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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Twenty Four: The Workplace -- essence of a culture > Construction worker, Vinh Long, Vietnam, 2008
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03-JAN-2008

Construction worker, Vinh Long, Vietnam, 2008

The nature of this country’s vibrant, yet delicate economy is clearly evident in my images, including this photograph of a determined young man at work on the back of a vintage cement mixer in the small Mekong Delta city of Vinh Long. I saw him working but he stopped just as I raised the camera, and pointed at me with a smile. As I found in many other instances, the Vietnamese are so proud of being photographed by visitors that they stopped whatever they may have been doing and posed for me. This worker spent several minutes alternately self-consciously pretending to work and simply grinning at me. I kept on shooting him, knowing that eventually he would tire of the game and get back to work. Finally, he did just that. He geared up the ancient cement mixer and a look of concern and determination came to his face. He had forgotten all about me, and that’s when I made this photograph. If you desire credibility in your own images of people at work, it is a good idea to spend awhile getting them used to your presence. Eventually your subjects should gradually drift back to work, and then you can make images that tell the story of what is actually happening, instead of just a picture of somebody having their picture taken.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/125s f/4.0 at 32.4mm iso100 full exif

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Phil Douglis09-Mar-2008 21:56
You have reached the correct conclusion here, Tim -- in your Pingyao portrait, the subject knows he is having his picture taken, but he does not respond self-consciously or predictably. Instead, he incongruously looks into your lens, and in the process looks into our souls and allows us to look into his. So yes -- we can make pictures of people having their pictures taken that express meaning and feelings. You give us a perfect example in that link.

I also agree with you that we never should deliberately pursue pictures of unwilling subjects. It is a form of harassment. We are not paparazzi -- those vultures who earn their livings by hounding their subjects, willing or not. I try not to steal shots either -- most of my subjects are aware of my presence, but as I note here, I keep shooting until they forget about me and go back to whatever they may be doing. Glad you are enjoying
Dyer's book. His observations on photography give us much to think about.
Tim May09-Mar-2008 18:50
I have been dipping into Geoff Dyer's "The Ongoing Moment" in which he discusses the role of the photographer in the making of the image. This has led me to thinking about photographing people. I am not sure, really not sure, about how I feel about "stolen" shots. I feel it important to respect the people I am photographing enough to let them know that I am photographing them and getting tacit permission. I am especially appalled at photographers who continue to photograph someone when they have explicitly refused to have a picture made. Here you suggest a great alternative to the secret shots. The patient waiting until the subject is bored with you and moves on with his or her life almost forgetting that you are there.
I also am interested in your line: "...instead of just a picture of somebody having their picture taken." I know that I try to avoid the portrait of the self conscious subject - the face shot. But sometimes the face shots are so compelling to my editors eye, that they make it through my self censoring. One example in my galleries is this shot: http://www.pbase.com/mityam/image/93681388 . It is clearly a picture of somebody having their picture taken, yet it seems to me powerful.
I am not coming to any conclusions here - just expressing my thoughts as I try to work this out. I think the answer is really that there are no rules, there are only images that work or don't work.
Phil Douglis28-Jan-2008 20:19
Patience is part of it, Alina. Persistence, too. And always with a big smile. I make photography an exercise in pleasure, rather than a secretive ordeal. By never masking my face with my camera, my expression is always visible to my subject, and they feel much more at ease than if I was shooting them with a machine over my face. That is why a flip out view finder, which you can look down into, can be such a valuable tool for photographing people.
Alina28-Jan-2008 16:22
Thank you Phil for the comment. You are so good with photographing people. For me it is the hardest task to manage. You have the patients that I have to learn.
Phil Douglis19-Jan-2008 05:22
Thank you David and Tricia. You have accurately defined the reason why this image works as expression, David -- the guy is working amidst chaos on an ancient machine yet he is the essence of determination. And thank to you, Tricia, for noting the relationship of spontaneity to credibility. Glad you find my suggestions useful, as always.
flowsnow19-Jan-2008 02:35
You are right. It's always the case where when one is conscious of another person taking a picture, he/she will automatically pose for you. But the best pictures are usually those candid ones where the person just do his/her own things and not bothered about your presence. Such images definitely make better pictures. Narration to the event helps to viewer to understand why you have picked the photo.
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