I’ve only been living in Japan for a little over a week, and on my way to class, every single day, I take the train and I see some guys take out their phone sneak in taking photos of girls, and random ones, too, and the guys taking those photos look like they’re at least in their late 20’s. I thought at first “Oh, must be someone they know”, until I saw some patterns, where the girls would leave in the next stop. I’m a guy, so I don’t think I’ll be a victim for the most part, but I’m a foreigner and I have no idea if this really is normal to take photos of girls who, by the looks of their body language as they walk out of the train, look really uncomfortable or just annoyed.
Is this normal?
Edit: No, I don’t intend to do this. Personally, as someone who does do photography as a hobby, I am used to asking to take a photo of someone. Yes, I know, street photography is a thing, and a lot of street photography works are candid, but I don’t really have the balls to do that. But I am not sure if the guys doing these in trains are street photographers at this rate.
10 comments
It’s “normal” if you’re a pervert.
There are some anti-nuisance laws depending where it is that makes this an offense.
Bro that’s not normal at all.
I’m calling BS on this.
Female living in Japan. I always wondered if some guys on the train take secretly pictures of you because sometimes they hold their phone in a way that the back camera points directly at you. I am also a very paranoid person but sometimes I get that bad gut feeling and immediately change to a far away seat. Sometimes there can be really creepy men in Japanese trains that stare you down without blinking although you give a death stare back. Also, almost everyone in Japan has photo apps to get around the obligatory shutter sound that is set on Japanese phones, so that protection is gone.
No this is not normal. It is creepy and inappropriate behavior.
I would report this to the station staff if it keeps happening the way you say it does.
That’s why you can’t turn the sound off phones in Japan when you take a picture.
Not sure how to define it.
It is not good, it is not something they should do, but it is a norm, I am afraid. Ladies also take sneak pictures, I assure you (have caught them doing it), perhaps less often.
i have lived here for a collective 2 years and i have not seen this happen once, i’m not saying it doesn’t happen but i’m just curious on where the hell you’re living to see this daily
you forgot to add the ‘and all the other passengers on the train clapped’.