this I am filled with gratitude and I try to always shoot from, and approach from, that place.
I am just in the door from a spare hour of shooting, wandering..and there were 2 separate individuals that, if I had to bet in advance, would have said ‘absolutely not’ to my request to photograph them. They both said yes – regardless of how the images turn out, I can’t even begin to explain how thankful I am to both of them, for sharing part of themselves with such openness.
I think that in order to have any regular ‘success’ at this, you must find a way to have a true belief in what you are doing, and to be grateful for the opportunity to do so.
Hey Jay
I don’t know if we met but I have a couple of galleries from the LOOK festival:
http://www.humanfiles.com/look3_1.htm
http://www.humanfiles.com/look3_2.htm
Cheers.
Hey David and fellow bloggers,
After starting with a genuine interest in the subject matter, I think you have to share your humanity with the people you want to photograph, and allow yourself to be a bit vulnerable.
Being photographed is an act of generosity and trust. The subject is vulnerable in front of the camera, and often sharing intimacy with the photographer.
We should give back emotionally or else we risk letting our subjects feel cheated. You don’t have to share your life story, but give just enough to make a connection or share common ground. And maintaining the confidence to pull it all off while being scrutinized by a group of strangers helps too.
Andrew
Hi David McGowan,
I’m not sure if we met either but thanks for sharing your work. Very nice! Put me back there for a few moments!
Jay
Hola david, love this question, thanks for bringing it up. when photographing, I simply explain that I just saw something beautiful in them and i thank them for sharing it. to me the most important thing is genuinely looking at people and being curious about one another for simply being in this world at the same time as me. do they share the same doubts, fears, struggles as me? it’s taking the time to unveil the strangers and getting to know them that is the most beautiful part of photography…taking a stroll down kent ave-LES-East Village-Chinatown-soho and taking the time to talk to others and ask how their life is going is a fabulous trip and if i have a camera to capture it it’s even better! abrazos, carmen
Smiling does the trick for me. I think people who feel that you empathize in some way and share something in common with them makes it easier for them to come around. At least that’s worked for me.
But the photograph you posted David brings to mind another question. And that is the ‘gaze.’
I would love to hear you have to say on the subject. You employ it regularly in your images and I just wanted to get a sense from you when does the gaze (an image of someone making direct eye contact with the camera) work and when doesn’t it work?
I’m sure in any one ‘series’ of images of the same subjects there are pictures of people making eye contact and then not making eye contact.
How do you decide between one or the other? What is your thought process from a picture selection point viewpoint?
Thanks in advance.
Hi David.
Photographing strangers is something I’,ve had to learn (& am still learning) to do. when I started photography all I did was natural history work. I used to be too self conscious to even photograph a plant on the side of the road.
As my work progressed into different areas i found i became more interested in documentary work. To photograph people I had to get close and engage them. I just have to force myself sometimes.
If you approach people with an open heart and smile it’s amazing what doors open up for you. I seem to spend more time chatting and breaking the ice than making images. But I’d rather have a couple of top images than a number of “good” images.
I also use a number of photo quotes printed out onto an A4 page by photographers I admire to get me going sometimes. I often get what you call “room lockdown” especially when overseas!
Here is a copy of what I use in case they are of any help to anyone!
Don McCullin: Photography for me is not looking, it’s feeling. If you can’t feel what you’re looking at, then you’re never going to get others to feel anything when they look at your pictures.”
William Albert Allard. I think the best pictures are often on the edges of any situation, I don’t find photographing the situation nearly as interesting as photographing the edges.
You’ve got to push yourself harder. You’ve got to start looking for pictures nobody else could take. You’ve got to take the tools you have and probe deeper.
David Alan Harvey. Here’s a case where I invested a lot of time in the picture. It’s a very straightforward picture, but I got up before dawn to go out with these fishermen. By the time they’re bringing in their catch, I’m their buddy, because we’ve spent four hours making small talk.
Most of the pictures I’ve published that I consider good usually involve hours or even days. A lot of boring hours, actually, waiting for something to happen, always wondering whether it will. In this case, they had a good catch, but I had invested hours in this situation, shooting various pictures before this one.
Freeman Patterson. Even when my feet are placed in footprints I made previously, and even if I stand there at precisely the same time I did the day before, the angle of light will have altered slightly and the sky will be deeper blue or paler with dust. And I will be a day older. So every time I gaze upon the whole, it will be from a unique perspective. And each of my unique perspectives will be different from each of yours.
