# Photography laws



## ethanz (Feb 27, 2020)

What are your guys thoughts on this article? https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/...e-laws-photographing-children-public-69230602

Being a photographer I don’t think there should be any laws regarding this.


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## Valvebounce (Feb 27, 2020)

Hi Antono.
Where exactly is “around here?” You are talking to a worldwide audience, as far as I’m concerned around here is England!

Cheers, Graham.



Antono Refa said:


> Around here there are laws regarding it, but the photographer wasn't breaking any of them. E.g. it is illegal to take a photo & publish embarrassing photos of anyone, kid or adult, slipping on a banana peel. Basically, anyone going there could have seen her kid playing football, so what's the big deal?
> 
> edit to correct name, apologies.


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## Antono Refa (Feb 27, 2020)

Around here there are laws regarding it, but the photographer wasn't breaking any of them. E.g. it is illegal to take a photo & publish embarrassing photos of anyone, kid or adult, slipping on a banana peel. Basically, anyone going there could have seen her kid playing football, so what's the big deal?

Many years ago there was a case of somebody appearing in the background in a photo published in a local newspaper. Turns out he lied to his wife he was elsewhere when the photo was taken. The newspapers were discrete about what actually happened in the couple's private life, but the husband sued the photographer and newspaper for getting him in trouble, claiming they should have asked his permission. The court rule against him, as he was in a public place and anyone, including his wife, might have seen him.

Its similar to discussions about bridge photos. Around here, the copyright law is clear that it is legal to take photos of building, bridges, etc and publish them. The only limitation is the access to places from which to shoot it, e.g. you can't just break into an apartment in order to shoot the bridge out of the window.


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## JuanMa (Feb 27, 2020)

For what i’m seeing, 99% of kids pictures are taken and exposed in social medias by their own parents.


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## Joules (Feb 27, 2020)

Here in Germany there are laws that regulate how a picture of a person can be used. If the person in the picture is identifiable and not just a minor component of the picture, like a person walking by infront of a building that you're shooting, that person has a right to decide how the picture can be used and published.

Visitors of public events or people who are in a position that justifies documenting the person for the public are an exception to this.

I don't know how this applies to children and parents. Might be that a participant in a public sport is part of the exception, regardless of age.

But if I were to just walk up to a person on the street, take a picture of them without asking for permission and then going on to use that picture in any way, I could see some serious consequences, from what I understand. And I don't think that's unreasonable.

Parents posting pictures of their children online and the stuff young people publish on their own may be questionable as well, but at least the person publishing the pictures is also in charge of the subject (themselves or their children). An unrelated photographer just invading other people's life's for their own interests is something different. Where the law draws the line and how comfortable a given culture is with that law are pretty vague subjects I think.


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## LDS (Feb 27, 2020)

Joules said:


> how a picture of a person can be used



That happens after the photo has been taken. The actress would like to make illegal taking the photo in the first place - and I wonder what she would have thought if instead of being a man probably with a camera it was a woman with a smartphone - and many images taken could not be much different for illegal uses.

It would become very difficult to hinder people taking photos in public places without questioning everybody and inspecting the images taken (impacting other fundamental rights), especially now almost everyone has a camera. It would become quite like an authoritarian state.

What laws can do is put limits on usage, and punish illegal ones - and I don't believe a photographer should have unlimited freedom on images he or she takes - other rights need to be protected as well.

I understand it may not be nice to feel a creepy person is around, but first, you could be wrong and even if someone looks creepy he or she isn't, and freedom has a price we are sometimes required to pay.


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## Antono Refa (Feb 27, 2020)

JuanMa said:


> For what i’m seeing, 99% of kids pictures are taken and exposed in social medias by their own parents.



The parents are their legal guardians, so it is up to them.


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## Antono Refa (Feb 27, 2020)

Valvebounce said:


> Hi Antonio.
> Where exactly is “around here?”



Israel.


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## Deleted member 381342 (Mar 21, 2020)

The law in Scotland is that I can walk into someones garden and right up to their window and take a picture. I can't imagine wanting to do so, but am glad the law is very much in my favour. I personally can't see the harm in photographing a kids football match, it might be a good place to practice, or more likely that your own kid is in the game. I mean these are fully dressed children, if you are selling these images to the dark web you might want to rethink your evil plan.

Personally taking photos when parents are near is a fuss in a half. I have been taking photos of squirrels quite happily for a few hours and had a parent walk up behind me and demand I stop taking pictures of their kids. Said kids where of course behind me, and humans are far less interesting than squirrels.


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## stevelee (Mar 21, 2020)

In December the Honolulu city hall and the park nearby have great Christmas displays, and at night the area turns into a fair or festival of sorts. At one tent there was a guy putting glitter designs on kids arms for a fee. I wanted a picture, and since it was handy to do so, I asked all concerned if it was OK for me to shoot some. The girl, parents, and glitterer said that was fine. I posted pictures with the notation that they were taken with permission. They can be found toward the bottom of this page. All the photos on that trip were taken with the G7X II. I didn't ask permission from anybody who just happened to be in my other shots. If they didn't want in the picture, they could move.


