People in Pictures

I notice that there are not many pictures with people in on the POE site. I seem to remember that you can include people in your photographs as long as they are taken in a public place. In other countries like the USA I believe it is OK as long as they are not recognisable, i.e. back to the camera or distant. Could I ask advice from our members as to their interpretation of the law on this subject? If no people are legally allowed to be photographed the whole world would look kind of empty. just a thought as I look through the latest posts.

As far as I know, taking pictures in a public place is legal in the U.K. when including people regardless of whether or not you know them. The logical exception would be if you caused offence by being over intrusive. But there again, our press have a field day when capturing “celebrities” unawares. Over the years, I have done a lot of "street photography" including candid shots of people. In truth, it is pretty hard to exclude people when taking shots, especially in “touristy” type places. As for those contributing to PoE, I daresay that many hold back from submitting pictures including friends and family, as in truth, these probably hold more interest when shared with those people. The term “public place” sums it up in a nutshell. Just be polite and use consideration, plus a bit of common sense.

I have recently heard that the law is far stricter in France.  

In most public places, it is almost impossible to avoid getting people in the frame, and as Mark says, the shot might look empty without people present. The key issue is whether the people are just incidental to the main subject of the picture, or are the centre of attention. If the people are incidental to the scene, then I think it is probably safe to take the picture, but a close-up of someone who has not given permission is another matter, and I would be wary in such a case. There are many other potential pitfalls. Many 'public places' are not in fact public places within the strict meaning of the law. for example:- restaurants, hotels, shopping malls, entertainment venues, car parks, amusement parks, fairgrounds etc are usually privately owned and the owners are within their rights to ban ALL photography. It is also important to avoid making oneself open to accusations of voyeurism. We live in a difficult moral climate, and what would once be regarded as an innocent shot, might be interpreted differently today. 

As Rod says, common sense should tell whether the image could be construed as intrusive or voyeuristic. If in doubt, do not publish it in the public domain.    

Thank you Rod and Edward, I am at times confused by the different views on this subject. Edward makes a very valid point on what is really considered a public place by law and Rod quite rightly points out we should never cause offence. I will apply the comments from both of you when submitting my pictures both here and on other sites in the future, thank you.

Will go look at the picture Rod and comment later, but thanks guys for starting a new thread here in the POE forum, it's exactly what is needed to keep things interesting, meaning that I start most threads and I really don't want it to become the 'Ron' forum! lol

Lets have more please...

I think 'the moment captured ' says it all Rod and I reckon the ladies concerned would be pleased. Getting the exact moment facially must surely be an art, well done!

I think that street photography us a most valid part of capturing the spirit and soul of our country. Candid shots of people do add  to this and I would never seek to be intrusive. Endless pretty pictures of our glorious  and diverse land can sometimes look somewhat sterile minus humans, indeed somewhat odd, given the vast numbers who share the space in England's towns and cities. So, I certainly will not avoid taking pictures of people as I shoot, unless I feel it helps the quality of the result. Living in Liverpool, a city of pretty outgoing people probably helps, but any city has touristy places where photography "sans humans" would be rather difficult. Also, why not capture characters?