Impersonal Photos and Pet Peeve

The "Human Prop" Problem

What’s the deal with people and their iPhone cameras lately? Today, I watched tourists just snapping away at random customers like they were at a zoo. It’s a huge pet peeve of mine and, honestly, a little alarming.
I actually called out a group once, telling them, "It’s rude." It ended up being super awkward—they just stared at me, and I felt like I'd made a scene. But seriously, even if we’re basically under 24/7 surveillance anyway, does that mean manners just don't exist anymore?

Why It Stings

It’s such bad etiquette for a stranger to just "collect" your image. I can literally feel the energy drain out of me when someone with a $2,000 handbag snaps my photo because I look "quaint" or "authentic" to them.

A Shift in Perspective

It reminded me of a time on the bus when I saw a woman in a large scarf looking at my phone lens with total anxiety. She’d probably been the unwilling subject of so many "travel photos" that she was constantly on guard. I never really thought about it that way before, but I definitely felt a wave of empathy for her. Being on the receiving end of that lens makes you realize how intrusive it really is.
A quick tip for the future: If you want to avoid the "staring contest" after calling someone out, you can try the "confused" approach. Asking something like, "Oh, are you taking a photo of me? Why?" usually makes people realize they're being weird without it feeling like a direct lecture.
Have you noticed people getting bolder with this lately, or do you think the "always-on-camera" culture is just making us more sensitive to it?