Surveillance 101
As a photographer, I am always in search of a subject or story to capture. It is not always easy; there are days of frustration and then there are days when you know what you are working on. The following series, Surveillance 101, emerged from my desperate attempt to find a subject or story to photograph. One fall morning in Paris, I positioned myself at a nondescript location with my camera and lenses, watching and observing people's movements around me. I observed people at Parisian cafes, people waiting, eating, sitting, and talking, sometimes hidden. Secretly, I began taking their pictures without their knowledge. Although I was invisible and physically distant from them, they were very close and clearly visible to me; I watched their every movement.
The act of photographing people secretly became my guilty pleasure—something that is unethical, yet I still engage in it. Am I the only one who does this? What about the CCTV cameras that surround us? Isn't someone watching us all the time in the name of security? I wouldn't deny that there is a feeling of exhilaration in watching someone secretly. You get to know quite a lot about the person. Moreover, the fact that the other person doesn't see you is an added advantage—it is a feeling of being invisible. I don't have to ask for their permission to take their photos. I do indulge in surveillance photography every once in a while, hoping to create a photo essay on my experiences, constructing narratives and leaving them open to interpretation for the audience.
