[Ehlacore]

Hey--this should be in politics and religion.

Besides:

How the hell can anyone learn, or want to learn, that a picture of a house with a bird crapping over it actually represents the word "The."

haha I agree, but I still have to respond (my stupid nature)

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Last edited by Ehlacore; 10-28-2010 at 05:38 PM.

[Ehlacore]

Someone told me that National Geographic has something on there website where you can submit a photo of a specific topic and if they decide to use it they will pay you for it. I have yet to research/verify this, can anyone here?

He also told me that besides National Geo there are more websites out there that do the same. Can anyone verify this as well?

**The person that told me has a ton of $h*t spewing from his mouth so there is a good chance he is lying, but this actually might be the 1% chance of truth.

That would be awesome, if anyone knows of this please LMK

[Ehlacore]

With the exception of festivals, which I have never heard of having any restrictions on photography, quite often the situation is that a professional has been hired for the event and has an exclusive on it. For some events it actually makes good sense, as you would otherwise have ruining the show countless amateurs with no consideration for either audience or performers as well as countless family members with no idea how to turn off the utterly useless flash on their P&S.

I:ve been to several events as I said and have been asked to not take photos WITHOUT me being intrusive. But I kind of understand it when for example there was a British tourist at the Fish Market in Tokyo (which tourists were banned from going to not too long ago). There was a man cutting a HUGE FROZEN TUNA with a giant saw. She took a photo WITH the flash and startled him. His fingers were not 2 inches on eitherside of the saw!

I know thats an extreme example, but I always ask "Syashingu Daigobudeska" or "Syashingu onegaishimas" but have gotten turned down about 1/2 the time. (when trying to take pictures of a individual thing that interests me). At events, its about 60-70% of the time Ive been told not to take photos that only "staff" can take photos. Yet I see Japanese people with personal digital cameras taking photos. (I guess because I brought my SLR they think I will sell them)

[Ehlacore]

Actually, the English-speaking westerner is coddled to an alarming degree, the country places few if any demands upon him, and with the advent of the internet and the accompanying technology boom life for the foreigner in Japan is easier than it has ever been. Combine that with the fact that very few of them actually make much meaningful effort to assimilate or even step outside their largely self-imposed gaijin-ghetto social cocoon I find it difficult to work up much sympathy for their complaints.

I am greatly coddled here. Especially since I grew out my beard. Most people let me get away with alot because they see me as just a "ignorent foreigner" and sometimes I am. (I kept my chopsticks in my rice for the first 2 months before someone told me how bad of manners that is... I had no idea)

There are many things that I try to conform to, but almost as equally are the things that I cannot. I cannot ignore a woman in need (one time I saw a girl being harrassed by a drunk businessman and I made the mistake of asking if she was ok in Japanese), and a few other things that make me stand out.





It is simply a fact that Japanese people dont like their pictures being taken by people they dont know. They LOOOOVE Parikura but HATE the internets ability to spread photos. They love their privacy. Many of my Japanese friends REFUSE to go on facebook, and some who do use fake names and dont use their picture for a default (instead something they like.... ice cream or something).

If I went up to 100 people (in my area) on the street and asked if I could take their photo, I would get 90 no's.

If I take their photo without asking, then I will come off as being rude (and its illegal to put photos of children online without getting permission by their parents)

Basically, Japans a tough place to get natural photos with people in them.

Edit: Sorry for making so many posts after one another. The computer was giving me errors, but when I made it into smaller posts it worked.

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Last edited by Ehlacore; 10-28-2010 at 05:28 PM. Reason: sorry

[Ehlacore]

It's a "when in Rome" thing. If a person wants to get into something (for example: getting access to photograph and having photos published) which involves interaction with a native population speaking a language other than one's own then it is normal to expect that it is the odd man out....the foreigner....who is going to have to learn to function in the language of the majority. And it is also normal to expect that any person who is illiterate is going to be at a distinct disadvantage. Unfortunately, the typical western foreigner is in Japan for only a very short time....typically one year, perhaps two, and only rarely more than three....and due to a variety of reasons and circumstances doesn't choose to put forth the time and effort required to become able to wipe their own linguistic butts, figuratively speaking.

The use of pictures of birds crapping on houses actually facilitates learning to read Japanese, in my opinion, but the larger point is that it is what it is and no amount of wishing it otherwise is going to change it. So anyone wanting to function here as an independent adult has to put in the effort to learn to read it. (And there is no word corresponding to "a, an, or the" in Japanese).

I dislike seeing Japan unfairly smeared as some sort of systemically racist/xenophobic nation conspiring to limit the involvement of foreigners when in the vast majority of cases it is actually the lack of effort on the part of the foreigners which creates the limitations they perceive. Is there racism here? Yes, but your typical westerner on a one-year English-teaching tour is highly unlikely to encounter the genuine article. Discrimination in housing? Very unlikely as their employers typically arrange their lodgings for them. Discrimination in employment? Almost by definition impossible as the sole reason they get the jobs they get is that they are foreigners.

