Scotland’s Largest City Set To Ban All Photography in Its Subways
Earlier today Amateur Photographer reported that the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) in Glasgow, Scotland is set to impose a series of bylaws for the cities transport, including a ban in section 12.1 which would prohibit riders from “take[ing] photographs, or make[ing] video, audio or visual recordings on any part of the subway.” In fact,...
US Department of Justice Defends Photographers’ Right to Record Police
Earlier we reported on two separate cases where video evidence of police shot by random citizens wound up being crucial in the exoneration of photographers arrested while doing their job. Well, appropriately enough, the US Department of Justice just recently came out in defense of the right to record police while they are on duty....
Photographer Behind Now-Iconic ‘Texting Hillary’ Photo Wasn’t Amused — At First
During the past week, a new meme called “Texts From Hillary” has been taking the web by storm. It involves two photographs of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton checking her phone on a flight while wearing sunglasses. By combining the images with other photographs and witty captions, the creators imagined what her texts conversations...
Controversial French Ad Campaign for Photographers’ Rights
French photographers organization Union des Photographes Professionnels (UPP) launched a controversial new advertising campaign this week, speaking out against the use of photographs without proper permission and/or payment. The ad reads: “Each day, a photographer’s work is used without his consent”. A spokesperson for UPP states, It’s obvious that professional photographers are not being listened...
Man Who Was Arrested for Filming Police with Phone Settles for $170,000
After being arrested on October 1, 2007 for using his cell phone to film officers making an arrest, Boston lawyer Simon Glik sued the city for violating his civil rights. Late last year the court denied a motion to have the case dismissed, and just yesterday it was announced that the City of Boston had...
Tricks for Avoiding the Police When Shooting in Public Locations
David Hobby has written up a great post over at Strobist on how he avoids shoot-ruining confrontations with police officers when shooting in public locations (we shared an example of a confrontation yesterday). His tricks include calling the police ahead of time and leaving notes on the doors of houses nearby: Before I shoot (a...
Beware of Police Officers When Shooting Time-Lapse Photographs
Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania-based photographer Jason Macchioni was recently shooting a time-lapse project from an overpass at night when he was approached by police officers who demanded his ID and threatened to arrest him for wiretapping (Macchioni was recording video of the encounter). Macchioni tells us, I was shooting a time-lapse which I’m still working on, I...
Know Your Rights as a Photographer & Filmer! [PSA from JGL + ACLU.org]
Want to know what your rights are as a photographer in the USA for shoot photos in public? All of us USA’ers do, as well as anyone who might travel here. So…As a part of his hitRECORD project, kudos go out to actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt (my best friend panel pal – here we are talking...
Learn Your Rights as a Photographer with this Short and Sweet Cartoon
Want to inform someone of their right to take pictures in the US? Just share this short cartoon created by the ACLU, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and The Gregory Brothers. It features Benjamin Franklin’s ghost, who sings about the various things you...
Freedom of the Press Begins with You
Here’s a disturbing video called “If You See Something, Film Something” that shows why it’s important that citizens have the right to turn cameras on the activities of police officers without being stopped or harassed: The United States has growing problem with police abuse, brutality, and corruption. It is essential for civilians to document their...
This is Lady Gaga’s Photo Release Form
Early in 2011, there was a brouhaha after newspaper photographer Jay Westcott complained about Lady Gaga’s photo release form given to photographers attending her concerts. PDN characterized the story as a “fame monster gobbling up photographers’ copyrights“. What you see above is a copy of the actual release form given at concerts. Apparently contracts like...
