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DOWNLOAD PDF: Why do you feel guilty shooting street photography

1. Possible theories

You feel guilty shooting street photography because you don’t like being photographed, because you are uncomfortable with your body or facial image, and you (wrongly) assume everyone else doesn’t like being photographed. Solution: make self portraits of yourself, and learn how to be comfortable being photographed.
You were raised with “modest” Puritan-Christian “humble” virtues which tells you NOT to “bother” or “disrupt” others. Solution: DO NOT APOLOGIZE for making pictures of others. You aren’t doing anything wrong. You’re making beautiful art.

2. Create your own table of values

The more I think about photography, art, and life… so much of our morals, ethics, and “values” are super-imposed on us by our parents, our society, our culture, our friends, bosses, jobs, etc. we rarely have the chance to question ourselves, and ask ourselves…

What do I really think and believe in?

3. How I shoot street photography

In street photography, I am aggressive, unapologetic, yet friendly and I smile a lot.

I know I’m not doing anything wrong, both ethically and legally.

Ethically, taking a picture of someone isn’t a big deal. I’m just photographing the photons or the light bouncing off their body… I’m not “stealing their soul” or something silly like that.

Legally, I have the right to photograph anyone or anything in a public space.

4. Shoot street photography with love

To take this further, your picture-making aint an “attack” or “assault”. Your camera is NOT a gun which shoots bullets and assaults your subjects. NO!

A camera just captures light. You’re just capturing light. You’re not doing any positive harm on anybody or anything. You’re reactive… you’re accepting the light that is already around you. You’re actually more passive in that sense— you have openness, and the light of the world enters your lens, and enters your soul and consciousness.

5. Have confidence in yourself, that you’re doing the right thing.

To sum up, the best way to evolve as a photographer and artist… don’t apologize. Don’t apologize for making pictures. Don’t need to “explain” yourself to anybody.

Be bold, be strong, and be self-assured.