The factor that generally gets overlooked when leaping to the easy conclusion that the Japanese are systematically exclusionary or racist is that in interactions between people there has to be some underlying reason and commonality for the interaction. The English teacher is daily surrounded by people who have a desire to learn English and who for the most part seek out interaction with them for just that reason. It is normal for new teachers to spend the first six months or so feeling like a rock star, so much are they the center of attention. Then after a while they realize that there is very little personal about it and the student would be just as satisfied with practically any warm body to practice English on (and in fact usually prefers a steady supply of "fresh meat"). Being surrounded by people who are seemingly fascinated with them just for being a foreigner, they are taken aback when they move outside that circle and find out that Japan is chock full of people who don't really care to learn English and find their foreign origins not the least bit interesting. Sadly, this lack of interest often gets written off as "racism".

Paradoxically, once a foreigner makes the effort to learn the language and has some common reason for interaction (sports, hobby, job, etc) it is the people who don't give a damn that you're a foreigner who are the most open and accepting of foreigners while the gang who only wanted something to do with you while you were providing them a service still only want something to do with you while you can provide them a service....what a surprise.

Japan can be two very different countries, in terms of perception, depending on whether you choose to premise your stay on "just because" or "even though". If you are able to live here and support yourself "just because" you are foreigner then you will have a very different experience from someone who puts forth the effort to live here "even though" he's a foreigner.

I suppose this all looks like off-topic thread drift, but within the context of the question of getting published or having improved access to access to photographic advancement in Japan I think it still manages to fit.

I doubt that our discussion is even getting read (its a waste of time for most people)

Mike, I dont disagree with you per say.

I do have a slighty different experience. Especially in an area where a few drunk Russians killed or attacked some Japanese and they never really got over it.

The general fact to Japan is. Gaijin fear is still prominent here. Japan is still somewhat closed to the rest of the world. You cant have dual citizenship in Japan and if you were born here to a foreigner parent you have until I believe 21 before choosing which country you belong to. Getting anything of substance here is almost impossible without marrying a Japanese person and having them do everything for you. Also you still get stares or comments from people who dont like foreigners.

I'm not saying its all bad! There is just as many benifits as there are downsides. Most Japanese people think foreigners are cool, and altough they wouldn:t want their daughter dating one they are excited to have one as a friend or even to say a few English words.

You seem to be making the assumption I:m just another disgruntled foreigner. I:m not, I:m just not ignorent to the negative things as well. In fact (at least in my area) most people (Japan veteran foreigners of over 10 years and Japanese people a like) are in agreement with many of my social insights and it is of great interest to me which is why I like discussing it.

P.S. I am taking a Japanese Photography Class starting next month (and they dont speak English, so this should be fun)



SORRY FOR GETTING OFF TOPIC

back to the topic







If you get an offer on a photo, how do you decide its value. Who makes an offer, and what are some offers like?

PPS I PMED Mike to take the discussion out of this thread

[Mike Cash]

You cant have dual citizenship in Japan and if you were born here to a foreigner parent you have until I believe 21 before choosing which country you belong to

Twenty, which is the age of majority. And it is possible to maintain dual citizenship since some other countries hold that a choice of citizenship expressed to another country does not equal a renouncement of citizenship in their own country. You just have to juggle passports when you travel.

I know thats an extreme example, but I always ask "Syashingu Daigobudeska" or "Syashingu onegaishimas"

Shashingu means "photographic gear" and is a seldom-used term. I presume you meant "daijobu" and not "daigobu". The second sentence would mean, "Please give me some photographic gear." and is probably not what you were going for. If you're wanting to ask for permission to take a photo, here are some things you can use:

Shashin o torasete itadakemasu ka?
Shashin o totte mo ii desu ka?

If you want to ask if it is alright to take your gear in somewhere and take pictures:

Satsuei shite mo ii desu ka?
Kamera no mochikomi mo ii desu ka?

And the bit you referenced about not being able to use pictures of kids without permission is correct as far as it goes, but in actual fact Japanese law gives everybody an absolute right to their image and technically/legally speaking you may not post/publish anyone's photo without permission.

Getting anything of substance here is almost impossible without marrying a Japanese person and having them do everything for you.

That is not true. It is merely the easy way out taken by people who don't make sufficient effort to assimilate and learn to look after themselves. I never liked the idea of not being a fully functional adult and having to rely on my wife do everything for me, so I learned to do for myself. You know what? It is perfectly doable.

Also you still get stares or comments from people who dont like foreigners.

And you get fawning admiration from people who are unfathomably fascinated with foreigners.

I'm not saying its all bad! There is just as many benifits as there are downsides. Most Japanese people think foreigners are cool, and altough they wouldn:t want their daughter dating one they are excited to have one as a friend or even to say a few English words.

I think the "wouldn't want their daughter dating one" comment is gratuitous, to say the least.

