September 2026 Photo Contest Discussion Thread: "The Street as a Livelihood" (page 9 of 12)

We receive between 2 and 3 reports per day for this thread.

Should we close it?

The thread will wind down on its own since the contest ends today. We’ll move on to the next one in another thread ;)

Have a great day

Outside the entrance of a Baltic church, the last person in line is pulling a face because they’re not making a living (but do they know the last shall be first?)



Further on, a flower seller, serene.



Finally, in New Orleans, if my memory serves me right, these musicians were playing “And the winner is...” :)

All of this is quite bothersome and not insignificant. It’s clear we can’t do anything about moderation decisions—they always come out of the blue.

But the contest is self-organized, and the organizer should, in a case like this (where a photo is removed), be able to do something. Yet it was the photo of participant Pagaljavab that was taken down from the contest he himself organized. Pagaljavab reposted his photo in the discussion thread (in my opinion, he did the right thing). Did he do anything in the contest thread? No, of course not—since he was both the organizer and the participant involved. He couldn’t have acted differently. At the very least, in the contest thread, voters should have been informed that a photo had been removed (you can participate and vote without checking the discussion thread—I’ve done that some months, just not this one). We could also consider mentioning where the removed photo is visible, if it is (message 128 in the discussion thread in this case). I mean: write it in the contest thread. In my opinion, it would make sense for the organizer not to be allowed to participate in the contest: you win, you organize, you participate again the following month.

Personally, I voted considering that the contest photos included those in the contest thread plus the one from message 128 in the discussion thread.

Pagaljavab reposted his photo in the thread (in my opinion, he did the right thing). Did A-t-l do anything in the contest thread? No, of course not, since he was both the organizer and a participant involved. He couldn’t have done otherwise. At the very least, in the contest thread, voters should have been informed that a photo had been removed.

Unbelievable: there are actually people here who perfectly understood the issue and aren’t trying to deflect! I couldn’t believe it... Thanks, Michel!

Sure, it’s just a game, with no stakes on top of that, and I don’t even understand how some malicious members could think I’m bringing this up because I want to win. It’s really not that important, and thinking that way shows you’ve either completely missed the point or are a bit off. Especially since that photo wouldn’t have gotten hardly any votes—I posted it knowing that. So that’s not the issue.

The reason for my frustration (relative, mind you—most of my day, thinking about what happens on VF is really far from my concerns, it’s just a hobby) is that this way of censoring without warning is unacceptable, and also stupid since there’s no real stake here... I’m a little reassured about humanity that in these last few hours, there have been members on both threads who supported me and understood the ethical problem this posed by reminding everyone what I meant. Because before that, most others were either hostile or indifferent, pretending (or not) not to understand and accusing me of wanting to ruin the game. We shouldn’t reverse things—it’s the person who had the photo censored who ruined the game, whoever it was and whatever the reason. Then what hypocrisy—I’m sure many of those who blame me for overreacting would have been outraged to discover their photo had been censored without warning at the last minute.

Anyway, I don’t have much to add to what you’ve already said so well, just a detail. I’m not against the organizer not participating in the contest, but that could be made clear so everyone knows. But in the end, that won’t change the fact that any non-organizer participant’s photo can be censored too. That’s really where the problem lies.

If it was a report, which seems quite likely, the member who reported it could have done so in the contest discussion thread so we could talk about it among ourselves. Otherwise, it’s just malicious intent or stupidity.

VF’s admin contacted me, and I’m waiting to find out what’s going on. In any case, they saw the repost of my censored photo in this thread. Strangely, they didn’t remove it. That seems to suggest they might not have been behind the first censorship. If I don’t find out, it doesn’t matter. The act itself is enough for me.

The October contest is here

Everyone quickly moved on, but I’m wrapping this up because—contrary to the comments suggesting I was being paranoid or conspiratorial about my photo being removed—I finally got a response from VF. It *was* a report, not direct censorship by a moderator. So, there was indeed someone who, instead of discussing it in this thread, chose to go the anonymous reporting route. That kind of behavior was purely meant to cause harm.

I was right when I said there’s a nasty troll mentality, cliquishness, and snitching culture on this site, fueled by the outdated mindset of a few. And well, it’s simply true.

I was just saying there’s a nasty trollish, cliquey, snitchy mentality on this site, fueled by the backward mindset of a few. And yeah, it’s absolutely true.

