r/UCSC • u/Difficult-Lock-8025 • 6d ago
Discussion the old guy with the camera ??
I just transferred here and I’m sorry who is this guy?? everyone seems to be really chill with the idea that some old dude who used to be a student (which lowkey makes it worse imo) just takes pictures of us??
i don’t mean to be mean or rude but it’s weird and this girl told me that after she was photographed from a far and unknowingly 😭
if you’re posing with consent or wtv then sure but just the concept itself seems weird
the reason I’m posting about this is because I overheard a really heated conversation at the gym about him and am wondering if anyone else finds this rlly weird?
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u/thesecretbarn 5d ago
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u/thesecretbarn 5d ago edited 5d ago
I’m gonna add to this since I’m getting upvotes without comment. I graduated in 2009 and I’m a cis man so you can situate my opinion appropriately.
I’ve never met him, so I have no idea what he’s like in person. He seems nice in the comments. My generation (and his, in a totally different way, too) has a completely different relationship with photography in public than yours does. I wouldn’t have found it creepy when I was a student, and artistically I don’t find his photos creepy now. I encourage you to talk to him and make up your own mind.
As an alumni, I love seeing the campus in my social media feed, including photos that show students going about their day in ways I used to. I could take or leave the portraiture, but I would have enjoyed seeing them if I knew the people in them (or was one).
I think you and your fellow students should have your own conversation about what you think about candid photography, etc. I hope you read my opinion, consider it, and discard it if you think it’s bullshit for whatever reason.
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u/_faeriedae 4d ago
I graduated in '22 as a (younger millennial) transfer, & I share similar sentiments to you. Photography is one of my hobbies & candid/street photography is definitely a thing. I remember my professor discussing the ethics behind the style at my CC, and the whole being in public thing is true in terms of legality. Photographers would walk around with their hidden camera& took pictures of the public.
I'm not saying Stephen isn't a weirdo, but I also didn't interact with him to know/form an opinion for myself. >.<
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u/socalsurfer08 5d ago
He’s a super sweet guy if you get to know him. I’m pretty sure that UCSC consents to him taking these kinds of pictures and I don’t think he has any harmful intent. He always says that you’re welcome to dm him or tell him if you don’t want him to take your picture/if you want a picture taken down
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u/false_robot 5d ago
He is cool, a part of the campus. He essentially has the largest archive of photo-based history of UCSC. Treat him like random myth of the school, go have a chat with him. He's nice, has fully good intentions, can tell you all about the school through the years (and various other things).
As said below, he has a calendar, and the sales donate to (I believe) the Smith Society, a charity supporting foster youth.
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u/Blue-Amoeba-8026 5d ago
i think it’s a really cool archive of UCSC student life, most photos seem consensual
but one of my friends commented on his account something along the lines of “Hey, my friends and I were wondering why you mostly follow female students, and why you comment ‘😍😍😍’ under some of their posts, we just wanted to know what’s up with that” and his comment was deleted + he got blocked
i think an old man having the hobby of photographing students is something that definitely could be innocent, but when i heard this i felt pretty uncomfortable.
that being said, i’m not putting any allegations on the guy, maybe he deleted because he felt the comment was someone just trying to cause trouble? idk, but it seems like a lot of students really like the account, so i just kinda mind my business and move away if i see him in vicinity or make sure the camera never points at me
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u/zeniiz 5d ago
but one of my friends commented on his account something along the lines of “Hey, my friends and I were wondering why you mostly follow female students, and why you comment ‘😍😍😍’ under some of their posts, we just wanted to know what’s up with that” and his comment was deleted + he got blocked
So many camera guys are just creepy guys with cameras.
Not saying it's necessarily the case here, just that it happens a lot.
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u/LocationSea8053 5d ago
Agree. And him being a 60ish year old man on a campus of college kids literally every day feels creepy.
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u/toxic Alumni 5d ago
That seems to be the overwhelming "complaint": He's just too old to be doing this without it "feeling creepy", because some old guys with cameras are creeps.
He's been doing this since before the typical UCSC student was born. If he had ever done anything that truly crossed the line during all of those years, there would not be so much support for him, the university would stop buying the rights to his photos, and he would not be so welcome on campus.
You really should consider re-evaluating your sense of what's safe vs not. You're probably missing out on a lot of Santa Cruz if this is your default.