You seem to be making the assumption I:m just another disgruntled foreigner. I:m not, I:m just not ignorent to the negative things as well. In fact (at least in my area) most people (Japan veteran foreigners of over 10 years and Japanese people a like) are in agreement with many of my social insights and it is of great interest to me which is why I like discussing it.

No, I'm just pointing out that you don't even know what it is you don't know about living here as something other than a foreigner living firmly inside the boundaries of what is expected of him. When you try to live here on the same terms and conditions as the Japanese do you will find that it is an entirely different country than you thought it was when you lived inside the bubble. It's sort of like a goldfish living in a bowl, looking out and seeing all the people in the room, and assuming he has observed all there is to be seen outside the bowl.

Those "veteran foreigners" you mention.....do they still live inside the English-teaching goldfish bowl? Do they take the easy way and have their wives do everything for them?

Just so you know where I'm coming from, I've lived here for 27 years and for the last 20 years have made my living as a truck driver. My days are spent working in a 100% Japanese-only environment where I am expected to be as functional and literate as the next guy, where English ability is incidental and utterly useless. I make my way here "even though" I am a foreigner, as I found no dignity in the thought of being able to make my way here "just because" I was a foreigner.

I don't take my wife along to translate and do things for me when I have matters to tend to. I am a grown man and perfectly capable of tending to things myself. My home is a Japanese household and both my children (16 and 15) are monolingual Japanese speakers. The last time I was outside Japan was 1999.

I hope I haven't appeared antagonistic here, for such was not my intent. I just want to make it clear that the vast majority of limitations foreigners feel are actually self-imposed and that it is entirely possible to break through them. As they are self-imposed the onus is on us to put forth the effort to remove them. And not to sound too curmudgeonly, but if you think anything about being a foreigner in Japan in 2010 is tough, irritating, or distasteful, you should have been here "way back when". The difference between people's acceptance of foreigners between twenty years ago and now is like the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning, as Twain would say.

P.S. I am taking a Japanese Photography Class starting next month (and they dont speak English, so this should be fun)

There you go! That is precisely the sort of thing I was talking about earlier. You will have some reason and common purpose for your interaction other than your foreign origins. And my bet is that you will come away thinking the most "international-minded" (read: "accepting") people there are the ones who want to interact with you based on photography rather than the ones who are interested in your foreignness.

I may have to wake up as a foreign-born white man every day, but that doesn't mean I have to go through my day with that being the main theme of my existence.....and people who want to make it so are annoying. Another part of why I quit the English-teaching trained-monkey dancing-bear racket a long time ago.

SORRY FOR GETTING OFF TOPIC

back to the topic







If you get an offer on a photo, how do you decide its value. Who makes an offer, and what are some offers like?

PPS I PMED Mike to take the discussion out of this thread

One of my personality quirks and character flaws is that I have never warmed up to the PM thing and prefer to avoid it where possible.

[Ehlacore]

ok, well then I will make a thread later to openly discuss whatever it is we are discussing

(but without having time to read your whole thread it seems like we are just responding to specific sentances rather then having a thesis topic)

[Ira]

Mike, your kids never learned English? That's a shame, like my kids:

My wife is native Venezuelan, but we never put an emphasis on her speaking Spanish to them, so they never learned it.

[Ehlacore]

So about my last question? How do you know how much to charge?

Ira my kids will be 1/2 American (me) and 1/2 Russian (my wife) and she speaks fluent Japanese... we are hoping that the 3 languages will give them an extra advantage in life, but then again who knows...



Does anyone post their pictures to "stock photo sites" where you get paid if they get used?

[northcoastgreg]

Does anyone post their pictures to "stock photo sites" where you get paid if they get used?

I have a sister who works the stock photo market and does manage to sell images, including some that have appeared in magazine advertisements and book covers. She has received as much as $500 for some of the images used on book covers; but usually the renumeration is much less than that. Although she's very talented and aggressively plays to the market, I'd be surprised if she makes much more than $5,000 a year -- in any case, she clearly doesn't make enough to earn a living. I suspect she's wasting her talent, but she insists that she has so much fun making images that it's more than worth it.

[Ehlacore]

wow... and thats a hard worker

I just want to put my photo's up somewhere... possibly get a couple published so that way I could add that to my portfolio resume where I can locally get hired to do odd jobs like weddings and car shows.

[Mike Cash]

By "locally" if you mean Japan pretty much all that sort of work is done either in-house or by established pros operating their own studios. The wedding racket is done as a package deal through the venue with practically nobody doing their own arrangements such as is common in the US. Most other work such as school groups and the like is done by pros with personal connections to principals or school board members. I wish you all the best, but prospects aren't terribly bright.

[Ehlacore]

I dont mean Japan. I will be going back to the states in 4 months.

[jonhock]

Hell does not start with an "H", it starts with an "E" and ends with an "H" and displays art within its realm.........................Anyone??????

Ebayh???