Henri Cartier-Bresson. Think about the photo before and after, never during. The secret is to take your time. You mustn’t go too fast. The subject must forget about you. Then, however, you must be very quick. So, if you miss the picture, you’ve missed it. So what?
McCurry: Actually, I’m naturally kind of shy. I’m not inclined to just walk up to someone and put a camera in his or her face. But to take photos of people, you have to get out on the street, out of the hotel room. You need to push yourself a bit. It’s kind of ballsy to walk up to people with a 50mm or wider lens. They see and acknowledge you.
One thing that will happen is that you won’t always want to take pictures. Sometimes when travelling you can be in a good mood, but just not for photography. I don’t have that luxury on assignment, and for anyone interested in getting great photographs, they have to be out there taking pictures. Sometimes you just have to force yourself to get out and get started. One foot in front of the other, take a few frames to get started, then things will start to flow. You’ve got to go for it. Don’t hold back.
Sam Abell. A key idea in Sam’s approach is to first identify the background. With a promising background, you then wait for the light and the subject to complete the photograph. He showed a photograph of two women meeting on a street corner in a traditional Japanese village. He had gone back to that street corner for weeks waiting for just the right thing to happen. Finally, these two women came, talked, and then, as they were saying goodbye, the older one reached out and touched the garment of the younger one, presenting a timeless image that Sam was able to capture. Find the right background, wait for the right light, wait for the right subject, nail the exposure, pay attention to details of micro composition, and take the picture.
As a final point (totally unrelated) thank you David for your help and inspiration. On Wednesday I take my first leap into that great unknown called freelance photojournalism (fulltime) at the ripe old age of 44!
Your words “It’s never too late to be the man you could have been” has been my mantra… Now, any quick fix to help the heart palpitations… Thanks!!
I am also sometimes very shy when it comes to photographing strangers. But I think it’s a different problem when you are doing street photography and when you want to photograph people during several hours or even several days as in the example given by David. In the latter case, you can introduce yourself, explain your project, etc. or even start with something that has nothing to do with photography as has alrady been said. But if you are photographing in the street, have spotted a potentially interesting situation involving one or several people who are likely to move to another location within at best a few minutes or at worst a few seconds, asking permission seems to be impossible to me most of the time. Because it would be very likely to destroy the very scene that you wish to photograph. For if you ask permission, in 90% of the situations people will pose and smile and look straight at the camera. Then you can tell them “no, no, pretend I am not here” and hope for the best, but many people will find that just weird and I am not comfortable with that. And again, it is in principle possible to give some explanations about what you are doing, but time is running and the other elements of the picture are likely to have vanished by the time your interlocutor has understood and has resumed his previous activity. And yet, if you want to take several pictures of the same scene, people will in general be aware of your presence as soon as you press the shutter for the first time.
Let’s take a simple example: the other day I saw a baby sleeping in his carriage with a funny look on his face while his mother was reading. Let’s suppose you want to photograph both the baby and the crossed legs of the woman with her strange striped stockings in the background. You would also like to try several slightly different framings. You may not say anything as the woman is reading, but your camera is not so quiet and she’s likely to detect your presence after the first shot. You may make some comment like “what a cute baby!” and smile and possibly add something like “may I photograph him?”. But she’s likely to slightly change her position if you say anything and that would ruin your picture.
Of course there is no definitive answer and after reviewing all these possibilities, being shy, I ended up taking a single picture and running away. Framing was OK but the speed was too low and the picture blurred by the shake of the camera. What would you do in such a situation? try to be as discrete as possible? or photograph openly?
In fact I’m realizing that my example is not directly related to David’s original post as it is not about “intimate” photography; but it is still related to the problem of dealing with people and with one’s own shyness…
Not really a dissenting voice, but reading some comments, I’d say there are many instances obviously where the result or even the goal is not to befriend the people “in the photo” and spend time with them, but simply have that moment of mutuality/friendliness where they authorize us to shoot them, or simply do not mind. Portraits are not always about spending quality time with the subject.
David, one of the most impressive, beautiful shot in your Cuba book, for me of course, is the picture about the young girl along the beach, there is both virginity, innocence, but also coming of age, feminity etc, it is of Cuba and out of Cuba, etc…etc…
I somehow think you snapped the shot without having gotten to know her or her family.
David,
Would you mind explaining the shot you featured for this thread? Did you know them beforehand? Just meet them? Students in workshop?
