# Is Photobombing Rude? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 13, 2012, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656 "2012-10-13T23:49:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [October 13, 2012, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/1 "2012-10-13T23:49:08Z")
Over on one of my Disneyworld message boards we’re sharing our photos that have been photobombed. The general consensus seems to be that it’s funny in small doses, but anyone who makes it a point to photobomb every chance he gets is being a world-class jerk. Others have taken the stand that photobombing is at best an act of being an uninvited guest, and at worst an act of vandalism. One histrionic (IMHO) mom had this to say about her degenerate husband and son who love to photobomb: > [@ilovecoasters](#): > > I know at some point my DH will be the “creepy guy” in someone’s pictures. He and my son LOVE to make scary/stupid/ridiculous/immature faces on ride photographs. I’ve begged him over and over to stop - that he is ruining family pics Really? Someone’s commemorative Splash Mountain photograph is **ruined** if two men in the back have their tongues out or are picking their nose? Poll to follow. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/2 "2012-10-14T00:51:24Z")
I consider it photobombing when you see someone taking a photo that doesn’t involve you and you make a conscious effort to be in the photo, usually doing something dumb. Even though I’ve seen some funny photobombs and could imagine a situation where I laughed at a personal photo someone 'bombed, in general I’d say it’s a jerkish thing to do. People usually aren’t as funny as they think they’re being in these circumstances. For a ride photo like Splash Mountain, everyone on the ride is part of the photo and I wouldn’t consider it photobombing to do something dumb as the picture is being taken. It’s not anyone on the ride’s photos; it’s everyone on the ride’s photos. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/3 "2012-10-14T00:55:42Z")
Some people just can’t pass up the chance to deliver their favorite punch line. For some people, that’s photo-bombing. A guy in my WoW guild was physically incapable of not replying “The cake is a lie” if somebody mentioned cake in guild chat. The first few times, hah, funny, Oroborous. After a few hundred times? Not so funny. ---
**Author:** ![Rollo\_Tomasi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/58956e/32.png) [@Rollo\_Tomasi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rollo_Tomasi)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/4 "2012-10-14T01:00:11Z")
It depends on what the photobombers are doing. If I’m with my family at Disney World, take some pictures of my nephews standing with Goofy, and later see on the picture that some stranger in the background is waving at the camera or giving a thumbs up, I don’t think that’s a big deal. But if they’re flipping the bird, shoving their finger up their nose, or making some other kind of lewd or immature gesture, that’s jerkish. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/5 "2012-10-14T01:53:15Z")
I’ve never heard of this. Sometimes I’m really glad I don’t get out much. ---
**Author:** ![Brynda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Brynda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brynda)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/6 "2012-10-14T02:56:32Z")
I had a family member who thought it was just hysterical to flip a bird in family pictures. My late mom, who was legally blind, had no idea that he was doing it. Huge jerk move. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/7 "2012-10-14T03:53:06Z")
Hadn’t heard the term before this, but it appears to be another synonym for “being an asshole.” Call me a prescriptivist, but don’t we have a rich enough vocabulary for that already? ---
**Author:** ![Antigen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/848f3c/32.png) [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/8 "2012-10-14T04:16:52Z")
> [@Rollo\_Tomasi](#): > > It depends on what the photobombers are doing. If I’m with my family at Disney World, take some pictures of my nephews standing with Goofy, and later see on the picture that some stranger in the background is waving at the camera or giving a thumbs up, I don’t think that’s a big deal. But if they’re flipping the bird, shoving their finger up their nose, or making some other kind of lewd or immature gesture, that’s jerkish. I agree - if it’s harmless background stuff, I don’t care much. With amusement park ride photos, I expect a lot of silliness, so no worries there either. I think I would be annoyed if someone was doing it to ALL my photos. ---
**Author:** ![Steophan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steophan/32/9595_2.png) [@Steophan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steophan)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/9 "2012-10-14T07:20:35Z")
Voted “yes but only just”. Like many things that are a bit rude, it can be hilarious, and with digital cameras it’s trivial to retake most photos. There’s a few exceptions, but they’re not usually family snapshots. ---
**Author:** ![spinky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@spinky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spinky)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/10 "2012-10-14T09:35:16Z")
> [@VinylTurnip](#): > > Hadn’t heard the term before this, but it appears to be another synonym for “being an asshole.” Call me a prescriptivist, but don’t we have a rich enough vocabulary for that already? Just as eskimos have 40 different words for snow and (in the universe of lame jokes) tribes of cannibals have 40 different words for death by anal rape, people of the internet have 40 different words for being an asshole. It’s just a matter of what your culture decides is worth recognizing nuances of. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/11 "2012-10-14T18:25:05Z")
**Heyhomie** , are we voting about intentionally photobombing in all cases, or only in the case of making faces on ride photographs? ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/12 "2012-10-14T18:26:40Z")
> [@spinky](#): > > Just as eskimos have 40 different words for snow and (in the universe of lame jokes) tribes of cannibals have 40 different words for death by anal rape, people of the internet have 40 different words for being an asshole. It’s just a matter of what your culture decides is worth recognizing nuances of. For reasons I can’t quite put my finger on, this is one of my favorite SDMB posts in a long time. ---
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/13 "2012-10-14T18:42:17Z")
> [@ZenBeam](#): > > **Heyhomie** , are we voting about intentionally photobombing in all cases, or only in the case of making faces on ride photographs? Well, in the Disney boards thread, both activities are considered photobombing, so I’d have to say both. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2012, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/14 "2012-10-14T19:15:43Z")
On the other hand, I once saw a video of a guy running around in front of the Leaning Tower of Pisa giving high fives to all the people posing in that “holding up the tower” pose and it made my day. Seriously, put a big smile on my face and a song in my heart. But that’s because the people were mostly delighted. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/15 "2012-10-15T02:14:55Z")
If you don’t want me to photobomb your wedding pictures, don’t block the damn bike path. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/16 "2012-10-15T02:31:19Z")
There is nothing you could photobomb one of my photos with that I couldn’t photoshop to either eliminate you or to make hugely embarrassing for you. ---
**Author:** ![nion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c5a1d2/32.png) [@nion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nion)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/17 "2012-10-15T05:46:51Z")
It’s cut and dry for me. Just like any other time you are in public, you subject yourself to the public. Barring any law-breaking activity, you are fair game. Sure, you can _wish_ that someone would show some reasonable decency, but you should never expect it. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Sensitive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/58956e/32.png) [@Darth\_Sensitive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Sensitive)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 6:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/18 "2012-10-15T06:09:03Z")
The finger? Rude. Being a goof in the mid background? Great fun. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2012, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-photobombing-rude/637656/19 "2012-10-15T09:20:04Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > If you don’t want me to photobomb your wedding pictures, don’t block the damn bike path. Exactly. When I take pictures at tourist sites or in public, it is my job as a photographer to make sure I’m in no-ones way, and that no one needs to wait untill I’ve finished taking my gazillion pictures of my friend in front of that landmark. I actually think people are nowadays too polite and too willing to wait patiently in line untll they can pass the guy with the camera.