Word for “seeing without being seen”

Question

Is there a word for seeing without being seen? I want to write about those on the advantageous side of tinted glasses. Visual/optical eavesdropping is the closest phrase I can think of.

Answer 1

Try covert, as in covert surveillance, or in your example, a covert observer.

Answer 2

I'd probably go with spying:

to watch secretly usually for hostile purposes

Answer 3

No single word comes to mind, but, if this for journalism, a short phrase might be as good as, or better than, a single word (which would probably be some latinate obscurity). How about discreetly observing/watching/gazing/...?

With reflective lenses, you can reflect on the world that you're reflecting back, gazing discreetly while dressing chicly, grabbing a eager eyeful without risking an irate earful.

Answer 4

Does incognito work for your purposes?

: with one's identity concealed

Answer 5

"Observe unobserved"

"covertly spy on"

"covertly observe"

"covertly watch"

"voyeur" - implies fetishness or at least and wierdo

Answer 6

Of course there's invisible.

Out of the field of vision of a person. Covered by another object. In the dark. That is perfectly camouflaged.

Answer 7

As a matter of General Reference, the Internet site thesaurus.com defines the verb spy as “secretly follow, watch another's actions”, and gives synonyms of:

case, catch sight of, discover, examine, eyeball, fish out, get a load of, glimpse, keep under surveillance, look for, meddle, notice, observe, peep, pry, recon, reconnoiter, scout, scrutinize, search, set eyes on, shadow, sleuth, snoop, spot, stag, stake out, tail, take in, take note, trail, view, watch

Whereas the noun spying is grouped with “surveillance”, and supplies synonyms of:

espial, espionage, following, voyeurism, wiretapping

You might also investigate its entries for watch or view.