The researcher within participant videos: the not so ‘absent’ presence

We offer a reflexive examination of methodological issues encountered in a researcher- prompted participant-produced video study within a wider inter-disciplinary research project. We highlight practical and methodological issues that challenge some of the more emancipatory claims made for video methods. We explore the not so ‘absent’ presence of the researcher within participant-produced video data, suggesting that these videos are in fact a co-production between researcher and participants. Our aim for the session is to elicit discussion on our methodology and on the potential for development of further exploration of the power relations between researcher and participant, in particular in how video images and the camcorder mediate this relationship.