It's not always easy to know when to take, or how to use, photos we take in another culture, where particular sensitivity may be required. As we've thought about the issues involved here in India, there seem to be several things to consider, in three steps. (Note: this issue may not be of interest, but I do include some new photos you may want to see below.)
First, what is the role of taking photos for us as photographers and travelers? It's difficult not to take at least some photos in a place like India, where images new, colorful, and interesting abound. We do all take photos here. But what role do we want that to play in our experience? Is there a danger in taking too many photos, in thinking that because we've taken a photo of something we have actually seen it, experienced it? When we're shy, is it easy to "hide" behind our cameras, seeing India through a lens or on our viewscreen rather than in an unmediated way? When does photo taking complement and even enhance our experience, and when does it replace or get in the way of that experience?
Second, what ethical and cultural obligations and sensitivities do we need to bring to bear when we are making choices among what things, events, people, and places to photograph? Here, there are several things we should not photograph: a close-up of a Muslim woman dressed in modest clothing that calls us to respect her privacy, for example. Or the interior of a temple where photos are not allowed, even explicitly forbidden. (I do not include photos of this kind as examples, for obvious reasons!)
There are also photos that are clearly o.k. to take. These include the one below of me at our recent visit to the Taj Mahal. No problem there, it's just me, and I'm joined by a thousand others taking a similar photo! (Interesting fact for you Taj Mahal fans: the minarets all lean slightly out, away from the Taj, so that in this earthquake-prone region if they were to fall they would not fall on theTaj itself!)
Likewise, photos taken within our group seem o.k., unless they capture someone doing something too embarrassing or personal. For example, see the photo below in which our group is enjoying large rice-flour crepes called dosas at a roadside eating stop. This is the kind of photo we are constantly taking of each other and sending home. Implicit permission to take photos seems clear.
A similar photo is the one below: some of our students, and some students with whom they were doing an observational research project. We were all taking photos of each other, with "implied consent" the probable norm involved once again. Here, too, all the students were taking photos of each other to remember their shared experiences.
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In other situations, it's polite to ask people if you may take their photograph. This is important whenever the person is a stranger, or you're doing a close-up, be even if you just want to be on the safe side. I asked permission to take the photo below of two women psychology professors whom I spent some time with during our week in Bangalore, particularly one morning at a large park where we strolled. We were taking photos of each other, we were roughly similar in social status (perhaps me a bit more "senior" due to gender and age, but still using the same terms of address for one another), we were beginning to be friends, AND I still asked if I could take their photo.
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On the other hand, sometimes I've taken photos from a distance, such as at the Taj Mahal, of a crowd of folks, without asking permission, but in a context when we're all taking a lot of photos and crowd scenes are common in a photo. This photo below might be more a "gray area" photo, but you can think about that for yourself. Does it seem invasive or rather harmless?
Finally, there's the third consideration: when to circulate a photo as I'm doing here. I sometimes take a photo but then decide afterwards that I shouldn't share it widely--that is, on a public blog such as this one, even if I keep a copy for myself and what the moment means. It's not always enough to decide whether to take a photo, but also when to share it. For example, I have some close-up's of children at several villages where we visited for some time, and the children asked me to take their photo so they could see their image in my viewing screen. And they are adorable. But I'm uncertain about putting photos of children out there on the web, especially without their parent's permission. They are too young to give me real permission for the uses to which photos might be put. So the "last step" in the ethical considerations of photography for me has been not if I've asked to take the photo, but whether on reflection it seems like I should not put the photo "out there" for general viewing. Related to this, note that I've not given names of people in the photos, or names or locations of the villages whose photos I've posted; this has been another "post-photo" consideration: whether I need to keep the likelihood of viewers identifying the photo or people in it even if I decide to post it on this blog.
And that's it for now. Stay tuned.
First, what is the role of taking photos for us as photographers and travelers? It's difficult not to take at least some photos in a place like India, where images new, colorful, and interesting abound. We do all take photos here. But what role do we want that to play in our experience? Is there a danger in taking too many photos, in thinking that because we've taken a photo of something we have actually seen it, experienced it? When we're shy, is it easy to "hide" behind our cameras, seeing India through a lens or on our viewscreen rather than in an unmediated way? When does photo taking complement and even enhance our experience, and when does it replace or get in the way of that experience?
Second, what ethical and cultural obligations and sensitivities do we need to bring to bear when we are making choices among what things, events, people, and places to photograph? Here, there are several things we should not photograph: a close-up of a Muslim woman dressed in modest clothing that calls us to respect her privacy, for example. Or the interior of a temple where photos are not allowed, even explicitly forbidden. (I do not include photos of this kind as examples, for obvious reasons!)
There are also photos that are clearly o.k. to take. These include the one below of me at our recent visit to the Taj Mahal. No problem there, it's just me, and I'm joined by a thousand others taking a similar photo! (Interesting fact for you Taj Mahal fans: the minarets all lean slightly out, away from the Taj, so that in this earthquake-prone region if they were to fall they would not fall on theTaj itself!)
Likewise, photos taken within our group seem o.k., unless they capture someone doing something too embarrassing or personal. For example, see the photo below in which our group is enjoying large rice-flour crepes called dosas at a roadside eating stop. This is the kind of photo we are constantly taking of each other and sending home. Implicit permission to take photos seems clear.
A similar photo is the one below: some of our students, and some students with whom they were doing an observational research project. We were all taking photos of each other, with "implied consent" the probable norm involved once again. Here, too, all the students were taking photos of each other to remember their shared experiences.
In other situations, it's polite to ask people if you may take their photograph. This is important whenever the person is a stranger, or you're doing a close-up, be even if you just want to be on the safe side. I asked permission to take the photo below of two women psychology professors whom I spent some time with during our week in Bangalore, particularly one morning at a large park where we strolled. We were taking photos of each other, we were roughly similar in social status (perhaps me a bit more "senior" due to gender and age, but still using the same terms of address for one another), we were beginning to be friends, AND I still asked if I could take their photo.
On the other hand, sometimes I've taken photos from a distance, such as at the Taj Mahal, of a crowd of folks, without asking permission, but in a context when we're all taking a lot of photos and crowd scenes are common in a photo. This photo below might be more a "gray area" photo, but you can think about that for yourself. Does it seem invasive or rather harmless?
Finally, there's the third consideration: when to circulate a photo as I'm doing here. I sometimes take a photo but then decide afterwards that I shouldn't share it widely--that is, on a public blog such as this one, even if I keep a copy for myself and what the moment means. It's not always enough to decide whether to take a photo, but also when to share it. For example, I have some close-up's of children at several villages where we visited for some time, and the children asked me to take their photo so they could see their image in my viewing screen. And they are adorable. But I'm uncertain about putting photos of children out there on the web, especially without their parent's permission. They are too young to give me real permission for the uses to which photos might be put. So the "last step" in the ethical considerations of photography for me has been not if I've asked to take the photo, but whether on reflection it seems like I should not put the photo "out there" for general viewing. Related to this, note that I've not given names of people in the photos, or names or locations of the villages whose photos I've posted; this has been another "post-photo" consideration: whether I need to keep the likelihood of viewers identifying the photo or people in it even if I decide to post it on this blog.
And that's it for now. Stay tuned.
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