How to Defuse Confrontations in Street Photography

SF, 2015

What do you do if someone gets pissed off with you taking a picture of them?

More street photography tips in STREET NOTES MOBILE EDITION.

Here are some personal strategies:

1. Pretend like you’re shooting something behind them

If you take a picture and your subject looks pissed off, DON’T drop the camera and walk away.

SUITS

My suggestion: hold your ground, and hold the camera up. Keep clicking, and don’t make eye contact. Then pretend like you’re shooting something behind the person.

London, 2014. The first picture, with a flash at night.
London, 2014. The first picture, with a flash at night.
London, 2014. The second photo. I pretended like I was shooting the sign behind her.
London, 2014. The second photo. I pretended like I was shooting the sign behind her.

2. “Cool place, huh?”

An off shoot of the prior tip. Pretend like you’re shooting the place… not the person.

I shot this picture with a full flash, and freaked out the couple. After taking the picture, I said,

Cool place, huh?

They looked behind them and said, “Yeah!” I then smiled and said, “Enjoy your dinner!” they said, “Thanks!”

Shot in a restaurant with flash in Michigan, Lansing.
Shot in a restaurant with flash in Michigan, Lansing.

3. “Just keep doing what you’re doing!”

I took this picture of a man eating a sandwich through a window, and after he made eye contact with me… I just gestured to him to keep eating the sandwich.

Funny enough, he laughed and kept eating, and actually posed for the camera.

Suit eating Potbelly Sandwich in Chicago, 2013
Suit eating Potbelly Sandwich in Chicago, 2013

4. Crouch, shoot, don’t make eye contact

I was in close quarters in a crowded Paris subway, and saw this suit looking miserable. I crouched, and shot a photo with a flash, at around 1 arm length away (1 meter).

After taking the picture, I just avoided eye contact, pretended to look at the map behind him, and then opened up my phone.

Paris, suit in the train. 2015
Paris, suit in the train. 2015

Why avoid eye contact to defuse potential confrontations? If you avoid eye contact, you don’t provoke people.

5. Give your subject a compliment, or tell them why you made a picture of them

NYC, 2015

When working on my suits project, I had a lot of people give me a dirty eye after I made a photo of them without permission.

What I did then was compliment them or tell them why I shot them like,

Nice tie!

Or

Looking sharp!

Don’t give fake compliments. Be honest and real. Then most people smile and say thank you, and move on.


But what do you do when you have taken someone’s picture, and they know it was you?

6. Apologize, hold your ground, and wait for the police

Street photography isn’t illegal in public spaces.

Once I made a picture of a woman in Melbourne, and she got angry and threatened to call the cops on me. I apologized, and she wanted me to take out my film. I said no. She threatened to call the cops. I said if she wanted to, she could.

She called the cops.

I waited with her (awkwardly) and when the cops finally came, they said I was doing nothing wrong.

Lesson: Don’t let anyone bully you on the streets. Don’t be a dick, but don’t be overly apologetic. You ain’t doing anything wrong in street photography.

7. Don’t argue; listen.

I once photographed a woman who went off on me in Downtown LA. She cursed at me, and threatened to call the cops.

For about five minutes, I didn’t say anything. I kept nodding my head, had a worrisome look in my face, and I said, “I understand.”

About 6 minutes in, she spilled the beans:

She has an old boyfriend stalker, who was abusive to her. She was anxious that he hired a stalker to monitor and haunt her.

Afterwards, I told her I photographed her because I thought she was beautiful. She said, “Really?” We then did a little photo shoot. She loved the pictures. I showed her the lcd screen. She liked them. I emailed her the best one.

Moral of the story: when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

Conquer your fears in street photography.

If you get social anxiety from street photography, learn to conquer your fears and meet new peers at an ERIC KIM WORKSHOP.


STREET PHOTOGRAPHY 101

Tokyo, 2012

If you’re new to street photography, start here:


STREET NOTES MOBILE EDITION

STREET NOTES MOBILE EDITION: Your Personal Steet Photography Workshop Always With You.


FUNDAMENTALS OF STREET PHOTOGRAPHY

elegance, seoul, 2009 Eric Kim street photography

Street Photography Inspiration

eric kim street photography marseille kodak portra 400 sunbather beach


Beginner Street Photography Articles

eric-kim-street-photography-color-chroma-1

Get started in street photography:

Definitions in Street Photography

How to Shoot Street Photography

Street Photography Equipment

Tokyo Eric Kim rain umbrella

See all equipment articles >

How to Conquer Your Fears in Street Photography

See all articles to conquer your fears >


Intermediate Street Photography Articles

eric-kim-street-photography-color-chroma-19

Take your street photography to the next level:


Advanced Street Photography Articles

eric-kim-street-photography-suits-color-kodak-portra-400-2

Find deeper meaning in your street photography:


Street Photography Tips & Technique

laughin-lady-contact-copy

Learn how to shoot on the streets:

See all street photography tips and techniques >

Street Photography Guides

tokyo-eye-eric-kim-street-photography-contact-sheet-0000545

In-depth guides on street photography:

Street Photography Equipment

0-eric-kim-street-photography-sweat-downtown-la

The best equipment for street photography:

See all equipment articles >

Street Photography Editing and Workflow

How to Start a Street Photography Project


Learn From the Masters of Street Photography

MASTERS PROTOTYPE by HAPTIC

“He without a past has no future.”

Start here:

  1. Why Study the Masters of Photography?
  2. Great Female Master Photographers
  3. Cheat Sheet of the Masters of Photography
  4. 100 Lessons From the Masters of Street Photography
  5. Beginner’s Guide to the Masters of Street Photography
  6. Download All Articles >

The Masters of Photography

Prague, 1968. Josef Koudelka / Magnum Photos
Prague, 1968. Josef Koudelka / Magnum Photos

Classics never die:


Free Downloads

See all free downloads >

Free Street Photography Books

eric-kim-street-photography-only-in-america-14

Distilled information on street photography:

For more resources on photography, Start Here >