ugly tourism.

nothing pains me more than classically formulaic, hopelessly ridiculous tourist photography. the photos are childish, cheesy, & a waste of everyone's god damn time. why childish, you ask? well, a grown adult should not need "proof" of his presence in greece, china, australia, or any foreign land. to that notion i say, grow up. this "style" of photography is cheesy in that it brands someone as "tourist." further, one's presence in a picture effectively destroys what is happily "foreign" in a photograph. nothing can ruin the essence of a picture like a northface jacket, oakley sunglasses, reef sandals, or anything else distinctly american. and lastly, no one wishes for their eyes to glaze as they look through photos of you smiling awkwardly before a camera. let me be clear: these photos are uninspired, irritating, and boring. there is a time and a place to be tacky. just please, not every photograph in the album. further, there is a difference between a photograph of a group and a photograph of people obstructing my view of the real attraction. see the photograph below:

("the girls" in front of the parthenon--sooo hott right now!)

why travel halfway 'round the world only to force a tacky smile in front of a national monument? more generally, why would one allow their experience abroad to be mediated by a digital LCD panel? the objective of tourist photography should be to capture an image as you remembered it--that is, from your particular vantage point as a traveler. this way, the photograph is well-thought and attached to a memory of your travels.

addendum: i do not know these girls.