During a recent photo walk, a man ran towards one of the participants. “I want you to delete that photo NOW!”
Fire in his eyes, behind his glasses. We were in a public space and the participant was a seasoned veteran. “I'm not removing anything.” In three seconds, it had become a matter of principle.
Your attitude makes or breaks the conversation, but the attitude of the person being photographed can also enormous influence the course of the conversation. It is up to you to remain calm.
Long story short: Man called 112. That's not what it's for, but the photographer was kindly asked whether he would remove the photo or whether a “car should be sent by”. I heard a sincere and justified: “I'll see the car appear”. I would have found it interesting, but of course we didn't see the police; they are too busy for such trivialities. And of course the person portrayed, who incidentally unrecognisable was in the picture, ultimately got his money's worth.
I am certain that if the man had said politely, “I'd rather not be in the photo,” the photo would have been deleted within a minute.
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