Savasana is not a photo op-– Well, what about my butt in upward dog?
Sometime in the last year I was scrolling through Instagram when I saw it: a video of a yoga class I teach, featuring me, teaching– puttering around the room– and more importantly, the students practicing. One student had placed the phone near his or her mat, but I could clearly see myself and identify at least one of the students also in the shot– even though the video was made at speed with hyperlapse. I had no idea the video was being taken at the time.
Do I blame her for taking the video? Yes. No. Yes… No: I loved the video. I love the people showing up to practice, love the energy in the room and I cannot fault anyone for wanting to share it. Further, I cannot scroll through my Facebook feed, Insta posts or Insta Stories without seeing live video and photos of people practicing in yoga classes, taken and posted by the teachers of these classes, or taken by students peeking through the doorway of the room. In short, everybody’s doing it.
I’m conflicted between yes and no, because I did feel like someone had been videoing me without my knowledge, and that freaked me out.
So, here’s the thing: should we be posting photos and videos like this when we’re inside yoga rooms as students or teachers? Although I believe the rampant photo- taking and videoing of people practicing in yoga classes comes from a good place — even when used for marketing — I also believe we have an opportunity to ensure it is done responsibly. I feel there is a lack of discussion here, perhaps because the instastory train has left the station. Still, I think there’s room and it’s about time — to draw parameters around this now common occurrence of people being posted online, sometimes without their knowledge.
Because I am no doubt calling out my fellow lovely teachers and practitioners here, I’ll admit I’m no innocent. Though I’ve been loathe to post photos of classes I teach, I have in the past posted some feet in savasana, people walking into the room and setting up mats; I even grabbed my phone and snapped a photo of my friend in the Mysore room one day because he looked sublime. Finally, I confess to recently snagging a pic of an old friend who came to my class while visiting (I never anticipated that she would post the photo online– I should have — and she did).
This, of course, says nothing of the countless moments I have wanted to take photos of students in the zone on their mats. I’m beginning to wonder if we have reached the tipping point where the desire to share the lovely energy in the room via social media has resulted in ubiquitous public sharing of people practicing in our classes, and, concomitantly, students taking it upon themselves to broadcast from within our classes.
- People with abusive ex’s or family, stalking victims. I first became sensitive to the practice of sharing class photos when I posted a photo of students’ feet in savasana during a special small class held at my home. I thought that photographing just the feet would protect the privacy of the people involved. After posting, one student shared that the photo was just barely within her comfort level. She informed of an abusive family member who trolled her online and, as a result, how she had to be careful about how and where she was seen on social media.
- People with body Image issues/eating disorders. I practice at home most of the time and take and post videos of my own practice. In that situation, however, I have complete control over the shot and whether it gets posted at all. There are dozens of things I never post because I feel self-conscious or vulnerable about the picture. I have to wonder about the other people who come to yoga with body image concerns or eating disordered histories and what impact the widespread practice of photo taking during classes is having on them. I know one student who won’t come to classes if she feels the teacher might post a photo.
- People who do not want to appear online. Not everyone is comfortable with appearing online– yes, even in this age of selfies and instastories. The photo of your student that you post on Instagram– as he is bent over in a forward fold, twisting, or sweating in tight pants — is, in most cases, public. Not everyone is comfortable with this level of exposure, particularly in a context where people are wearing clothing that is more revealing than our ordinary wear.
- Free practice, with mistakes, falling and looking less than perfect. My yoga mat was where I learned it was ok to not be perfect, to make mistakes, to fall and look silly. I worry that students who are self conscious of where they are might be are hesitant to try crow pose or jumping back if they see the teacher has got her Instastory video running, or if they see another student sharing a class video on her Instagram. Making mistakes is crucial to the learning process; I dont even need a citation for that– you can see it on my instagram, the months of falling and looking funky till one day, liftoff! Then there are simple worries about what I look like, because my hair is this, or my clothes or that, and, well, yoga classes provided a much-needed repite from this…once.
- Keeping yoga more about human interaction than screen interaction. I”m a bit hypocritical bringing this up.– ya think? Check out my insta, it’s like a love story featuring me and my phone. I have my reasons for videoing home practice– I am alone, but I have online community of fellow home pracitioners who make sharing worthwhile, and self-videos help me assess and teach myself.But I do know that phone free, face to face learning and teaching is what makes me love practice and teaching so much. In any yoga room, still– despite facebook, snachat, uber, tinder, insta at your fingertips — people mostly leave their phones aside. I love than screens lost their power in this room, and for the most part stay tucked in cubbies. I just think yoga has something sacred here: when we practice together, I want it to be about us here now. Not the hashtag. We can always do that later.
When it comes to taking photos, students in class deserve a head’s up and a chance to opt out — this might come in the form of a studio policy on the door about photography and video in the room (applicable to students and teachers), a teacher’s announcement that she plans to take a video of this little sequence and if you do not want to be pictured to let her know, or an announcement that after class those who wish to can stay for a few minutes whole we take a few photos and videos of practice and play for our social media account. This is by no means an exhaustive list. Dealing with this practice of posting students in the midst of practice without their knowledge or explicit consent though, is both workable and worthwhile.
