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JAPAN - SHOOTING THE WORKFORCE UNCEREMONIOUSLY, WITH FLASH


In general, Japanese people like to keep their distance from one another. They are shy. I'm one of them so I know. I've always wondered how they would behave if I turned a camera on them without their permission but with them knowing what was going on. So I put the general workforce to the test, shooting with a flash on purpose so they'd know that I was shooting them. I was especially interested in how the blue-collar folk responded. Their working style is so serious and robotic, it seems they almost don't have any cardiac output. This is so Japanese. Anyway, let's see my photos…

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The guy up there, I took about seven photos of him but he behaved as if he knew nothing about it. He didn't make eye contact with me or say anything to me. It seems like he couldn't understand how to respond.

He took a displeased stance when I pointed the camera at him, but he turned his face sideways without glaring at me.

He scooted his body over to the side, looking uncomfortable. To tell the truth, I don't think he thought I was trying to get him in the frame--I think he thought I was shooting whatever that is behind him. That means that if I point the camera at Japanese people, they are too shy to even think to themselves that they might be the subject of the picture.

"I don't care if someone takes my photo with a flash. I will ignore it, but I will indicate a wish of not wanting to be photographed by turning my face sideways." "I have so little to stand guard against I'm going to pretend I don't notice the flash by looking at the sky."

"Who the fuck is this man taking my picture? Too bad for me I'm now a staff of the election campaign so I can't be angry about anything. Keep smiling…"
He is a policeman and very busy with his business so he couldn't pay any mind to my camera. "I'm a stone. Stone doesn't move. Weird man takes photographs of me but stone doesn't move… " "I don't want to pose straight on so I will nonchalantly turn my head skyward." This girl is a shop employee. She was surprised by my sudden shooting but I was customer for her so she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do--smile or tell me to get out. I felt sorry in this case. Sorry, girl…

TOMOKAZU KOSUGA