Respect is not technique. It is something you build before the camera comes out.
Every photographer who comes to India asks me the same question: How do I photograph people on the street without them getting angry? They are asking the wrong question. The right question is: How do I connect with people so genuinely that the camera becomes invisible?
Before you raise the camera — make eye contact. Smile. Find a reason to interact that has nothing to do with photography. Then, when you do raise the camera, you are not a stranger taking something. You are a guest who has been welcomed in.
Shivam Pandey
Born in Varanasi, shaped by Kolkata — Shivam Pandey has spent over a decade reading the streets before the camera comes out. That is the skill he passes on: not technique, but awareness.
Subscribe to Kolkata Photo Tours
Photography stories, insights, and guides from the streets of Kolkata and India — straight to your inbox.
Free · No spam · Unsubscribe anytime
