Seoul Street Photography Guide: Shooting the streets in Korea

 

What I call the "Seoul dilemma" for street photographers. Well folks, at first glance Seoul may seem like an ideal place for capturing the dynamic street life: the night life, all the mixed style and architecture, crossing life-styles and generations... However in reality, it may not particularly be so! Indeed any street photographer who finds himself in the midst of Seoul is confronted with a dilemma, a difficult one to overcome. The current Korean society is very sensitive, let's say fragile in a certain sense, when it comes to privacy issues, such as unnoticed filming and shooting –-which many of us street photographers do! The gist of the problem lies in the relation between privacy and intimacy. In Seoul, the sensitivity of intimacy varies to an extent which is incomparable to any other cities or metropolitans, at least to my experience in Paris, London, Berlin, Beijing, and so on. In Seoul, this dynamic lieu of an interesting mixture of epoques and styles, each situation of shooting has its very own "rule" of intimacy. It is very, very heterogenous and it makes hard to expect any regularities. In fact the city has known only very recently, let's say from the last five years, a boost of interest from foreign travellers and residents due to some success in k-pop culture and cultural diffusion in general. However, the citizens themselves, especially those who are rather more conservative, do not expect themselves to be living in a global, touristic place. Therefore when they see any camera on them (even if you're a foreigner), it immediately evokes a sort of disgust or hatred in their emotional reaction. I have experienced this relatively a lot more times than in other cities, and this makes street photography extremely difficult in Seoul. For example, if we compare this with the situation of Tokyo, another Metropolitan in far-east Asia, the stories take a whole new direction. Tokyo has been the center of world economy from the 1960s and the people there are more relaxed and exposed to random shootings. It doesn't necessrily have to do with openness of mind or kindness; it's a matter of cultural style. Seoul is still at the shore of cultural exchange. So when you want to shoot the streets in Seoul, you may want to reconsider adapting your personal style to the style of the city. This reconfiguration in itself will prove to be a rich source of unexpected discoveries both in aesthetic and practical manners. You'll find your own way to capture the dilemmatic atmosphere of Seoul, and maybe end up finding yourself being transformed in some unexpected way. In all, Seoul is quite tricky for shooting but it's fun and exciting when it means to find a new style and motivation. Cheers! by Artium.

 

 

Disclaimer. The photo here is my work. It is not a CCL (Creative Commons Licence). This means that you are not allowed to cite, copy nor reproduce it for any purpose. You must ask me for the right to use the photo, possibly paying for the right. Thanks.