Crouching tiger to unveil hidden dragon

Nivedan throws light on covert photography, the applicability for development photography and ways of doing it. He also speaks on deciding when it is ethical and when it is not.
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A covert photography is one which a photographer does without the knowledge of the subject(s). While there are more than countable number of idiots who do that with their mobile phones in public places here, one can sue the photographer for intrusion into his/her space and privacy in many western countries. So whenever a photo is taken, written permission has to be got from each individual in a frame. Whenever the photograph is publicly displayed or sold to a stock, the permission letter has to be produced. It is known as ‘model release’. It helps to protect the privacy of the common man. In India, it is not the case. Instead, if I am shooting a mall, a construction site or an industry from outside, there will be dozens of thugs come running towards me to snatch the camera. The reason is, they will have thousand law-infringements inside the premises ranging from child labour to exploitation and wage malpractices that they don’t want to be exposed through our counter-hegemony. But in this country where a HIV patient is exposed and insulted to death, no one cares for privacy.

But as development photographers, we have to expose the tragedies and agonies that the subjects may feel sensitive to. For example, in some rural areas in Tamilnadu, people believe that being photographed reduces their lifetime! If I need to cover a story on, say farmers’ miseries, how can I do that with the knowledge of the concerned people? So, a development photographer is forced to a situation, where covert photography is inevitable. One has to initially decide on whether it is ethical or not, according to the situation. In this article, I would also like to discuss on why, where and how, one should practice covert photography.

Click to see candid pictures

Covert photography is anyhow an intrusion into someone’s privacy. So, one should reserve it as the last option. It should be used only when there is no other way to cover an issue. Personally, I have faced the dilemma of choosing between doing covert photography or to miss the moment. Many a time I have chosen the latter. So how did I decide when to take and when to miss? I would calculate the impact that photo will make, which implies the message-worthiness of the moment and the usability of the photograph for a broader cause. More importantly, I will also think of the risks involved in it.

There are some risk-free moments that require covert photography such as while shooting the children. Children are always vibrant and they will make lots of movements in the frame. It can happen otherwise also, i.e. when they are being photographed, they are so excited and want to look good in photographs, freeing their actions, they even stop smiling. But it will make the picture too artificial, as if it is taken in a studio. There is a necessity to take photos without their knowledge. So, covert photography is one solution and the photographer would not miss the emotions, playfulness and concentration in whatever they are doing.

Most of the times, I would do it candidly, and not covertly. They may know I am going to take their photo, but they would not know when. This is because, I would compose the image and look out of the camera, straight into their faces and engage them with some expressions. So they assume that I would not be taking a photograph at that moment, but I would. It was a way that one of my photographer friends suggested to me. But after taking I will make the children happy by showing them, albeit without giving the precious equipment in their hands.

When it is a sensitive environment, I would not take out the camera publicly and show in front of all. It will unnecessarily draw attention. For instance, brick-making was going on in a construction site. There was child labour in abundance. The toddlers of the brick makers also were intentionally let to play near the parents while working, so that the parents won’t be going to their temporary shelters nearby to look after the needs of their children and the workflow would be reduced. The environment was too inhuman, full of dust and noise. There were stacks of finished bricks very close to the place. If a brick falls on the head of a toddler, that would be the end of the him/her.

I wanted to capture this cruelty for later use. But the supervisor was constantly roaming and bullying the brick makers. At the sight of a camera, I would be attacked certainly and my equipment would be seized. The workers also had to be kept busy, otherwise it will raise suspicion. So I carefully prepared my camera inside the opaque bag, as if I am searching for something. Once the supervisor’s turned his vision to the opposite direction, I took out the camera. I had asked my colleague to stand near the brick makers and converse with them, so that they may not know if there is a camera. Within three seconds the shot was finished. Suddenly I placed it inside the bag, only to find that just after hiding the camera the supervisor’s looks turned towards us.

But in certain circumstances, one has to shoot from an angle, where the face of the subject should not be visible at all. For instance, confidentiality is an ethic when it comes to victims of sexual abuse, HIV patients, etc. Only if it is highly essential, their photographs can be taken, that too in a way that they are not at all identifiable. One has to strictly follow it when it comes to candid or covert photography. It is highly insisted to show the photo to them and get approval for taking it to the audience.

Finally, before going for covert photography one has to think of how much impact it would make in the minds of the target audience. If the impact would be minimal, covert photography is best, avoided. For example, when I was asked to cover the hawkers being evicted from the streets ruthlessly, with the seizure of their goods, which implies the loss of their livelihood in a second, I decided not to shoot that. This is mainly because the target audiences want them to be evicted and photography is not the medium to express the complete miseries of the Hawkers to that particular class. There was a documentary film getting ready for that purpose. So an extensive medium will create a greater impact than the photographs, which would be of no use to sensitize the particular group of people.

So, when it comes to covert or candid photography, one has to make sure that it is ethical, unlike a few mobile phone photographers. One has to decide on when, where and how to take a covert snap. One has to protect the identity of the subject whenever it is required. Finally, one has to think of the impact a photograph before going it.

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About the Author: Nivedan is an intern at National Centre for Advocacy Studies (NCAS), Pune. With self-nurtured knowledge of photography, he experiments with photography and other forms like posters so as to use them as tools for sensitization, advocacy and social transformation.

Contact Nivedan at nivedanmangalesh@yahoo.com