I can probably count on one hand the photos I've taken of people on this particular trip so far...
I am jealous as hell when I see the stunning portrait shots on here... I just don't take portrait shots of people and it's for exactly the reasons you describe. I'm not comfortable taking photos of people, even from afar without their permission, it feels like stealing somehow and asking for permission alters the shot considerably surely. If I was working (lab bench, I'm a scientist) and someone asked if they could take a photo would I carry on as normal, probably not, I'd be all self conscious.
I do love the 'hand them the camera' approach, maybe I'll give that at try...
My wife (who is Vietnamese) has even told me that while tourism has now become an acceptable part of Vietnamese life, people (especially the elderly) would feel extremely annoyed and even violated if a western tourist should just happen to come up and click a few pictures off without asking first. After all, how would we like it if they came to our countries and started doing the same to us?
I had to comment on this, and the answer is not a lot... Having spent 3 months in Vietnam in this year, believe me the Vietnamese are not above this, although of course it's the same everywhere we've been in Asia. I'm traveling with my two very young children, and of course I understand, tiny western children are a novelty, especially when they are the two most beautiful children to have ever existed (😱), but they get constantly hassled for their photo, and not just cameras in the face, I'm talking manhandled, pulled around and picked up against their will, and not just occasionally either, it happens maybe 3-5 times every day. How often do we get asked for permission? Maybe 10%!o(MISSING)f the time... does it piss us off? Of course it does... the funny thing is they must get some seriously awful photos of my kids as they're just not into it.
Sometimes people play with them for a while first before whipping out their camera and then my kids don't mind at all, I suppose it's because they're being paid off and they're all smiles and fun.
Maybe that's the trick, rather than just asking for permission and firing off a few shots, maybe putting some effort in with a bit of interaction first might break the tension... I am interested to hear from the people who do take these incredible shots we see on here as to how they do it...
Mike.
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