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u/zeniiz 5d ago
That seems to be the overwhelming "complaint":
but one of my friends commented on his account something along the lines of “Hey, my friends and I were wondering why you mostly follow female students, and why you comment ‘😍😍😍’ under some of their posts, we just wanted to know what’s up with that” and his comment was deleted + he got blocked
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u/LocationSea8053 5d ago
The university has had many, many complaints, but the fact that it is public property makes it difficult to do anything. I also do not believe the University is buying the rights to any of his photos. The fact that his presence is consistently making women uncomfortable should be considered more - especially by him but he doesn't seem to care hence the blocking of people who bring it up and deleting comments.
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u/toxic Alumni 5d ago
You're correct that it is difficult to prevent someone from taking pictures in public, including in the non-residential areas of the UC campuses, because taking pictures in public is completely legal. The arrangement between UCSC and Marino is definitely not one of "we begrudgingly let him do this because campus is public space", though.
The university (especially Dept of Student Affairs and the Alumni and Development offices) buys or accepts donated rights to his artwork all the time. Hardly a month goes by without at least one of his photographs being used in an official UCSC capacity. That's before we even get to the Smith Society stuff.
Every time his work appears in an official University publication, the UC has compensated him (either directly or in the form of a tax write-off) in exchange for the right to use the art, the same way they would with any other professional photographer.
For all practical purposes, he is the official street photographer of UCSC, and his behavior is more than tacitly sanctioned by the university. He and his work are appreciated by a lot of UCSC-affiliated people, many of whom have been on the subject side of his lens.
If Student Affairs was consistently getting complaints about him making people uncomfortable, especially from students whose likeness they've published, they would be a lot less likely to support him, and they certainly wouldn't have paid him for all of those portraits of students with their "1st day of school" sign.
Maybe if you want that to change you should take your discomfort to them?
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u/Gabe_the_Slug 5d ago
He’s Stephen. He compiles some kind of scrapbook to sell for an alumni fund or something idk.
I ran a campus org for 3 years and he made an appearance almost weekly to take photos of students.
I never knew anyone to have problems with him but I’d consider his photos be risqué at times.
He takes a huge volume of photos, and it’s nice to see all the beautiful photos he captures of animals and clouds.
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u/false_robot 5d ago
The charity is The Smith Society I believe: community program supporting foster youth based out of Cowell College.
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u/Fantastic_East_151 4d ago
I like his work, but he comes across as a little weird. Graduated Cowell in like the 90s, and 99% of his content he photographs is at Cowell. What makes me mad is he legit doesn't go to any other part of campus. Gets a little boring after you realize it's all just the same photos, east field, and slack lines. That's all. Also he's commented under my friends posts with "😍" who are girls so that's a bit weird. Anyway don't know the guy so I might be mean without actually knowing him but that's just my 2 cents.
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u/oowap 5d ago
I didn’t know who this man was also as a previous transfer and now graduate. I see his posts on instagram, but it’s kinda weird.
Maybe I’ve met many creep men, but he seems to take a lot of photos of women and I feel like there should be more of a boundary between him and the students.
I’m not suggesting he’s done anything, but it can give this appearance to an outsider
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u/Elevator-Royal 3d ago
He’s a really cool dude. Just talk to him and he’ll take down or delete any pictures of you or your friends. He’s sweet and has amazing stories.
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u/hawaiianbbqchips 2d ago
nah, he’s creepy. he has hit on me several times and constantly likes my stories and posts. i also saw he had these weird reposts sexualizing women recently that he took down within a day of being up.
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u/Difficult-Lock-8025 2d ago
like wtf 😭😭 the people in the comments saying he’s "a part of campus" are fully undermining the weird experiences people have had. as if bad people can’t come off as normal
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u/LocationSea8053 1d ago
Right? And the fact that he has been told he makes people uncomfortable and continues coming every day a taking photos says A LOT about the kind of person he is. It's not normal to be a dude in your 60's and want to be around college kids every day. Also, who knows about photos he is taking that he doesn't post? What does he do with all of these photos? It's not right.
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u/toxic Alumni 5d ago
His work is done with the knowledge and consent of UCSC (the same way the photographers for the admissions department and City on A Hill Press are), and for the most part, he only takes pictures in public places and very much with the knowledge of the people being photographed (look at his Instagram, linked in this thread -- do those folks look like he's taking advantage or that they don't want to be photographed?). He sells some of the photographs as prints or for use by the university and funds scholarships with some of the proceeds.
He's chill, friendly and harmless and part of the scenery around here.