I live and work in the city and have used this environment for my film and photography work and while I haven’t purposely tried to photograph people, I haven’t gone out of my way to avoid them or request their permission. As we researched the genre of street photography many questions of ethics emerged. In the documentary Finding Vivian Maier (2013) I could understand why people are often drawn to street photography. In the case of Maier’s work, they are nostalgic, capture moments of history and society, they connect with many viewers on a real level. It is easy to see them as candid snapshots of everyday beauty that many of us can relate to. Despite the artistic qualities of her work, the documentary raises many questions of ethics. For Maier herself, what were her intentions for taking the photos, would she want them to be seen and printed, did she want to be known as a photographer? Then for the subjects of her photos, did she ask their permission, how would they feel about them being published even years later? Some of her subject matter captured the vulnerable, which could be interesting from a social and historical perspective, but were those people able to give consent even if they were asked? The biggest question I found myself asking, was does it matter if we print and publish these photos many years after they were taken?
Vivian Maier Self-Portrait, 1954
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Asking a person for permission to take their photograph in street photography is important so we can consider their wishes. Some street photographer’s work by the golden rule of treating people how they would like to be treated themselves, Eric Kim points out the issue with this is not everyone wants to be done unto them as you want others done unto you (2017). As I didn’t have a camera at the time of the street photography project, I attempted to complete it with my mobile phone camera. Although I asked permission, I quickly discovered that people we unwilling to participate, and I found it very uncomfortable to ask. This was mostly due to using a mobile phone, I could understand that people felt nervous of how and where this photo would be shared with the ease of publishing and distribution on mobile phones. It could have been different with a camera, as people may have seen it as more artistic or felt it was less likely to be shared. Therefore, does the reason for taking the photo or where it will be displayed change the fact that you should request permission? In Australia, it is generally considered legal to take photos of people in public (Arts Law Centre, 2016). However, there is still the issue of ethics and as photographers, we should consider these, if we are invading someone’s privacy, causing them embarrassment or stress, photographing children or people that are unable to provide consent and then how and where we will publish the works.
References:
Arts Law Centre, 2016, ‘Street photographer rights, information sheet’, Arts Law Centre, viewed 12th of November 2020 < https://www.artslaw.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Street_photographers_rights_2016.pdf>
Kim, E. 2017, ‘The ethics of street photography’, Eric Kim blog, viewed 12th of November 2020 <https://erickimphotography.com/blog/2017/05/06/the-ethics-of-street-photography/>
Lee, D. 2014, ‘ Is it OK for people to take pictures of you in public and publish them?’, The Conversation, 27 May, viewed 12th of November 2020 < https://theconversation.com/is-it-ok-for-people-to-take-pictures-of-you-in-public-and-publish-them-27098>
Vivian Maier, 2020, ‘Vivian Maier street photographer’, Vivian Maier website, viewed 12th of November 2020 < http://www.vivianmaier.com/vivian-maier-books/vivian-maier-street-photographer/>
