I recently found myself contemplating a controversial issue that I had never thought about before. What is considered an appropriate situation/subject to take a photo of? This question seems to have a simple answer, but that's not the case. During my recent travels to Peru, our group was invited to visit a religious center, where indigenous Peruvian natives could sleep and eat for a small compensation. Now these people are not just randomly plucked off of the streets. They come from the Amazonian jungle, living in tribal families with no contact to outside of the jungle, enjoying their minimalistic life. These people have never seen or used a raised flame to cook on (stove.) Nor do they have the concept of shutting water off with a valve, all they know is that the river runs and it does not stop.
We were greeted with beautiful song and dance, influenced by many different regions of Amazonian Peru. All of these songs had a strong influence from G-d or "El Dios." In one instance, I looked over and saw a young daughter sitting on her mothers lap, with her seven brothers sitting next to them. The young girl brought her hands up to her face, palms placed together in the traditional prayer position. To me or you, this may seem like an every day action in a place of worship, but to these deep-rooted people, it meant much much more. Do I take a picture of her praying? Would it be a sign of intrusion and disrespect?
Another moment I had hesitation to capture was when a woman brought her child up to her chest and started to breastfeed in the middle of the wonderful ceremony. It is not something you instinctively think of taking a picture of, but the fact that it is so unnatural to breastfeed in public, I couldn't resist. This action was nothing more than a part of daily life for these gracious people, where in America, this harmless action could land you in jail for indecent exposure.
What instances have you faced where you didn't know where to draw the line between risqué and wrong?
