Know your rights!

A few people have asked me recently about the laws relating to street photography and taking pictures of people in public places. The main query seems to be whether you have to gain permission from the people you photograph if you then want to use their image in a specific way, such as on social media, in videos and books etc.

Well, generally speaking, the laws are quite clear but it's well worth familiarising yourself with them so that, if you are ever challenged over the use of a picture, you'll know your legal rights and exactly where you stand.

So, here, I'm going to look briefly at the rules here in the UK for both capturing members of the public and also shooting in public places. I must stress though, that these rules apply only for street photography in the UK, elsewhere, please check the rules for the country that you are living or shooting in as they may well be different.

The first and most important thing to point out is that here in the UK the laws are quite relaxed and if you're on what is designated as public property, you are free to photograph who and what you like. You do not need to seek the consent of a member of the public if you want to include them in a photograph taken in a public place. Naturally, this is all within reasonable bounds and there are things like decency laws that have to
be respected.

A law was passed recently here that forbade 'upskirting' the practice of taking a voyeuristic photograph beneath someone's clothing and it’s also forbidden, of course, to harass someone whilst in the process of trying to take their photo. A final point worth mentioning is that, although you may be standing in a public place yourself, you cannot photograph someone who themselves may be in a private place such as their home or business, as this would be an invasion of privacy.

Now, we come to the rules about using the picture you've taken of someone in a public place and your rights of usage…

To experience the rest of this article please watch my video on youtube

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