Hassled for taking pictures in the mall

[peety3]

Basically if you are on public property and there isn't any posted signs about photographyyour free to shoot. If you are on private property and a representitive of that said place (ie. Security) asks you to stop then your done shooting even if there isn't any signs. If you are standing on public property and can see something on private property you want to shoot then you are able to do so.

Clarification: your second sentence is a little misleading. If you are on private property and an appropriate representative asks you to stop, you only need to stop long enough to walk off their private property (and ideally onto public property), at which point you're free to resume.


Also, regarding the lady who freaked out on you, you should have said tactfully and directly that you're on public property and have the right to take pictures. Any effort to interfere with that is coercion, and the police will be called if you continue.

[Ghosthex]

Basically if you are on public property and there isn't any posted signs about photographyyour free to shoot. If you are on private property and a representitive of that said place (ie. Security) asks you to stop then your done shooting even if there isn't any signs. If you are standing on public property and can see something on private property you want to shoot then you are able to do so.

Clarification: your second sentence is a little misleading. If you are on private property and an appropriate representative asks you to stop, you only need to stop long enough to walk off their private property (and ideally onto public property), at which point you're free to resume.


Also, regarding the lady who freaked out on you, you should have said tactfully and directly that you're on public property and have the right to take pictures. Any effort to interfere with that is coercion, and the police will be called if you continue.
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As long as you are on public property you can take pictures of anything you can see. If the item you want to shoothappens to be on private property and you can view it from the public side of the fence so to speak then there is nothing stopping you from taking the picture. Thats why themovie stars build the huge fences to keep the photographers from taking pics of them. They know they cannot stop you from taking pictures from the public side. All they can do is try and block your view of them with big walls and fences.


As for the freaking out lady I wasn't armed with this information yet. It was this incident with her that lead me to look into the matter. She was totally wrong but as a father I totally understand her concern. Also if I kept taking pictures what would she do? Would I be rolling around on the ground with a 60 yr old woman in front of 500 parents and children. It would have become a lose/lose situation for me. I would been within my rights and yet the onus would have been on me to call the cops and likely have her charged with assault. The second she grabbed me or my camera and stopped me from going about my daily business the incident would now become personnal assault. If during an altercation with her my camera or lenses get wrecked I would have to mount a civil case to sue her for damages which could take considerable time to recoup the money and replace equipment.If she chose to stand there and simply continue to yell at me and draw more attention there would be nothing I could do. If she started using profanity it would be once again up to me or others there to call the cops and haveher charged with public profanity. When it came down to it the few pics I would have taken weren't worth the hassle.