Are We Witnessing the Demise of Street Photography?
Art has always been forced to evolve the same way human behavior has been forced to adapt to new circumstances. The same way photography helped free painters from mimicking reality, AI today has forced photographers to be more realistic than before. However, one instance in photography has been forced to change more drastically and dramatically: street photography.
The rise of new and sophisticated face recognition software has made people less friendly and confident when they see a camera. Instead, they become cautious, hostile, and even aggressive. The fear of having their face pinpointed on the Facebook of a stranger they don’t know has reached paranoid levels.
As my sixth participation in the 24 Hour Project approaches, I can’t help but wonder how I am going to tackle the event. A project born to support different charities through the pictorial documentation of human life relies on people (especially those who are at work or walking through life) getting captured on camera.
However, it has become clear that the job or the art of street photographers has turned into an endangered species. The candid images that were normally taken a few years ago have slowly started to give way to more semi-candid photos, which are taken after asking for permission and saying “Just pretend I am not here.”
Of course, the possibility of doing full candids in big cosmopolitan cities is still there. Places like Paris, New York, Chicago, Tokyo, Rome, Bangkok and others still allow for the street photographer to develop, evolve and create. Less can be done in environments that are more suburban and slower. People tend to be less friendly, open and cooperative.
The big concern for everyone is privacy, mainly because a lot of people have compromised others online. With the use of AI tools, your face can be placed on a photo or even a video of something that never happened. In other words, everyone feels compromised. This is a topic I have already discussed.
Things become even more complicated for male photographers. While cameras in general can trigger people and make them defensive, a female photographer will likely be given a little more grace. The bias, nevertheless, has been more than justified.
So, what remains to be done now, at least in my own perspective, is to stop trying to take actually candid photos. I have resorted to carrying a card holder with me, and handing out my card to people before aiming the lens at them. I also ask for permission, tell them why I am taking the photo, and then proceed. Occasionally, I have even shown my NPPA (National Press Photographers Association) ID, which I carry around my neck while photographing parades, festivals or protests.
But that process in itself eliminates the “street” factor. The decisive moment has disappeared and the photo is not the same it would have been if it had been taken at the right instant.
Another strategy is to take the picture first and ask for permission later. Yet, it is also risky because such action has the potential to trigger a hostile and even aggressive reaction. The last resort, for me, has been to use a 50mm lens: its small size and width makes it less obvious, less threatening and more discrete.
Either way, I am approaching street photography differently compared to how I was doing it three years ago. Even the time I took on the streets of West Hartford on a Saturday night and photographed strangers, everyone had, one way or another, a friendly interaction with me before I pressed the shutter.
Maybe this is me looking at things from the scope of someone who lives in Connecticut, where street life is close to non-existent. The state has been ranked 44th in America in terms of “fun”, and for photographers the go-to is the isolated festivals, some old historic buildings or landscapes, and some parades.
Would I have a different opinion if I lived in a place like New York, or Chicago, or Boston, or Baltimore? Perhaps, but we can’t deny there is a decline in the production of intimate and closely personal street photos. Even if I lived in one of those cities, I would choose to be more cautious than I would have been five years ago.
Trying to keep my street photography alive has been a challenge, and will continue to be a challenge (with the prospects of growing). Yet, despite the restrictions and the limitations, I am more than willing to try.
As long as it is alive, I will not let it die for me.
