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This paper unpacks the interplays of agency that emerge as locals are photographed by tourists. It explores the larger forces that constrain photographic performances within dominant western mythologies of the exotic Other. In unpacking the seemingly fleeting moments of photographic encounters, it contends tourist photography does not merely perpetuate spaces of exclusion through dependency and disempowerment, but mobilises spaces of empowerment, independence and self-determination within local communities. In exploring such issues, the paper addresses: the complexities of agency and power within tourist photography, the opportunities for empowerment through self-directed performances, the potential of photographic encounters to mobilise fleeting moments of togetherness and social exchange, and the opportunities tourist photography affords in reigniting and reinforcing the cultural identity of …