Thanks.
just a brief comment, more later (i hope)….
i never, now, (more than 2 years) photograph people I do not know or havent spoken to…that’s simply, at this point, my gig. The most essential quality that a photographer can possess is the ability to wait, to wait and wait and wait: to wait and listen and watch and allow people to tell stories, to allow for your own breath of the story, to measure yourself inside and out of the lives and tales you are watching, and also, participating in…..
don’t get me wrong: i dont only photograph “acquaintenaces/friends/families/students”: not at all. But at this point, i realize that for me, it all is about the engagement, the relationship to those people and places that I am ensorcelled by: the diction of a face, the rhyme of a story, the gesture of a movement, the experience of my life and those around them. I have never been interested in “reporting,” not ever, but in watching in wondering in trying to sift through the strange and wonderous and sad life which surrounds. I photograph as a means of breathing, of questioning of trying to figure out what it is that surrounds. …
I love to listen to people speak (or not speak): to tell stories about their lives their ideas their loves and their losses: a questioning, really…
I’ve been fortunate man: somehow I have been able to be trusted, to earn trust, to settle inside the lives of others. Why…who knows. but maybe it is because I, instincutually, allow and hunger for people to settle inside me: that vanquish me, feed me, trick me, generate…i photograph, not them, but in truth myself (trying to be honest here), my reaction to them, to place, to a story, to a face, to an emotion, to something unexpressable through concrete words….
above all, i am drawn to people, to this passing life, drawn deeply to the connection and disconnect with all that surrounds….as much as I love photography, i love this life and the passage of it even more….
a small example: 2 nights ago I attended a talk by Chris Anderson (brilliant talk, brilliant guy, brilliant-beautiful face ;)):…a great show, but i was struck by the enormity of number of cameras shooting, of photographers carrying cameras….snap, snap, snap…later at the bar, cameras on tables, cameras in bags, cameras everywhere….
i did not take my cameras as i wasnt interested in shooting chris, not at all (i did not know him, other than through some email exchanges), but, next to him, drinking, i wanted to know him, to listen to him, to drink and shuttle and share with him: not ’cause he was a great photorapher (fuck, my son is a great photographer and my wife is a great photographer) but because I like the way he spoke: i like the humility of his words, i liked the light in his beautiful face and I liked that he was fucked up, just as I am, just as we all are: drawn to make pictures because we dont know fuck shit….nothing, absence, questions, but, in that, is something around which we root….
intimacy to shoot: trust born of listening and recognizing that there is nothing that separates us from one another but for the face we remain, through our thinking and often through our actions, separated….
pictures have always been less important to me than what surrounds them…my photos fail, but when i am lucky, the relationship, the wellspring of community, communication, arises….that’s why im not a PJ: aint my bag…
how much we wish to be listened to, genuinely listened to…this is infinitely more important than being understood….
how to get close: open wide something other than your eyes and lenses….;))
bob
ps. I should contextualize my comment “I liked that he was fucked up, just as I am, just as we all are…”.
I dont mean he was crazy or weird or drunk, i mean, like all people: fucked up by the arch and drama and mystery of life: the unknowable bonds that shelter us between life and death: dreamscapes, sadness, drama, desperation, calm: that life really digs inside you and that’s a fucked (beautifully) charge and a difficult one: he possesses that understanding: its there in his pics, in his eyes, in his confidence (bravado) in his humility in his uncertainty….that shit means more to me than all the scarfs, leicas, awards, wpp’s, travels, fans he has….
there are people who listen and people who do not…he listens and that is what bound me to him and what binds me to people i feel fortunate to shoot….
b
If i don’t feel comfortable, i don’t make it, I can’t. Just try to blend in. First made the mistake to carry to much equipment. I only need one camera and lens, no bags etc. This makes it easier to become part of people i like te photograph.
how much we wish to be listened to, genuinely listened to…this is infinitely more important than being understood….
————————
heyhey, Bob,that too I heard from women I had started acquainting myself with….;-)
Reading you, we just realize there are so many degrees to approach the subject, and someone of course. Maybe a few of us do take the different approach, shooting strangers, but barely anyone we know, because it fits our corrected introversion (corrected because we vanquished the approach problematic). As much as I do like to make friends, love women, whatever, I do appreciate immensely to be alone, and photographying does fit me, in that sense (so does Buddhism).
Not that I don’t wish to expose myself, but what we could call my private world (and pictures are always more private than public, no?) seems to (not always) have me retreat in more than reaching out. There is also a playfulness I enjoy taking pictures that encourages me to stand aside, playing with myself maybe?