I totally agree with you on this, though I don’t think it comes from a "troll mentality." Getting offended by poverty as if it’s indecent or some kind of "dirty" spectacle is just social prudishness—typical of hypocritical minds or people with a romanticized view of life who refuse to accept that suffering and precarity are part of the world as it is. Those sanitized travel journals that only focus on pretty landscapes and savanna critters, never touching on the lives of people in the countries visited, are proof of that. Some folks here get rattled when they’re even slightly confronted with an aesthetic or moral order that’s outside their daily bubble... So of course your photo bothers them—it disrupts their psychological comfort. That’s the only explanation, backed up by that sneaky "reporting" reaction. PS: Since I didn’t take part in the "CONTEST," I didn’t vote. Makes sense. Otherwise, I would’ve voted for your photo and made sure to explain why.

I was just saying that there’s a nasty trollish, cliquey, snitching mentality on this site, fueled by the backward mindset of a few. And well, it’s simply true.

I totally agree with you on this, though personally, I don’t think it comes from a "troll mentality." Being offended by poverty as if it were indecent or some kind of "dirty" spectacle reflects a form of social prudishness—typical of hypocritical minds or people with a romanticized view of life who refuse to accept that suffering and precarity are part of the world as it is. Those sanitized travel journals that only focus on beautiful landscapes and savanna wildlife, never touching on the lives of people in the countries visited, are proof of that. Some here get quickly unsettled when faced with an aesthetic or moral order that strays even slightly from their everyday reality... So of course, your photo bothers them—it disrupts their psychological comfort. That’s the only explanation, especially given this sneaky "reporting" reaction. PS: Since I didn’t take part in the "CONTEST," I didn’t vote. Makes sense. Otherwise, I would’ve voted for your photo and made sure to explain why.

Bravo, Jean Michel!!!! And thanks for having the guts to stir the anthill. I’ve been saying this for ages and got slammed for it—I was called a troublemaker, supposedly. Pagal showed me the response VF sent them. It’s shocking!!! Personally, I wouldn’t be surprised if I don’t come back here anytime soon... Trissotin’s gonna be thrilled!

Hi Jean-Michel

Being outraged by poverty as if it were an indecency or a "dirty" spectacle reflects a form of social prudishness typical of a hypocritical mentality or a mind that has a romanticized view of life and refuses to accept that suffering and precarity are an integral part of the world as it’s built.................those sanitized travel journals that only focus on beautiful landscapes and savanna wildlife without ever touching on the lives of people in the country visited are proof of that.

Oh, I thought you believed the opposite! Two months ago, you seemed shocked at the idea that I might want to visit a slum in Mumbai. Just reminding you of your message (on VF)

What do you expect to see in Dharavi if not poverty? I went there without really meaning to... by chance, a long time ago. It’s honestly mind-blowing! Can you even visit places like that?!

Alright, I’ll give you that—people are allowed to change their minds...

Reports for anything and everything have always existed, and some of the people here who are outraged that your photo was reported have themselves reported others...

Anyway, it’s a vicious cycle.

Personally, I only report scams (ads for Viagra, fake IDs, self-promotion for travel agencies...) and only since the VF takeover.

The old team lived on VF, and anything out of line was cleaned up within a minute. No need to help them out.

For everything else, I’m not the judge, so I stay out of it.

If you know the name of the person who reported you, it seems logical to contact them in a private message and clear the air.

Or if that person is still reading this thread, they can reach out to you in private to explain themselves.

No, I wasn’t offended by your desire to visit those places—I was just surprised. Personally, I wouldn’t go out of my way to witness poverty in any form; I don’t see the appeal, but I’m not judging or criticizing those who do. I know it’s become something of a trend, at least in Brazil with the favelas.

In India, during my travels there, I didn’t need to visit the slums to encounter beggars, people without legs, the blind, or the disabled among the many who live on the sidewalks every day...

P.S.: I spent the first years of my life in a slum.

1/ Unfortunately, I don’t know who reported me, otherwise I would’ve handled things differently. Of course, there’s been harassment from a clearly disturbed member for some time now—no idea why they’ve been so hostile toward my participation in the monthly photo contest from the start. There’s a lot of evidence, but nothing proves it’s them. VoyageForum knows but can’t tell me anyway. Maybe other members know but won’t say anything due to groupthink. Doesn’t matter now...