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## stevelee (Mar 21, 2020)

Looking back at that page, I am surprised at how well the animated GIF lines up. All the shots were done handheld. Photoshop obviously did a good job lining up the layers.


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## Antono Refa (Mar 21, 2020)

Codebunny said:


> The law in Scotland is that I can walk into someones garden and right up to their window and take a picture. I can't imagine wanting to do so, but am glad the law is very much in my favour.



The law in Scotland is way more permissive than in Israel. Here it is forbidden to take photographs of a person in a private place, e.g. his apartment, without his permission. When entering a hospital with a camera, the guard at the entrance will remind the photographer it is forbidden to take photos on hospital grounds.

For some odd reason, when entering the local government building, one must leave cameras (but not smartphones) with the guard at the entrance. The municipality has no such policy.


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## Valvebounce (Mar 21, 2020)

Hi Codebunny.
If that were to happen at my local hide my response would be “your children should not have been in front of my camera, that is a private area and as such the photos are evidence of their trespass, furthermore as a steward for the area I must ask you to leave and take your out of control children with you!”

Cheers, Graham. 



Codebunny said:


> Personally taking photos when parents are near is a fuss in a half. I have been taking photos of squirrels quite happily for a few hours and had a parent walk up behind me and demand I stop taking pictures of their kids. Said kids where of course behind me, and humans are far less interesting than squirrels.


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## Valvebounce (Mar 21, 2020)

Hi Antono.
I think here in the uk if you can be seen (and therefore photographed) from a public area without extraordinary measures (like climbing a tree with a 600mm and 2x convertor) you have no expectation of privacy.
Awaiting correction if this is out of date info! 

Cheers, Graham.



Antono Refa said:


> The law in Scotland is way more permissive than in Israel. Here it is forbidden to take photographs of a person in a private place, e.g. his apartment, without his permission. When entering a hospital with a camera, the guard at the entrance will remind the photographer it is forbidden to take photos on hospital grounds.
> 
> For some odd reason, when entering the local government building, one must leave cameras (but not smartphones) with the guard at the entrance. The municipality has no such policy.


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## Deleted member 381342 (Mar 21, 2020)

Valvebounce said:


> Hi Antono.
> I think here in the uk if you can be seen (and therefore photographed) from a public area without extraordinary measures (like climbing a tree with a 600mm and 2x convertor) you have no expectation of privacy.
> Awaiting correction if this is out of date info!
> 
> Cheers, Graham.



This is actually a devolved area. For instance I can not take a picture of you from outside you in England, but I can in Scotland. I also can not take a picture of a few trains while they are at a English station but once again can as soon as it crosses the border.


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## AlanF (Mar 21, 2020)

Valvebounce said:


> Hi Codebunny.
> If that were to happen at my local hide my response would be “your children should not have been in front of my camera, that is a private area and as such the photos are evidence of their trespass, furthermore as a steward for the area I must ask you to leave and take your out of control children with you!”
> 
> Cheers, Graham.


If you tried that one here, I'd have to help you up and wipe the blood off your face.


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## Deleted member 381342 (Mar 21, 2020)

One tip if you are stopped by a overzealous parent when you are taking pictures of your own kids, or in my case, my nieces. If they ask If you are taking pictures of their kid, in turn ask them if they are paying you for the privilege and hand over a business card. 

I have also found when I don't want to be disturbed by people at events or when I am just photographing animals that it helps a lot of put on a lanyard with a photo ID card(usually my works one). It reduces unnecessary interactions by a significant amount.


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## Valvebounce (Mar 21, 2020)

Hi Alan. 
I guess I’m used to living in my area, I take your point for other areas, for instance when we arrived in the states on holiday our friend said you brits like to toot your horns, don’t do that around here it could get your windows shot out or worse! The funny thing is I never realised the horn on my van didn’t work until MoT time, I never use it anyway!

Cheers, Graham. 



AlanF said:


> If you tried that one here, I'd have to help you up and wipe the blood off your face.


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## Mikehit (Mar 21, 2020)

Codebunny said:


> The law in Scotland is that I can walk into someones garden and right up to their window and take a picture.



Do you mean you can walk onto someone's garden and take a phot through the window?
If talking about legal matters you have a responsibility to be quite clear what you are claiming. 
In the UK (Scotland is no different from other parts of UK from what I understand), if you are standing on public land you can take any image anywhere. 

But we need to be quite clear (as stated above) that there is difference between taking an image and using an image. It is in using an image that most restrictions take place - there are very few situations where I am prevented from taking an image, but quite a few on how an image can be distributed and/or used commercially.


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## Mikehit (Mar 21, 2020)

Codebunny said:


> For instance I can not take a picture of you from outside you in England, but I can in Scotland.



Can you point to a law that states that? Or are you working on hearsay?



Codebunny said:


> I also can not take a picture of a few trains while they are at a English station...


Really? Any examples?


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## AlanF (Mar 21, 2020)

According to the police of England and Wales, https://www.askthe.police.uk/content/Q717.htm
"Taking a photo of a person where they can expect privacy (inside their home or garden) is likely to be a breach of privacy laws."


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