Great Ice breakers include:
I’m a Virgo, Whats your sign?… Can I take your photo?
Do you work out?… ”
Would you like some candy? ”
No, this isn’t a real camera. ”
What time is it? time to take your photo?
Your kinda cute. Can I take your photo? HeHe…
You look pretty drunk. I’ll just take your photo.
I’m on a scavenger hunt & need a photo of a girl. do you mind?
Whats for dinner? I’ll bring my camera.
I’ve got some Ice wine. Want some? …click!
SF Jason: :))))))))..hey, Im a Taurus: can I go to your pad for dinner ;))…and like totally: ICE WINE: THE KEY ;))))))))))))
HERVE: :)))))…I wasnt judging those who shoot strangers (i used to), totally understand that, I meant, only for me ;)))…infact, i loved to shoot strangers and then i thought: man, i want more to talk to them, or listen to them, or whatever ;)))…i also think camera does free u, absolutely: just as playing with yourself (myself): wow, no performance anxiety ;:))…camera actually made me (wife too) more “extroverted” :)))…
it’s all good: anyway that you can get close is cool (except for long lenses, which i hate ;) )…..
running to cook for my son..
hug
s
bob
so many interesting answers.
yes, smile.
yes, be open and warm.
yes, FEEL your subjects.
yes, be grateful to everyone.
yes, see beauty everywhere.
see the extraordinary in the mundane.
see the ‘lotus flower emerging from the mud’
look deeply and be breathless.
a perfect example of what i’m trying to say here is my meeting with kenny, a homeless man in seattle.
you can read about it here:
http://iamkatia.deviantart.com/
(on the right, a third of the way down.)
just being open and caring and kind will get you further than you’ll ever imagine.
a smile works great as well when you’re busted taking spontaneous photos of people. you’re making yr frames and suddenly they spot you – now i burst out laughing sometimes when that happens or simply smile and shrug as if to say ‘you caught me’. it never fails to disarm & ilicit a smile from them.
be light-hearted.
people are generally good.
really. :)
I have three clients that work in religion philanthropy where I shoot documentary images.
Most of the assignment are to shoot Sunday services, talk about “shyness”. The first time I was afraid to even look through the camera let alone click the shutter, you can hear a pin drop in church. The next time I made sure everyone seen me, “that guy with the cameras”. I walk up and down the aisles just before service starts so that everyone see me. I smile, say hello and act like I know everyone. This worked and found the congregation just ignores me.
Two comments: one – I just ran into a show somewhere, called Photographing Strangers. Was it online? magazine? Minnesota Center for Photography? Interesting concept for a series. Do you have to make the person an acquaintance or friend or…?
two- the trick is to pretend to be sincere. This leads to a problem; if you are sincere and care about your subject, and it is one of those documentary projects like I did on Pine Ridge Reservation, it takes its toll on you. You really do care, or you couldn’t get the pictures. The trick then, is not to let it immobilize you in the long run, so that you end up closing down and having to pretend to be sincere about the minor (seemingly) predicament of the your next subject.
Does that make sense? Gotta ramble sometime.
Michael
I’ve only been shooting for a short time, but one thing I’ve discovered is that people, for the most part, want to matter — to me, to someone, maybe even more than one. I’ve been surprised at how trusting people can be, once I take the time to talk first or at least acknowledge and be acknowledged. Through the camera, I’m letting them know they matter, and that I want to not only know some of their story, but to let them tell it.
I don’t hardly take a photo unless it’s of a stranger so I’ve gotten pretty comfortable with it… it comes quite naturally……BUT as easy as it is for me in places I’m used to shooting such as India, I have to start all over working up my courage in a new country…or situation that is “different” such as walking into a group of tough men.
An image that helps motivate me is the photo I took many years ago in the mountains of Colorado before I became serious about photography. I was out horseback riding and came across a photo shoot featuring Sting. THE Sting. He was on horseback wearing a “long rider” coat and hat…he looked fabulous and the whole scene was gorgeous, old cabin, mountains in the background…looked like a Vanity Fair cover. At the time I was working for Sting’s manager in LA and had a connection to him so I struck up a conversation with him but still I couldn’t get up the nerve to ask for a photo. All I could come up with was reasons why I SHOULDN’T take the shot…”I’m bothering him” ‘The (Japanese) crew with him will be mad at me for interfering” and on and on. So instead of asking and shooting him (which I’m sure he would have been fine with) I just photographed a dog sitting in front of the cabin. Even just the dog is a great shot but it will always remind me of “the one that got away.”
