Alone

Posted by Peter Mannfolk (Landskrona, Sweden) on 7 May 2008 in People & Portraits.

I really hesitated about publishing this one. I took a photo of this poor man sleeping and when I walked away I started thinking about the purpose of taking such a photo. Of course one could argue that a depiction of the sad sides of our world is a good thing since it highlights the fact that not all people are as fortunate to have a home. On the other hand, there is always a self promoting side to every published photo - the photographer is still keen of being praised for his or her work, regardless of what the image depicts. I finally decided to publish this one, partially because the mans identity is hidden but also because I really would like you to comment on how to deal with a photo like this. Although I´ve really appreciated your encouraging comments on my previous images this would be an exception. Please don´t comment on the quality of this image, just give me your views of how to handle images like these. And please tell me if you´d like me to remove it.

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Comments (7)

CRFoto from Salt Lake City, United States

I work downtown and always see lots of homeless people. I have often thought of taking pictures of them. i have wanted to for many different reasons. They have very unique faces, and I have wanted to make a social comment of the people that we often ignore as we walk by. I have often thought of giving them some money, to help them, and for being able to take their picture. I have not taken any pictures to date of them because of the very issue you bring up ( I feel like I would taking advantage of their situation). I think you handled it very well.

7 May 2008 1:40am

Gnarf from Stockholm, Sweden

I see homeless people and addicts more or less every day when going to and from work. The thought of taking a picture have of course occurred when I see for an example a man sleeping on a bench. But I have never done it since something is holding me back. For some reason it just does not feel right. I ask people I dont know when I take a picture of them, and I don't want to ask the man on the bench. However I am not offended by seeing this kind of pictures, I think you did it well.

7 May 2008 2:10am

Jason Kravitz from Brussels, Belgium

Interesting discussion Peter... I often stay away from shooting street people as I don't feel it is my responsibility to document or contribute to them through my photos. I have two thoughts... the first is that I think if someone wants to share the life of these people, they should understand who this person is first. There is a great photographer on Flickr who goes by PS Zollo. He has hundreds of street portraits and I believe (at least he used to) he talks with every single person first - asks them their story, shoots the breeze and then asks permission to photograph them.

My other thought is about what we project into the world. I by no means think that we should just ignore homeless people and hope they go away but I think that through our images, we set the collective pulse of the world around us. If we put out images of loneliness, despair, violence etc, we invite more loneliness, despair and violence into the world.

In the end, your choice is for you alone. We are each on a different path in this world and if yours is to make change through poignant images, then it is 100% valid.

7 May 2008 3:17am

Bhavin from Mississauga, Canada

Touching picture. One to remember. Great capture.

7 May 2008 8:48am

Kheoh Yee Wei from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

I think it is wrong if you take a photo of a homeless people and then gain profit out of it without giving them an appropriate amount of monetary return,and it is even more wrong if you pretend to be sincere to them just to take photo of them without any concern to their condition after that .Well,most of us do not profit from our photos,then maybe we could give them a copy of the photo you just took as a gift.It takes a certain degree of commitment to not feel guilty in photography...

I don't agree with Jason saying that "if we put out images of loneliness, despair, violence etc, we invite more loneliness, despair and violence into the world. ". In photojournalism's point of view,for example those photojournalist in Iraq now,as a collective effort to tell the horror conditions in photography,they are rising the awareness and meaningful and constructive consciousness of the people towards the brutality of the war,which i believe in effect affects the politics processes around the world that will in turn benefits the homeless people in Iraq,so while photojournalist profits from the photos they took in Iraq,at the same time people in Iraq also benefit,so it is a win-win situation !

7 May 2008 9:13am

Peter Mannfolk from Landskrona, Sweden

Thanks a lot for your comments on this one. I´m really glad to receive so well formulated comments and I do share the thoughts you all convey. I´ll leave this one published and hope it at least serves as a basis for discussions like these. I´m still hesitating though... Thanks again! /Peter

7 May 2008 10:06am

Ron from Saint Louis, United States

I work in ministry and because of my vocation I interact with homeless people and those in need quite often. There have been times when this interaction has become a tremendously difficult burden to bear. A friend suggested I read The Miracle of Mindfulness, written by Thich Nhat Hanh (a Vietnamese Zen monk, poet, and peacemaker) as a manual for young nuns and monks who were facing death every day in war-torn Vietnam. In this book Brother Thich Nhat Hanh explores the spiritual discipline of mindfulness, tangibly affecting suffering in the world by facing it in oneself and in others.

If we (as individuals and community) are to address the needs of the homeless (and our own suffering in response to the homeless) then we have to acknowledge it and the suffering that accompanies it. That is what this image (and this discussion initiated by Peter) does. It acknowledges a difficult and painful truth of the world in which we live. It is not exploitative, but it certainly reaches somewhere deep within us to stir an emotional response. That is what good photography does.

7 May 2008 2:19pm

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