Originally posted by Miguel Where ya been? This is standard practice, regardless if it makes little sense to you or others. Usually a smaller focal length lens will pass muster. But not always. The concern is twofold: 1. selling unauthorized shots that compete with licensed vendors; and 2. having a large lens (let's say a Bigma for example) getting in the personal space of other paying customers. Some venues have really tight seating.
I only just upgraded from a compact superzoom to a DSLR recently, so I never came across the rule previously.
I can understand not blocking other people's view. But the discriminating factor there is the SIZE of the camera+lens, not whether it detaches or not. If personal space and view is the goal, then it's a bad rule because it doesn't accomplish what it sets out to do. Besides, these same sports venues let people bring in giant handmade signs that occupy much more space than any lens ever could.
Competing with licensed vendors seems rather shaky too. They're not banning superzooms that can get closer to the action than most DSLR lenses can and can have megapixel count equivalent to detachable lens cameras, not to mention that banning based on the hypothetical quality of a picture you might take seems to be pretty questionable logic to begin with. Not to mention that you're not going to get as good a shot from the bleachers as the press-pass guys can down on the field (much closer and much better angle) no matter what camera & lens you've got.
After reading this thread I did some googling and found some stadiums allow detachable lenses up to a certain length, that makes better sense to me. If your lens is 12" long, then you're at risk to be blocking someone's view or accidentally clonking someone in the head. If you've got a little lens, you're not really any different from the guys with the compact cameras. Further, if your lens isn't huge then it's not long+fast and you're probably not competing with any of the press guys. Maybe that's important if you're in the first X rows but we could waive it for seats further out?
Perhaps the rules made more sense back when they were originally instituted, when the only people likely to bring an SLR were professional photographers? But in recent years the introduction and booming popularity of micro 4/3 and NEX cameras plus the continued adoption of low-end SLRs by ordinary people seems like they have undermined the conditions the rules were written for. Many of our friends & family have Canon Rebels, even if they don't know how to operate them outside of program mode, and if they went to the ballgame that's what they'd automatically reach for because that's their camera. It would never occur to them that this would be against any rules.