Privacy Laws & Street Photography

Protecting Privacy, Limiting Street Photography

This was a very interesting read. This article talks about the right to people’s privacy and photographers taking pictures in public places. Nick Turpin says, “I believe that what happens in a public place should be a matter of public record, as is the case in the United Kingdom…”

Some people believe that if you’re going to photograph someone, you should ask their permission. However, that really alters the context for the photo; something that photographers do not want to do.

There are some places that have laws in place, like Article 9 in France, that states everyone has a right to their private life. That is conflicting with photographers who take pictures of people in public. People view photographers as suspicious.

The article says, “Ms. Filippetti argued that it was unacceptable to prevent professional photographers from sharing their vision of the world with future generations.”

“Without them, our society doesn’t have a face,” she said. “Because of this law, we run the risk of losing our memory.”

I completely agree with Filippetti. Photography is a source of remembrance in today’s society; pictures tell a story in their own way and bring back the past. If people try to limit that, we may lose moments that could have been preserved through a photo lens. Photography is an important storytelling method.