I have to consciously decide sometimes if I want that to happen again or if it’s worth taking the chance.
I must add that sometimes it’s not appropriate to take the shot which is important to be aware of. It’s not all about the photographer getting up nerve…it’s got to be a communal effort between photographer and subject…but thats another topic.
A few things…
1. The best thing I’ve found, for me at least, is to go somewhere were people’s inhibitions are dropped. There’s a massive fair, sometimes with about a hundred thousand people on a given day, going on a few miles down the road from me. I’ve only managed to get down there and shoot two days- one of which was probably the best day of photographic work I’ve ever had. (It was also the most agonizing, because I mistakenly formatted the memory card with what was probably the best photograph I’ve ever taken on it.)
In normal circumstances, the whole “getting to know” people thing helps. A portrait I did recently, of a barista at a coffeeshop I go to, started off with a good conversation and an inside joke.
Barring all that, my tactic is to absolutely, positively promise myself I’m going to take a photograph of the next person who interests me for a portrait. And then the next, and the next, and so on.
Something else I’ve found… if one gets the permission of a barkeep, a barista, someone with authority in whatever place you are to photograph them, it becomes much easier psychologically to photograph patrons and others passing through. At least for me, though I don’t know what says about me.
2. What Bob Black said about being drawn to produce by the undulations of life and so on instantly reminded me of a quote from a short text of writing guidelines Jack Kerouac drew up: “Believe in the holy contour of life.”
One of the best guidelines for writing, photography, and living I’ve ever heard.
I think I’m going to print out this post, so many great comments, so many useful things to keep in mind!
On my first night at the “at home” workshop, David sent me out and told me to bring only one camera and one lens. Don’t even bring your bag, he said…and that was what I did the rest of the week. It was incredibly liberating, and allowed me to get so much closer to people, because I wasn’t encumbered by any “gear”. Also, the camera was in plain view so there was never any doubt in peoples’ minds that I was taking pictures.
Bob Sacha says he likes to approach people camera in hand, and make gesticulations with it while “chatting them up” so that people become very comfortable with the fact that he has a camera, and will probably take pictures with it. By the time it comes around to take some pictures, it’s just an extension of the conversation, and the conversation continues once the photos have been taken.
I think it’s also important to size up the situation and get a feel for the general attitude towards photography in the region. Some places, the direct approach works best–just ask. And if you sense people are saying “no” but they really mean “maybe”, then keep trying to convince them. One of the best shots I got at the workshop took a half hour of convincing the girl involved that I’d only keep the shot if it was flattering. Digital helps with this, because you can show people your shots, delete them if they ask, and generally get them involved in the creative process of taking an interesting photo.
One thing I’ve started doing is just explaining my shot to my intended subjects. “Scuse me, but I saw you there with the light in your hair and that dog in the background and that sign on the wall behind you–do you mind if I take a picture?” Sometimes they can’t help but participate once they feel your enthusiasm…
David, one of my favorite things I heard at the workshop was how you got those photos of the revival at Oaxaca. THAT’s getting in. But that story also raises questions, because though you were “in deep” on that one, you obviously didn’t ask permission to take those photos. And that’s the real dance I think, when to ask and when to just take the photo, capture the moment, because asking will interrupt, and thus ruin, the moment.
I have been doing street photography on and off for many years and I have had lots of practice, and for me practice helps, just doing it, getting nervous, figuring out how to do it and overcomeing things. I mostly take photos as if I am invisible, I can get pretty close, very close sometimes and it seems people do not even notice me. With practice I get to know people’s psychology, who looks like they are in another world not paying attention, people engaged in their own conversations or activity and people who seem like they will be totally bothered by me taking a photo of them. I do not look like a photographer when I am walking about, my camera is a small rangefinder that fits in a purse like bag I wear, it is mostly in there, I take it out when I want to take a photo here and there and put it back in when done. I look non-threatening, I smile, sometimes I act interested in a store window and such but really more interested in the people in front of it. Many different techniques I use for different things. I have been shooting Coney Island a lot this past summer and there every other person has a camera, photographers, just regular people with cameras, hoobyist wanting to use their new dSLR, that it is really easy to shoot anything and anyone there and there is so much to shoot there. Every situation is a bit different and for me every situation calls for different techniques.
