Imagine if, since the dawn of photography people had been so worried about this that they either never photographed people in public spaces or never shared such photographs. How much the poorer would we be in history and in art? It’s kind of unthinkable. As photographers we need to exercise a degree of discretion, but… we also must fight to protect the right to photograph in public. There already exist rules about commercial use and that sort of thing.

And don’t assume people don’t want to be photographed. You actually have no idea. Most are either ambivalent about it or even flattered by it. People see me photographing all the time, a lot of people ask me to photograph them. Not all even want the photo. They just wanted to be seen. People who really have a problem will let you know. Then it’s up to you if you want to delete or make certain assurances or whatever.