I have also done personal projects with medium format cameras of the square format. What’s your equipment of choice? Is there a reason why you chose it for this project? Does the subject matter influence your equipment and film choice?įor this project almost all of the photographs were made with a Leica rangefinder, a 35mm lens and Tri-X film. There seems to be more than enough stupidity and/or ignorance on all sides of these issues than I care to indulge in. I’ve noticed on our own blog when we write about the erosion of civil liberties, people actually (and often belligerently) write in defending the government or police tactics and call those who are outraged “radicals,” saying things like it’s just keeping us safe from terrorists. I was chased off the steps of Enron after I made the pictures I wanted to. In some circumstances, I would approach a security guard or employee and ask permission. I almost never skulked around and at times would make it obvious to any potential viewer of my photographing that I was taking my time, giving the surveillors time to study me as I made my pictures (the precise nature of which they could have no idea). 2., I know how to photograph and when one does something with confidence and competence, most people accept it. In general I did not have problems for a few reasons (I suppose, but cannot prove): 1., I am a middle-aged, white-haired white guy. The most obnoxious incident was with an assistant manager at a Safeway market. Malls are private property and the law regarding photography in public and private places is different and I know the differences. Did you ever experience problems when taking these photos – either from security or passersby? It is often difficult to photograph malls and institutions and even architecture in this day and age with security concerns. I have no idea of the number of surveillance cameras then or now except that there are many more now than in ’03. I did eventually make some trips with the object of photographing them in different places.īefore this project did you have an accurate idea of the amount of surveillance cameras out there? Was it eye-opening? I avidly sought them out for five or six weeks and quickly came to realize that it was not necessary they were everywhere and I just go about my business and photograph them in day-to-day life and photography. I photograph the social landscape and began to notice what seemed like an exponential increase in surveillance cameras in January ’03 and began to photograph them as part of the urban landscape.Īre these photographs more the result of seeking out the surveillance cameras, or happening upon them? What was the origin of this project for you – the spark or series of events that made you want to do it? Here, he answered a few questions about the book and photography for us. He’ll also have four photographs at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art from October 23 through January 2010. Gordon is a part-time instructor of photography at City College of San Francisco and Stanford Continuing Studies, and he’ll be a part of “Exposed: Voyeurism, Surveillance and the Camera” at the Tate Modern in London in June 2010. By documenting security cameras – in malls, buildings, musuems, on the streets – Gordon reminds us we’re being watched nearly all the time. In his book American Surveillance photographer Richard Gordon takes on the topic of the ubiquity of surveillance cameras in the US.
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