2/ If the person involved wanted to contact me privately to say something, they would’ve done it long ago—I’ve made enough requests and appeals, right? They’re just a coward who enjoys the anonymity that reporting provides. To each their own, I guess...

3/ This isn’t just a private matter because it’s a collective photo contest built on trust between participants. So, in the future, anyone could arbitrarily get rid of photos they don’t like under complete anonymity (unless only certain people are targeted—I don’t know). But most people pretend to ignore this, even though it’s the most important issue.

There you go—you can now go back to normal, keep pretending you don’t understand what I’m saying, and act like nothing happened. Have fun!

It’s not just a private matter because it’s a collective photo contest that relies on trust between participants.

Oh no, no, come on—you know perfectly well that "it’s just a forum, it’s just a game..." Anything goes, and woe to anyone who dares say otherwise and asks for at least a penalty, if not a cancellation of the round.

To keep things friendly, laundry that’s too dirty shouldn’t be washed in public.

Photos removed by moderation are truly the exception—I can’t even remember the last time one was taken down.

The ones that were removed involved submissions to Google Ads (which seems to have toned down its ridiculous bans) and others, like yours, due to people who are, let’s say, sensitive (to mockery in my case...).

But there’s always room for discussion. Your contest is proof of that since the photo you resubmitted wasn’t censored, and you got a response from VoyageForum.

A little late, maybe, but is that really what matters?

Good evening, Now that everything’s been explained at length and everyone’s shared their thoughts on the topic, let’s move on to October’s theme: "Stay Covered." I didn’t make a slideshow for just six photos, so post your photos in October. Julie. public.photowebcloud.fr/..._dbp=6&sls_afs

Deleted photos are truly the exception—I can’t even remember the last time one was removed.

A few years before COVID, a moderator deleted one of my photos of a girl (pretty generic) with a bare breast. I really didn’t think it was that shocking, but it seems like prudishness is more of a thing across the Atlantic than it is in Europe.

To maintain a certain level of friendliness, laundry that’s too dirty shouldn’t be washed in public.

I don’t necessarily agree for the reasons I’ve already mentioned. I have no other way to reach the brave anonymous user. As for the harassing member, I have no desire to contact them privately. But who’s really disrupting the friendliness here? Me, for exposing questionable practices and harmful members, or those very same harmful members? Let’s not reverse the roles.

And besides, there’s always a way to discuss things. Your contest is proof of that since the submitted photo wasn’t censored, and you got a response from VoyageForum.

I don’t really agree with that either. VF did make it clear in their response that the submitted photo had been reported again by at least one member, but they’d had enough of responding to all the reports about this discussion. So, they left it up out of "weariness," as they told me... The anonymous reporting was clearly an outburst over this thread. Plus, no, it’s not a positive thing like you seem to imply. The response came late, few were outraged by the censorship (group preservation took priority, which is common in groups), it ruined the contest, and sowed suspicion for good reason—there are bad apples and shady members here.

In the end, I’m going to make those who were reluctant about new members like me participating in the photo contest *immensely* happy: I won’t be joining again, and probably even less than that. Happy now? So once more: have fun without me!

I’m a little surprised you’re only just finding out that some people report everything left and right...

After that, do whatever you want! 🙂

Hi Pagal,

There you go, you can now go back to normal activity, keep pretending you don’t understand what I’m saying, and act like nothing happened. Have fun!

But what else do you want me to do? I fully intend to have fun here while still regretting what’s happening. I even agreed to organize the next contest knowing full well I’d struggle with it...

I didn’t feel like speaking up when things were going off the rails, but I want to make it clear that I’m fiercely opposed to censorship, especially when it comes to art.

And to be very honest: I don’t want to photograph misery, and if it ever happened, I wouldn’t publish the image. Others whose job it is do it very well. That’s my personal ethic. But I’d never dream of "reporting" something just because it doesn’t suit my tastes.

Voyage Forum *could* have publicly informed you that your photo was removed at a member’s request and suggested you post another one. They were a bit too casual about that. As for anonymous reporting, it’s part of human nature. It’s always existed, and we won’t change that.

Good evening everyone,

*Sigh.* And that’s all.

Catherine