Taking Photos of Strangers in Street Photography
One of the most common questions from beginner street photographers is “How can I take photos of strangers?” this is a very valid question. Of course, depending on the country you are taking photos in, capturing images of strangers in public places may be legal or illegal.
Do some research on your country.
In the UK, we are allowed to take photos of anyone and anything within a public space. However, this can be an issue if you accidentally step onto privately owned land, so it’s important to do your due diligence and check the areas you like to take photos in.
Perhaps the second most common question is “What if someone sees me take their photo?” this is the meat of what we’re going to discuss in this blog post. We will cover how to handle an interaction like this and also, more importantly, how to prepare so these interactions have a positive outcome.
What if someone sees you take their photo and complains?
Put yourself in the other person’s shoes, if someone took your photo without asking or saying anything, then proceeded to walk away… yeah, I’d be kinda “What the f**k?!” too. So, think about that for a moment. If someone sees you take their photo and then complains, it is up to you to be the most courteous version of yourself. If you have worked in customer service before, put on your festive season charm; if you haven’t worked in customer service before, go do it for 6 months. Explain yourself clearly, and describe why you chose to take their photo, this should be easy if you noticed something specifically interesting. If you don’t know what to say, likely, you shouldn’t have taken it in the first place.
The person may ask you to delete the photo, they are within their right to ask this. You are also within your right to decline their request. However, in my personal opinion, unless the photo is clearly a 1000% best photo ever watch out Magnum then I will happily delete their photo. The odds are, you didn’t create a piece of art in 1/250th of a second, the odds are it wasn’t anything special.
How to prepare for the best possible outcome
We’ve covered handling the worst-case scenario, so how do we prepare for the best-case scenario?
When choosing to take anyone’s photo, try to actively think of the reason why you are taking the person’s photo. It could be their hair, their hat, their jacket, scarf, tie, their dog, what they were doing. Internally, actively say to yourself the reason you’re taking this specific person’s photograph.
One exercise I have been practising is saying these reasons out loud, even if quietly, it is becoming a good practice and gets you talking in public which is going to become important.
Having these reasons at the ready is only one part of this process, the next part is going offence over defence.
Offence > defence
With your reasons at the ready, let’s turn those into compliments: “I love your hair - your hair looks cool” “Nice hat!” “I like your scarf!”
You may have seen videos of me on YouTube or Instagram saying quick compliments to people when I go to take their photo, well, this is what I’m doing. If someone sees you taking their photo, I believe your best course of action is to own what you’re doing and then engage with them before or after you snap the photo.
bUt tHeN it’S nOt cANdid
I hear you, but I don’t care.
Among street photography, there is a split in opinion between those who believe pure candid is the only real street photography. However, I think it can be both. You can even ask someone for a photo if you want, don’t let some old guys tell you what is and isn’t valid - they’re crusty old dudes. Do you, be creative and share the experience with your subject.
This action of entering the interaction and being open to engaging does not mean you must say anything, however, I think being ready with a smile, a wave, a hello or a compliment instantly neutralises any complaints or negative interactions.
Once you have tried this process a few times, you will feel more and more confident to capture candids and get closer to subjects in the process.
