Buried in that 4600 word mess is this, which I see variations of elsewhere and continues to perplex me.
It doesn’t really matter what I think, though. I’m a white guy.
I don’t spend any time whatsoever worrying about someone on the street
exploiting or attacking me. When I was in high school, I did spend one
intensely-memorable night being chased off of the road and through the
woods on foot by a pack of guys I’d never met, who declared their
intention to beat the crap out of me when they caught up with me.
Incidentally, I lost them, and made it home safely.
Okay, a bit contradictory, but why do white guys (and some non-white and/or non-guys) think that white men are immune to being victims of assault?
According to BJS stats from 2008 for assault, victimization rates for assault per 1,000 people 12 years or older break down like this by race/sex:
White male: 18.1
White female: 13.7
Black male: 21.3
Black female: 16.2
So if the author thinks “hey, I’m a white guy, that’s not something I need to worry about” it would seem that either a) he is irrationally discounting his risk of being a victim of an assault or b) he thinks people who are not white guys irrationally overestimate their risk of being a victim of an assault.
Actually the author himself mentions in the essay that a) he doesn’t always get people’s permission, and b) he doesn’t always delete pictures taken without permission when the subjects object.
A-Kon Convention in Dallas addressed the issue of permission several years ago after some volunteer con staff threw a hissy fit about being in the background of some photos a friend of mine was taking of another friend. This is their current posted policy; basically if you’re there, you might have your picture taken. No expectation of privacy exists in convention space.
“Photographs and video of A-Kon® participants WILL be taken during A-Kon® activities. Your participation in these activities implies your consent to be photographed or recorded. If you prefer not to be photographed or recorded, please remove yourself from the photography/recording area.” http://www.a-kon.com/?page_id=73
Which is really only sensible. With hundreds of pictures being taken every second at the con from every angle, the chances of not being in the background of some shot are pretty darn low. If you are in the witness protection program or are worried about the camera stealing your soul, don’t go to events where huge numbers of pictures are being taken constantly.
Although if you are worried that someone might recognize you, you could always wear a disguise, maybe dress up like a cartoon character or something…
Wow. Some people get REALLY upset when a person suggests “please don’t do something other people don’t want you to do.” What’s the word for that again? It’s right here on the tip of my tongue…
Glad you bothered to write up something full on the subject. Always useful to refer people to a good one!
About Reasonable Expectation Of Privacy: Most Cons that are taking place at an inside venue will have a notice at all the doors that says something along the lines of, “If you enter here, you may be photographed, and the picture may be published. By entering, you are allowing people to use your likeness.”
This has become common practice.
At street fairs, you won’t see the same warning (it’s an outdoor venue after all - no doors). Outside, I make sure I catch people’s attention if I’m trying to photograph them, and I always ask the parent if it’s a small child. Typically, people are fine with pics if you just smile and show them you have a camera before raising it to your face. Just raise it chest height with one hand, and point to it with the other. At some outdoor festivals, it’s so loud that’s the best way to show people your intent.
This isn’t about rights at all. This is about not being a dick. As for the racist guy in the parade, he’s already being a dick, so to hell with him. As for the cosplayers, this guide is aimed towards calibrating the attitude of outsiders towards being less dickish. For some reason, the general public needs frequent lessons in empathy and respect. It’s too bad, but that’s the way the world seems to be.
All the folks going off about rights are speaking volumes about themselves and their own dickishness. And, go ahead, you have the right to be a dick. Go right ahead.
I appreciate what the writer is trying to do with asking people for permission and then trying to take a “candid” shot. I understand the dilemma entirely. But at that point it ceases to be photojournalism.
Those photos are just as posed as the obviously posed photos, and cannot be considered journalism. In fact I’d consider them grossly misleading because once you intervene and ask someone to do something again you’ve taken control of the action and content, and yet they still appear to be candid, which is a lie.
When I am faced with these sorts of situation I shoot first. Then I identify myself and tell them that I have an awesome picture of them doing XYZ followed by a request for their permission to use the photo in the paper. If no, then they can consider it deleted. Most of the time they are super excited to have their picture taken for the paper, but it does happen occasionally that people would rather not be photographed, and I get that.
Unless it’s something like breaking news I can always get another picture of something else.
Now that is fascinating! Personally I’ve only had the chance to attend a single cosplaying event so far, haven’t noticed such a trend taking off locally.
Perhaps it’ll just take some time for such ideas to propagate. All’s good.
Great article. Raises issues about stuff I’ve never thought of (I’m not much of a photographer of people, and I seldom attend conventions, and haven’t since 1997), but I will certainly remember the next time I do go to one.
I’ve been going to, and helping organise conventions, for more than twenty years now, and I also enjoy photography, so this is a topic that’s close to my heart.
A camera (and I’m talking specifically about dedicated cameras, rather than smartphone cams) is a tool. It is not a free pass exempting the bearer from social norms, nor is it a magic amulet somehow making the person holding it more important than anyone else. Yet time and time again at conventions I’ve seem people - usually 40+ white men* - acting as if that’s exactly what it is. And apart from the unpleasantness of such behaviour, I’d rather that a DSLR didn’t join the fedora and cargo-pant kilt as one of the warning signs for creepiness.
(*I’m a 40+ white man myself, so I’m quite good at recognising them.)
By the way, the First Amendment, and similar provisions such as ECHR Article 10, relate to what the government can do to restrict your freedom of expression. They do not stop private functions or events setting standards for behaviour.
