The Center for Land Use Interpretation had a project where they put “suggested photo spot” signs in completely random places; instead of beautiful overlooks, why not someone’s back yard or a city dump? What kind of control does one have when creating an overlook?



One result of overlooks is that places get reduced to a single view or monument. These icons soon represent the entire area and become the sole destination for many tourists (like if you don’t get your photo in front of the Eiffel Tower, then you never really visited Paris, right?).



Nikki S. Lee, one of my favorite photographers (and who will be speaking at the Penny W. Stamps Lecture Series this fall), asks the question: what makes a tourist? Is it the clothes (where function is favored over form)? Is there certain gear/equipment we must wear (video cameras around the neck)? Or can we tell by certain actions/behaviors?



Why do people do this? My theory is that we can’t actually touch or physically interact with monuments like the Leaning Tower of Pisa (do you want to climb and explore the tower like a kid in a playground? Tough luck.), so we fake it by playing with the perspective in photographs.