The Kindness of Strangers
Raising the camera to my eye in a dusty back street in Marrakech I was immediately distracted by a young man running towards me waving his arms and shouting 'No pictures, no pictures'. Later that evening I was eating at street food stall in Djemma El Fna square, a riotous night time market full of smoke, colour and characters, a fellow tourist was being shouted at for photographing one of the stalls, his huge lens intruding right into the working space of the cooks. I finished my food and asked if it would be possible to photographed the stall and was rewarded with the staff posing madly for some really enjoyable images.
Photographing street murals in Derry can be an interesting experience, the welcome given to photographers in some areas of the city can change to hostility in others. Where I was welcomed and given an guided tour in the Bogside, certain locals in the Waterside area were less welcoming as I attempted to photograph their street. In Cardiff it seems you can point a camera anywhere with the only reaction being an apology from passers by that come into your frame. Garry Winogrand famously boasted that he never sought permission from the subjects of his photographs, and its arguable that the essence of Bruce Gilden's work is his approach of photography by ambush, asserting that he has no ethics in the way he works. It would seem then that whether street photography is considered acceptable would depend on an on the spot assessment of the location. As photographers we have to be aware that however great an artist, or however great a documentary maker you consider yourself to be you are still subject to local custom and practice, there simply are places that we are not welcome. To enter these places we rely on the kindness or permission of others, whether paid for or voluntary. There are places that rely on the intervention of a friendly local or repeated visits to gain acceptance.
All too often photographers seem to develop an inflated idea of their own importance to the world, an idea often related to length of their lens. This point was driven home to me whilst working in Morocco, point a huge camera at somebody in the street and it is considered extremely rude, though many do it, an approach that feels like neo-colonialism at best. Yet, a smile, a gesture towards the camera and a tacit seeking of permission is often likely to result in a welcome to photograph more. A smile, a sense of humour and respect for others seems to have produced my most successful images, and if someone says 'No', it means no, there will always be another shot around the corner. |