How to avoid a negative confrontation.

So, I just actually got confronted about a half hour ago. I was outside of McDonald’s down here in Santa Monica. I was just, you know, just shooting random stuff on the wall and doorknobs and locks and just textured stuff, right?

And there was a security guard right behind me. And, you know, if you’ve been doing street photography long enough, you know how the security guards get.

They get a little antsy, a little antsy in the pantsies, you know.

And so, uh, I went into McDonald’s. I was going to get a little coffee. And, um, usually, like, the best way to just…

We got carrying a box. We got carrying a box. She’s carrying a big old box.

All right. So, the best way to never get confronted is just take your shot and then just keep walking. You know, that’s like the best way to never get confronted ever.

But there are certain scenarios where, um, you’re not going to be walking away, and the person that’s wondering why you’re taking photos is going to come up to you and talk to you.

So this is just another way to avoid confrontation.

So yeah, I’m, like, in McDonald’s ordering from the kiosk, and the security guard comes from outside inside, and, um, he asks me what I’m taking photos of, right?

And, you know, it’s just always awkward, you know, when somebody asks you that.

It’s kind of like you want to get a big ego and be like, “Fuck off, dude. It’s my First Amendment right,” and all that crap.

But from my experience, that is just the wrong way to go about it because even though you don’t owe the guy an explanation, it’s just better just to explain what you’re doing and move on so everybody has a good experience, right?

Just want to have a good experience in life and move on.

So, obviously, I’m in… I’m at the kiosk ordering my coffee. I just can’t, like, walk away, right? He’s, like, right next to me at the kiosk, so I had to explain to him what I’m doing.

And, well, I don’t have to, but I chose to explain to him what I’m doing.

And, uh, he was just asking me why I’m taking the photos, and I just said, “Hey, yeah, I’m just, you know, I’m just an artist working on a project.”

It was simple as that, you know.

And it was all about my body language. I was doing it with a smile. I was calm and collected, you know, even though he kind of came at me a little aggressive.

And then as soon as I said that, he gave me the rock pound.

His eyes just lit up, and the whole demeanor changed.

And he told me it’s because he was afraid that I was, like, working with his boss to make sure he was, you know, doing work that day or something. I don’t know.

So, you know, a lot of these times, you know, people get upset because maybe, you know, you’re photographing them, they’re, like, skipping work.

You know, what if a lot of the people we’re taking photos of, like, out on the street, they’re, like, supposed to be at work, you know, and we’re just, like, taking a shot of them?

You know, they’re playing hooky from work.

So yeah, that’s just another method to avoid the negative confrontation.

Just say, “I’m an artist, you know, working on a project.”

You know, do it with a nice, open body language and with a smile.

And I mean, most of the times, nobody’s going to care about that.

So, um, yeah, that is a method I highly recommend to avoid the negative confrontation.