RE: [Leica] primative people and photography

[Greg Locke <locke@straylight.ca>]

At 08:48 AM 29/02/00 -0500, you wrote:
>I lived for a good while in the Zuni Pueblo South of Gallup, New Mexico.
>The Zuni are very conservative people and photography is generally not
>tolerated-- if not forbidden-- in all but the most public of places.
>However, as I became known around the community I was invited to photograph
>most aspects of daily life, even Shalako, but not the most sacred activities
>or icons.  This may be a shade of the anthropologist's "participant
>observer" effect...or it may have simply been my acceptance among friends.

         Buzz raises a good point.

As the (maybe) Token Anthropologist (and working journalist) on the list I 
thought I would jump in with a few thoughts.

         I have worked with the Hopi and Navajo when I was in university. 
These groups, like many "traditional" cultures around the world, are very 
conservative and react (rightfully so, in my view) with suspicion to 
outsiders. They are very sensitive to the exploitation and overwhelming 
effect of Euro-American consumer culture.

         Photography has no relation to religious belief but they do see it 
as emblematic of western culture and exploitation.  Therefor they strive to 
limit all incursions on their traditional culture by external influence.

         In the past 25 years, doing field work as an anthropologist or 
journalist, I have never been denied the ability to photograph traditional 
cultures, events or ceremonies. I have photographed indigenous people in 
Canada, USA, Central America, Haiti, Somalia and Kenya.

The reason being, I gained their trust by being open and honest about my 
work and its purpose. They came to trust me and felt I would not exploit 
them or do anything to harm them. You are not going to be able to do this 
being a tourist.

I would also like to add that, "primitive" is hardly appropriate.  Many of 
these cultures are far more advanced socially and humanistically then 
our  own western, Anglo-European, northern hemisphere, consumer based society.

cheers all,

Greg Locke                         St. John's, Newfoundland
locke@straylight.ca              http://www.straylight.ca/locke
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