My Funny Picture

How do you deal with taking pictures of people particularly strangers?

hihi... i'll juz like to extend this question to any1 who is in to photography... i usually take photos of inanimate things but there are times when i see images of people that seems so beautiful because of the naturalness of it. but most people are uncomfortable with being shot. is it rude to take a photo of some1 before asking for permission? Is asking permission a weird thing to do? Thanks for reading... ;)

Public Comments

1. I have a brother who is a professional photographer and I have heard him say that legally, they have to ask a stranger to take their picture. If it should be published without permission, could be trouble. A child, you need permission of the parent. This is of the face, the back--maybe not. They find most people are most agreeable if approached in a mannerly fashion.
2. Taking pictures of other people only becomes a legal issue when you publish the images without their consent. You can take pictures of whatever you like for personal use (as long as they are in public... i.e. no peeping toms). The best thing is to approach the people and show some interest in what they are doing. Why do you want to take a picture of them? What are they doing that interests you? Treat them like a person and they usually have no problem taking pictures of them. This also captures them in their environment. This works both in the US and overseas. You'd be surprised the barriers that can be crossed with body language. The other option is to shoot people without them knowing about it with a telephoto lens. This is a style usually for shyer people. It is a little sneaky and some might consider it rude. If you think you might want to publish the image of the person, just have them sign a waiver (there are lots of standard waivers online: http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=photography+release+wavier&ei=UTF-8&fr=moz2). Have fun and be polite. Treat people with respect and you will be surprised that most people enjoy getting their picture taken. Kids are a great place to start... most kids love to have their pictures taken and will be happy to pose. Good luck! aaron
3. So long as they're in a public domain, with no reasonable expectation of privacy then it's legal to take their picture (think celebrity paparazzi)- even children (although as a parent, I ALWAYS ask parents before shooting minors, no exceptions). But if you're doing it in a photo journalistic capacity, you should probably catch at least their name, as well as any other info that would add depth to your image. I usually ask after I've shot a few frames (to avoid my subjects posing). If you're shooting to sell the image to a stock agency, for example, they will want a signed model release form if you can see their face. But just think about how you would feel if someone took your picture- you'd at least want to know what it's for and the chance to give your OK (or decline). Just be polite and explain yourself and most people will co-operate.