Final Analysis

‘The Tourist Picture’, 2015, Barcelona, Spain, by Johnny Mobasher

‘ The poses of the people are random but they are united by the cathedral’

In the late 1990s, Johnny Mobasher established www. streetphotography.co.uk. More than a decade later, he managed to acquire www.streetphotography.com. Having bought these two sites, you can gather that he has more than a passing interest in street photography.

But what is ‘street photography’? I’m not sure. I write for Johnny’s streetphotography.com site, and he and I don’t always see eye to eye over a definition. Then again, it is very hard to find two photographers who do.

However, this picture is the epitome of the kind of street photography in which the composition exists only for a split second. You shoot fast, hope to get it right and don’t show people the results if you don’t manage to do that.

The woman with the selfie stick is unquestionably the centre of attention. Her expression is hard to read, but she appears surprised and perhaps slightly annoyed – she must have seen Johnny behind her in the selfie, and turned to react. Alone, though, she does not make an interesting picture. The details, the supporting cast, are needed for that.

The poses of the dozen or so other people are in a sense random, but they are united by the cathedral they have presumably come to see. Almost simultaneously – I am not sure which I saw first – I noticed the woman in the headscarf, along with the camera on the selfie stick blocking someone’s face. Then I saw the woman in the middle with the camera held high, and the man in the striped shirt on the right, who also appears to be holding a camera.

From her expression, the woman in the headscarf appears to be slightly puzzled and perhaps a little impatient. The fellow on the extreme left looks as if he is simply waiting for someone, while the small boy on the centre right appears bored, perhaps kicking a stone.

Nor are these the only details. Whether we mean to or not, we all form snap judgements on people: we pick up clues, especially about the central character. The selfie stick is one. The huge bag is another. The great big sunglasses are a third. Every detail adds to the picture, or is neutral; nothing significant detracts from it. But it’s not just a matter of shooting such a picture: you have to look at it afterwards, carefully, to decide whether it works.

And the message? For me, it epitomises the atomisation and alienation of tourist culture. What are these people doing here? What are they hoping to get out of their trip? Are they actually enjoying themselves? For what it summarises, I hate this picture. For the way it summarises it, I love it.