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Seoul'n'Corea
Joined: 06 Nov 2008
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 Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 8:16 am Post subject: Phototaking turns ugly on saturday |
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I like to take pictures on the weekends of interesting city scenes and I have had 0 problems taking pictures until this weekend when I accidently took a pic of some guy walking into my shot when he suddenly ran at me and tried to start a fight with me. The man was yelling crazy stuff to me and he was afraid I would make a UCC or something, then he tried to grab my camera, at which point I nearly went for the guys throat in defense.
I deleted the picture of him in question..
There are some real crazies here in Seoul!! BE VERY careful.
I went to the police right after this and reported the incident. |
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ChinaBoy
Joined: 17 Feb 2007
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 9:49 am Post subject: |
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| You shouldn't be taking pictures of people, it's rude. |
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gangwonbound
Joined: 27 Apr 2009
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 10:14 am Post subject: |
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| ChinaBoy wrote: |
| You shouldn't be taking pictures of people, it's rude. |
Umm read the post again...The man walked into the shot...Not the poster was taking a photo of the man |
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The Bobster
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 11:44 am Post subject: |
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| ChinaBoy wrote: |
| You shouldn't be taking pictures of people, it's rude. |
Right, let's stick to flowers and cute kittens ...
I like to take pictures of people talking their phone in public. Their expressions are more genuine than the East Asian "public face" (usually, their faces reflect what they'd be showing if the person were there in front of them) and in most cases they don't notice I'm aiming at them. I never hide the fact that I'm taking a picture, and if they seem at all annoyed I bring the camera over and show it to them. Most times, they are happy about that - they are being included in the process.
I've yet to have an altercation like you describe. I'm not sure how I'd react, except as I described above. Unless I'm near a military base, I generally feel like I can take my camera out and shoot it at anything and anybody I want.
I'm not sure about the legalities in this country, but I'm pretty sure you can take a picture of people in public unless you intend to sell it for profit, in which case they become models and need to be compensated, I guess.
A lot of people - all over the world, really - are not really aware how often their picture is being taken by security cams in elevators and department stores, ATM machines, that kind of thing ...
Any picture is more interesting if there are people in it. I don't know what was up with that guy unless you accidentally had a gangster walk into your shot ...
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Jane
Joined: 01 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 5:28 pm Post subject: |
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I don't think that guy's reaction is the norm. I was down at the cheongyecheon stream last night, and I guy had a tripod set up at the entrance of an underground tunnel taking pictures of everyone passing through, including me.
I indicated by my body language that I wasn't comfortable with some stranger taking my picture, but he didn't care. |
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superacidjax
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 5:55 pm Post subject: |
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| ChinaBoy wrote: |
| You shouldn't be taking pictures of people, it's rude. |
It's not rude. If people are in a public place they're fair game. Basic journalism principle. If they're in their home or inside there house, then yes, that's rude, other than that there IS freedom of the press, even here in Korea. Publication for commercial gain (i.e. advertising) without consent is illegal, but other than that I have every right to shoot photos of whomever I want and put them on the front page of the New York Times if I so desire.
This isn't North Korea.
If people don't want to be seen (and by extension photographed) then they are welcome to stay out of the public view. Taking photos of someone is no different than looking at someone. It is rude to look at someone? |
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RACETRAITOR
Joined: 24 Oct 2005
Location: Seoul, South Korea
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 6:03 pm Post subject: |
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Maybe he was a celebrity you didn't know.
One useful part of taking candid photos is discretion. If your subject sees you photographing them, it will affect the shot. Getting caught comes with the risk. |
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Ukon
Joined: 29 Jan 2008
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 6:26 pm Post subject: |
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| This happened to my dad in the middle east and he's a big dude...some people obviously don't wanna be on camera... |
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Ukon
Joined: 29 Jan 2008
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 6:28 pm Post subject: |
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| This happened to my dad in the middle east and he's a big dude...some people obviously don't wanna be on camera... |
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crossmr
Joined: 22 Nov 2008
Location: Hwayangdong, Seoul
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 7:02 pm Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| It's not rude. If people are in a public place they're fair game. Basic journalism principle. |
Different countries have different laws. Korea appears to have much stricter privacy laws than other countries. This should be easy to grasp if you spend 5 minutes watching the news. The video camera on the news has got to be the mostly pointless thing ever as they rarely are able to show anything and constantly have to blur 90% of the shot. Also, unless you got a press pass, you're not a journalist.
Last edited by crossmr on Sun May 24, 2009 8:04 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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harlowethrombey
Joined: 17 Mar 2009
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 7:59 pm Post subject: |
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It might be technically legal to take anyone's photo in a public place but that doesnt mean its not rude.
