[jpzk]

Moderators: if this is a totally redundant thread, please close at will.

Street photography is not a subject with which I have experience but I find it fascinating.
However, and I am sure some of you will think the same way, this could sometimes proves to be a delicate matter.

Are there specific rules and legalities which have to be absolutely respected?
Can you just aim, click and capture a face on the street without having to worry about him/her coming back to haunt you in the legal department?
Can you aim, click and capture a passing car in which the driver can be recognized ... and would recognixe himself/herself from your pics?
How do you determine to which extent street photography will not invade privacy rights, whether this be a person, building, work of art, etc ...

Are such rights the same in all countries, I.e.: (for instance), Canada vs. USA vs. Eurpose?

I have checked a few threads on the subject, altthough a couple of them are very well written by experienced photograhers, but none really is relating the actual facts about legalities and rules "of engagement". OK, if considering "ethics" being the same as "legalities", then this thread is useless as I have already read the said thread about "ethics" (See below link).
In summary, I am looking for some sort of complete, concise sets of "rules and ethics/legalities" for street photography.


https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/mini-challenges-games-photo-stories/11653...le-street.html

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-photography/105322-anyone-been-ac...otography.html

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-talk/46761-street-photography-ethics.html

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/general-photography/53595-street-photography-permission.html

Cheers.

JP

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Last edited by jpzk; 10-06-2010 at 10:00 AM.

[tonyjayice]

maybe this will help.
http://petapixel.com/assets/store/photographersrights.txt

[Doanh]

From what I heard, the police can confisticate your memory card as evidence, court order or not. I can understand that as waiting for a court order would delay and jeopardize the investigation.

[jpzk]

maybe this will help.
http://petapixel.com/assets/store/photographersrights.txt

Thanks Tony.

This almost seem to give photographers a "blanket coverage", meaning just about anything and everything is permissible, at least here in North America.

JP

[jpzk]

From what I heard, the police can confisticate your memory card as evidence, court order or not. I can understand that as waiting for a court order would delay and jeopardize the investigation.

That would be if you took a pic of someone/something which already is under investigation, surveillance or if the local laws restrict the type of photography, right?

JP

[RBellavance]

In Québec, you can basically take anybody's picture as long as you and the subject are in a public place. However, you can't publish it unless you get a release. Here is a very complete text on the subject specifically for Québec (in french): Le droit à l’image au Québec / Francis Vachon – Editorial photographer / photojournalist – Quebec City, Canada

[tonyjayice]

In Québec, you can basically take anybody's picture as long as you and the subject are in a public place. However, you can't publish it unless you get a release. Here is a very complete text on the subject specifically for Québec (in french): Le droit à l’image au Québec / Francis Vachon – Editorial photographer / photojournalist – Quebec City, Canada

I think, surely, that this is a general law in most countries.
but what is "publishing" ?
the photos can not be used for advertisement, but they are your piece of art.
anyone that is in a public place can expect to be seen.. if one does not want to be seen, they shouldn't be there.
News media (f.ex tv news stations) videotape and photograph people on the street and show in the news.. maybe even without any direct linkage to the news itself.. they most certainly don't have a signed "approval" of publication (that would lead to work so intense it wouldn't be prosperous)
so for me as an artist, I take pictures of what my eyes see and what my brain senses, no matter who is there or not..
and who cares? If the "scene" has an effect on my brain and makes a memory, I can describe it in words or in drawing, and I could also seize the moment with a photo..

[Wheatfield]

From what I heard, the police can confisticate your memory card as evidence, court order or not. I can understand that as waiting for a court order would delay and jeopardize the investigation.

Could you please expand on this, perhaps with citations. Under common law, it would be very unusual for a police officer to be able to out of hand confiscate anything that is not illegal to own without a court order, or for that matter, even look at the contents of a memory card without a search warrant.

[Mike Cash]

"Publish" means to make something available to the public. Posting a photo to Flickr, for example, constitutes publishing.

[RioRico]

In summary, I am looking for some sort of complete, concise sets of "rules and ethics/legalities" for street photography.

I don't think such exists. The relevant laws vary from country to country, even from place to place within a country. For instance, some Native American pueblos prohibit cameras totally. I suggest that for any jurisdiction you are interested in, that you contact a photographic organization in that place, and/or that nation's consulate, to learn the local laws.

These laws may extend beyond mere rules for who and what to shoot or not shoot. For instance, some nations place limits on the number of cameras you can carry across their borders without a special license. I know of people who made their living smuggling digital cameras into Guatemala.

Also, local laws, and local mores and customs, may differ. Street photography may be legal in some places, but inadvisable because the populace may object violently to being photographed. I can think of places in Mexico where an outsider with a camera will be beaten and the camera destroyed. I would *not* casually point a camera at anyone in Ocosingo, Chiapas.

There is also the problem of public vs private spaces. Traditionally, the 'street' is a public place of commerce. But commerce increasingly takes place in private spaces such as shopping malls, where photography is often restricted. I raised my K20D in a mall parking-lot in Sacramento, California and was jumped by rent-a-cops. But I shot extensively WITHIN that same enclosed mall without hassle. Go figure...

[alohadave]

From what I heard, the police can confisticate your memory card as evidence, court order or not. I can understand that as waiting for a court order would delay and jeopardize the investigation.

They can take your memory card as evidence in an investigation, but they cannot delete anything from the card or compel you to delete anything from the card without a court order. If they do, it breaks rules of evidence handling and it weakens the state's case.

[alohadave]

"Publish" means to make something available to the public. Posting a photo to Flickr, for example, constitutes publishing.

That hasn't been tested in court though, and the laws don't specify what publish actually means, so it is still a bit of a gray area.

[Eric J]

I guess if you are on the street then you might want to consider the "rules" of the street. Read your local criminal code, or even a municipal (city) statute codes (by-laws as they relate to in Ontario). As an example, here in London Canada, there is a minor note whereby one has to be slightly careful photographing people in city parks. Basically the by-law states that it's unlawful (by-law reference and not criminal code) to photograph a person without permission.

Otherwise, it's photography as you choose here in Ontario as I know on any public street. But if some tough guy (cop or citizen) tells you to point the camera at the sky instead, I guess might as well follow the instruction and walk away slowly

[jpzk]

In Québec, you can basically take anybody's picture as long as you and the subject are in a public place. However, you can't publish it unless you get a release. Here is a very complete text on the subject specifically for Québec (in french): Le droit à l’image au Québec / Francis Vachon – Editorial photographer / photojournalist – Quebec City, Canada

Thanks a bunch!
That is a very complete article, well summarized for non-layers like me.

Going back to street photography, I'll say that as long as you respect the privacy rules as spelled by the local laws (yes, the laws seem to change from one place to another but in general are "uniform" across the province - here in Québec), you should have to worry much.
It is nevertheless hard to try to be right on top of all the rules/laws though. One of these days, one is bound to make a judgemental error.

But, if I were to take a street shot during a very busy Friday evening in the Old Québec, I am sure that I wouldn't encounter problems. ((Unless some drunk gets pissed off at me! ))

Cheers.

JP

[jpzk]

Could you please expand on this, perhaps with citations. Under common law, it would be very unusual for a police officer to be able to out of hand confiscate anything that is not illegal to own without a court order, or for that matter, even look at the contents of a memory card without a search warrant.

I think you nailed it right on ! See your highlighted/underlined (by me) text in the quote: "... without a search warrant."

This is, a policeman confiscating your memory card/camera according to laws [no search warrant] here (Quebec), considered theft!

JP