There are two different types of
environmental or street portraits, (i) interactive (aka "posed") street portraits, and (ii)
so-called candid (aka "natural") street portraits. The vast majority of
my portraits in Facing the World are interactive portraits, based on
well-established rapport, mutual trust and respect, which includes the explicit permission from
the subject to snap her or his portrait and upload it to the web, e.g.
to Flickr.
(i) An interactive aka "posed" portrait is generally more than a (candid) snapshot, but a composed image of a person in a still position which includes a more or less meaningful background. It shows the subject looking directly at the photographer in order to most successfully engage the subject with the viewer. There is always eye contact between the subject and the viewer:
(i) An interactive aka "posed" portrait is generally more than a (candid) snapshot, but a composed image of a person in a still position which includes a more or less meaningful background. It shows the subject looking directly at the photographer in order to most successfully engage the subject with the viewer. There is always eye contact between the subject and the viewer:
(ii)
A so-called candid aka
"natural" portrait tends to objectify the photographed, usually
unaware subject, is often ethically questionable (e.g. paparazzi) and sometimes
merely the symptom of a socially incompetent and/or insecure photographer.
At rare occasions, the shooting of
such a portrait might be justified when the subject's eyes are busy with
something other than the photographer (e.g. reading a newspaper,
examining an object, interacting with third parties):
Reactions
to candid photography differ between cultures and societies, and even where
restrictions on photography are not covered by statute, code, or judicial
precedent, there may be resistance to the taking of photographs by individuals.
The breach of the social norms can result in opprobrium, danger, and violence, and
as such should be noted and respected.
Portrait photographs of Hindu devotees from Tamil Nadu in Matt Hahnewald's
Flickr Album 2016-02a Facing Lively Tamil Nadu
Portrait photographs of sadhus from Nepal in Matt Hahnewald's
Portrait photographs of sadhus from Nepal in Matt Hahnewald's
Portrait photographs of sadhus from Tamil Nadu in Matt Hahnewald's
Portrait photographs of sadhus from Varanasi in Matt Hahnewald's
Even more ethnic street portraits from all over the world in Matt Hahnewald's