I wouldnt appreciate some weird foreigner snapping photos of me when I'm just trying to go shopping, eating, talking on the phone, etc. And, if any of the defenders thought about it, neither would they.
So no, its really not cool to take candid photos of strangers, or of children or other guy's girlfriends.
How about you people leave the rest of us the hell alone and go practice your 'art' by taking pictures of your bare feet or some nonsense? |
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frankly speaking
Joined: 23 Oct 2005
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 8:03 pm Post subject: |
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Most professional photographers and even photojournalist that I have met always ask for permission before photographing subjects.
It is rude to photograph someone and they do have the right to decline being photographed. If they are in the background or not in focus then it isn't really an issue, but if they are the main subject, then they are not fair game as superacidjax suggested.
"If they're in their home or inside there house, then yes, that's rude,"
NO that is invasion of privacy and highly illegal.
"other than that there IS freedom of the press, even here in Korea."
I don't think that you ever took a law class.
Being legal and being impolite are not the same.
Even if it may be legal to take someone's photograph, it is still impolite if they don't want to be photographed.
However, the situation for the OP is a little different. It was an accident and if he/she were able to fully communicate that it was an accident and that the photo would not be kept, I don't think the person would have gotten so crazy.
Overall, just keep taking your photos. Don't let one minor incident spoil your enjoyment. Personally, I haven't found that many interesting things to photograph in Seoul. I think it is a very lackluster city. |
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Captain Corea
Joined: 28 Feb 2005
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 8:51 pm Post subject: |
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| superacidjax wrote: |
| ChinaBoy wrote: |
| You shouldn't be taking pictures of people, it's rude. |
It's not rude. If people are in a public place they're fair game. Basic journalism principle. If they're in their home or inside there house, then yes, that's rude, other than that there IS freedom of the press, even here in Korea. Publication for commercial gain (i.e. advertising) without consent is illegal, but other than that I have every right to shoot photos of whomever I want and put them on the front page of the New York Times if I so desire.
This isn't North Korea.
If people don't want to be seen (and by extension photographed) then they are welcome to stay out of the public view. Taking photos of someone is no different than looking at someone. It is rude to look at someone? |
Wrong - there are limits to how and where you can take photos. Recent court cases in Korea have attested to such.
I personally think we have the right to refuse our picture being taken, but I don't think it's very practicle in this day and age. |
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The Bobster
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Sun May 24, 2009 9:51 pm Post subject: |
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| harlowethrombey wrote: |
| It might be technically legal to take anyone's photo in a public place but that doesnt mean its not rude. |
Yeah, maybe, but there are also ways to do it so that it aren't rude.
If the subject never notices anything, even though I'm not hiding what I'm doing ... well, how could it be rude? No harm, no foul. It could only be rude if my intentions are cruel, i.e., to show the picture to others in a way that intends to bring ridicule. That would be a pointless use my equipment, and anyway, I take pictures of people because I like people.
If they do notice, I'll show it and offer to delete if they don't like it - then, I ask them to pose for me. I hate posed pictures, but sometimes they are also fun - and if I do it right, the subject feels flattered rather than offended.
I don't speak Korean well, but I have a small number of phrases written on cards to show people.
"May I take your picture?"
"It's my hobby."
"I'll delete it if you want."
"I'll send it to your email if you want."
"I think Korea is beautiful and interesting."
There's only one time broke my rules, and that's when a woman got up on the subway and started talking loud about Jayzus. I mean, really loud. I started taking pictures of her in a very obvious way, hoping she would just head for the next car of the train, and when she confronted me and asked me to delete them, I just pretended to. Then, I stuck her on my blog. 
Hey, if somebody's gonna rude like that in such an obvious way, why do I need to be polite ... ?
frankly speaking
| Quote: |
| Personally, I haven't found that many interesting things to photograph in Seoul. I think it is a very lackluster city. |
I've heard people say this, and I once believed it myself. Somehow in just under 2 years I've found opportunity to take several thousand pictures (I carry the machine in my teacher's bag, a P&S, so I can pull it out anytime) and a couple hundred turned out well enough I don't mind showing them to people.
I think at first I was trying to document and describe this place ... after a while, I stopped thinking of it as a place where Koreans live and instead as a place where humans live. When you come at it from that angle, it doesn't really matter what city, country or continent you happen to be in. |
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Seoul'n'Corea
Joined: 06 Nov 2008
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| Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 1:20 am Post subject: Some of you need to read before posting |
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I did not take the picture on purpose, i was taking a picture of something that happened across the street when this idiot walked into the frame.
He was obviously looking for a fight and is a paranoid delusional and drunk...
Watch out because there are a lot of these guys out and about due to the current situation and they are looking at anyone to blame for the mess SK in in right now.
I went to the Police over this, and apparently it is solved. |
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