For me I can take a shot of a person without much problems. Sometimes if I sense the situation isnt right, I will not do it. But most of the time, its not a big deal. I went to a fireworks show last weekend and ended up taking some shots of people, with flash, often very close up. Its not a problem. I think you are talking about something more. You didnt just take a few shots of the fisherman, you got in his world which lead you to be able to get to photograph his family. Thats different than going to an event and photographing strangers. BUT I think its also easier once that first step is made. Once you get the go ahead, you are in and free to shoot. Im still shooting TKD but now Ive changed locations and shooting in a school. I got permission from the TKD instructor to be able to shoot and once that was given I was free to take the photos I wanted. I also FELT free to shoot and it was easier to do than shooting without permission. I also remember you telling me that you like to follow a group of people around, get them to trust you and then you are free to photograph without any hesitation. You stressed that this was one of the challenges in Korea – to be able to get into a group. Im trying to do that more now, with the new location for TKD. Ive also gotten in conract with a Korean opera tenor to shoot him over a few days. Ill be going to my wife’s friend’s wedding and shooting something there on Saturday. For all those Ive already got the get go to photograph. And it does feel easier, more liberated. The key is to get the go ahead from the head honcho: be it the teacher of a school, the head of a family or the bride at a wedding. Once you have it, its easy to approach strangers at the venue.
I’m in awe of everyone above who have a handle photographing relative strangers. I’ve tried many times to break into that groove, almost always chickening out.
Although reading all the helpful tips and advice above might help, I think we all just have to find our own way, bite the bullet and just do it, assuming that the subject is visually inspiring…
I’ve had much better luck taking pictures of people I don’t know; sort of hit and run: the HCB pick pocket approach. I’ve never asked a person to take their picture, because what I’m looking for is something else. It’s real fast: girl playing with a boy’s hair, street musician talking with passer by; people coming out of a subway station. I’m looking for something in the eyes, the power of their presence, their movement. Something that tells a story or brings up a question. Ability to compose in the moment is crucial and I’ve found it must be almost instinctive. I’ve had no luck with hanging out then taking something good. Better to be an observor; easier to see that way. And I don’t take many pictures of people.
I’ve skimmed this thread… David, these forums get long FAST.
But I want to comment briefly on ‘getting permission’. If you get hung up on verbally asking proper permission, then I think you’re in store for many short-lived projects. I believe the key is eye contact, respect, demeanor, charm, curiosity, subtle gestures, etc. Be a chameleon with a purpose. People can sense purpose. If you are unsure of yourself or what your doing, then you are more likely to get denied or run off.
Personally, this initial ‘in’ is easier the more I shoot.. and more difficult after long breaks from shooting.
I think there’s a difference between photographing random strangers (because they have interesting faces or the light is good) and befriending people in whom you are interested as subjects (because of their culture or stories).
In my case, photographing in Indian communities around the world, I’m only interested in photography that comes out of time spent with people. I’m not really a street photographer, and in working with people, I’m interested in peeling back the layers of the onion. Yes, I might take a some pictures of a guy in his shop, but I would really like him to take me home for dinner to meet his family. That’s where I put my efforts.
Shooting total strangers cold (as in, “Hi, my name is Preston and I’d like to take your picture”) is really difficult. But if you have a context for what you are doing–a project based on an abiding and informed interest–getting people to agree to be photographed is much easier. Then you are not just photographing them so much as enlisting their participation in your project. These people are your assets, your sources.
Obviously, not everything has to be part of some big project, but in shooting strangers, it’s helpful to give them some idea of the context of what you are doing–even if it is just, “I look for interesting people to photograph.” Most people want to be helpful and are flattered by the attention.
It’s one of the choices, Preston, to involve people in what you are doing (like the young girl in the David’s Cuba shot I mentionned), but there is also such photography where the shot depends on the subject either not knowing he/she is being shot (1), or merely sees it, but with absolutely no “ice” being broken between the 2, save maybe a reaction to the presence of the photographer.
(1)Like the shots by R. Kalvar, which David posted on Sept 10th (Family/friends forum).
I can relate to many of these comments on “shyness” and shooting. For me it is a feeling within me. Something internal that the outside world responds too. I can feel when it will “happen” and when it will not. I am in Mexico for the first time alone. Yesterday I bordered on “hotel lock”. This morning I wandered around with the camera in the bag and felt alone and isolated – a lone turista in an unfamiliar place. This evening I went out with an open heart, a purpose (camera at the ready) and a warm smile. I was met with many many warm smiles in return.