I don’t have the answer, but I have my own experience.
I love seeing photos of myself in the Mysore room; but I admit to feeling a moment of panic when I see a post where i might be pictured. Most places where I practice I am sure that if I felt a photo or video might be posted, I could say something my wishes would be respected. I also get that at big events there is likely to be a photographer– at the ashtanga confluence last year a great pic was snagged of me getting assisted by Dena Kingsberg and I love it.
But just because photos and sharing online is wonderful sometimes, it doesn’t mean it’s the best thing all the time. Does my final backbend count if no one takes a picture of it? Is it about the post and expected likes, or the moment of feeling my central channel alight?
Yoga is where I learned to accept and love my body and get over my fear of being less than perfect. I learned, quite literally, to fall. This has taken years of practice — the learning is ongoing. I want to share the beauty of practice, but I also want everyone with body image issues or weight struggles, or a bad hair day or a no hair day, or tears from a break up, or fears of an abusive ex, or fear of looking stupid or of being a beginner– or anyone wearing her least favorite poorly fitting pants because the laundry is not done —
I want all of you to come to yoga:
Picture perfect — and when you feel anything but.
***
Was lucky enough to converse with Ashtanga teacher Angela Jamison on this topic; if you like this post please read her post on related and more here http://www.insideowl.com/
well said
Hi- thanks for reading, Juls!
Our Shala is a cell phone free zone. Exceptions for parents and care-givers on call.
I serve a lot people who would never go to a yoga studio, because people might photograph them. Or because their own teachers might use images of their practice to promote themselves.
There are a lot of practitioners who just are not ok with this at all. In my experience, these people are also often really sincere, deep practitioners. Working with them is amazing.
Hi Angela: Thanks so much for reading and writing. Since writing this, several people have reached out to me to express how they have a hard time finding yoga classes they can go to without being photographed. I think its wonderful that you are providing an instagram-promotion-free practice space for people. If not in yoga…where else? As I wrote, I video home practice bits of myself here and there, but I am in control of whether or not anything gets posted to the world.
It may seem strange to a mysore teacher, but in the vinyasa world, and some mysore rooms, this is like the elephant in the room– if the elephant had been hanging around so long no one even gave him a second thought. On more than one occasion, teachers taking class with me have taken pics or videos without me even knowing! — and I always assumed anyone with a phone close by was a parent or on call ( as people have informed me).
I’m not perfect in how I have always behaved, and I wanted in writing this to not alienate people who are well intentioned, but maybe not aware of the fallout. That said, I am not a fan of this free for all photo and video taking practice at all. When someone tells me she can’t find a class that wont end up on instagram, i have to ask is the promotion of the yoga taking precedence over the yoga itself.
I’ve been through a lot over this past year, and there are many days I would not want to be “posted.” to the extent i know any teachers or rooms where this could happen, I am confident in my relationships that if i spoke up, I would be respected.
You are strong.
I’ve done this calculation personally. If I were at a friend’s shala and they photographed my practice without permission, I would feel violated. And I would definitely not bring it up. If I had to choose between defending the privacy of my practice and the weird energy that would create in our friendship, I’d let it go. The same way I let it go, most of the time, when someone crosses the line into treating me in a misogynistic way. Even as someone who is comfortable setting boundaries and acting as a leader, sometimes it’s just too much of an energy expenditure for me to rock the boat.
Perhaps others go through inner negotiations like this too. Something like “Yeah, it’s violating, but it’s important to me not to be the person introducing tension into the relationship. I’ll just eat it this time.”
From my perspective, to teach is to hold space for others, and to be stewards of yoga.
I direct a Mysore program. Ashtanga is an internal practice. Keeping the practice space inward-focused, non-distracting and sacred – and keeping the environment safe for the most vulnerable in particular – well…. that is just my job 🙂
Thank you for bringing this up. Someone pointed the discussion to me so I think you’re really voicing something that people want to hear. It is interesting what you say, that this has long been the elephant in the room. I did not realize that. You’re making important insights here.
XO
Thank you so much, Angela. I read your blog and I am astonished by it so I appreciate you taking this time to read mine (not to mention the people I know who study and practice with you!!). As I read what you wrote, I recall seeing the video of myself teaching and doing exactly what you described here– i felt violated, but I also felt I’d be violating some sort of social code if I cried any foul about it even as it got posted onto instagram. The tide of “likes” and the norm — i.e. the pervasiveness of social media — made me feel like I’d be the strange one if I made a stink.
I think there is some room for videos, photos and sharing, but then I also think we need to maintain room to practice free of pressure and exposure. I hear that computers as they get smaller will be inside everything, and I like to think of yoga class or mysore practice as the remaining fortresses of present moment face to face or breath to breath contact. the ultimate throwback.
i hope its not just a dream!
thank you, thank you!
XO