photo taking poliy?

[mawis]

Hi, first post here- going to dl in oct and staying at vgc (excited because we've never been there before) anyway planning our trip got me thinking about something that happened to my sister at mk in June-

Pluto was doing an appearance and cm was taking professional pics of the kids. being a Pluto fan, my sister stood in the background and took a couple photos of him with her personal camera. suddenly the cm approached her and snapped "do you even have kids in this line!" my sister stood there a little taken back and the cm snapped again "well your freaking out some of the parents- you can stand in line and I'll take your pic!" (keep in mind my sister is 40 years old)
my sister was highly upset at being chastised like this

isn't that part of the disclaimer that you might end up in photos etc! did we create a breech of etiquette or was the cm out of line-
just wondering....

 

[Deb & Bill]

You aren't allowed to take photos of other people's children without their permission.

 

[CarolMN]

While the CM could & should have been more tactful, it's true that many parents freak out if strangers take pictures of their children. It's the times.

 

[going/again]

You aren't allowed to take photos of other people's children without their permission.

you tried to take a picture of characters (even if you do get in line) at WDW without kids in. almost impossible.

 

[kathyell]

Adults are welcome to get into meet and greet lines. At Disney, we can all be kids.

 

[smjj]

I suppose these are the times and that is to bad. We just never were that paranoid that we worried about someone we never saw or would see again snapping a pic if our kids were near a character when we are 900 miles away from home and they do not know where home is...smjj

 

[joandegennaro]

My whole family loves to take RPN's(random people shots) at the parks. I think that if you are in WDW you have to figure you mignt end up in someones picture. Having said this I can understand that given the times parents might be upset of up close pictures of their children by strangers. This is why when I saw a character I wanted a pic of I did it at a distance. For me I was taking these pictures to show the children I work with at home the different characters I saw on my holiday. My kids said why are you taking pictures of some strange kid? I just told them I wasn't taking pics of the kid but the character. Maybe next time you could approach the handler at the side and ask if its ok to take the pics. This way they can let the parents decide if its ok when their childs turn approaches.

I think it was because you were an unaccompanied adult that the issue even took place.

 

[CrazyDuck]

isn't that part of the disclaimer that you might end up in photos etc! did we create a breech of etiquette or was the cm out of line-
just wondering....

On the back of some of my old Disneyland parkhoppers it reads: "Entry constitutes consent for Disney to use any film, video or likeness of bearer for any purpose whatsoever without payment to the bearer". Now I read that as it giving Disney the right to take your photos not everyone else. Nevertheless, at Disneyland/world everyone is walking around with cameras so you would have to expect that you may end up in someone else's photos. If it freaks you out that someone is taking your picture then you best not leave the house.

 

[smjj]

I am sure all have seen the bit on CNN about the little girl in her family photo on mainstreet about 25 years ago and in the background in a stroller is her furture husband being pushed past them as the photo is taken. I think as they were looking at them she noticed her mother and father in law pushing her furture husband. It was on I think CNN about a week ago...smjj

 

[jarestel]

Except for certain shows/attractions where the photo policies are explained beforehand, I have never heard of Disney placing restrictions on anyone's ability to take pictures in any of the public areas. Though it might have fallen into the category of making mountains out of molehills, one could have asked the CM to summon a supervisor for clarification.

I'm thinking this issue is probably more of a courtesy thing than any real infringement of rules.

 

[ToddyLu]

I am sure all have seen the bit on CNN about the little girl in her family photo on mainstreet about 25 years ago and in the background in a stroller is her furture husband being pushed past them as the photo is taken. I think as they were looking at them she noticed her mother and father in law pushing her furture husband. It was on I think CNN about a week ago...smjj

I saw that story and we talked about it last night at our DIS meeting.

DH has been given an dirty look before...we do not have children and he has professional photgraphy equipment. It only happened once and now he takes them at a proper distance or during a parade. So your Sisiter is not alone in making a mistake and not really realizing the rules.

Now DH and I have seen creepy people in WDW. On two different occasions we have seen a man dressed in all black...no matter what the temp....long hair....carrying a briefcase.....at night. DH also noticed the WDW security force following him at a distance. I am glad they protect everyone (when possible). I think a CM told DH he was a frequent visitor to the park and was generally escorted around, albeit, secretly by security.

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

I think the general rule of thumb is NOT to take pics of characters unless you wait in the line and have an actual turn. I have read multiple threads where the CMs told guests not to take photos of other people's children with the characters.

 

[delmar411]

I think the general rule of thumb is NOT to take pics of characters unless you wait in the line and have an actual turn. I have read multiple threads where the CMs told guests not to take photos of other people's children with the characters.

I've heard and seen this too. It's not just the 'other people's children' thing, it's intruding on the experience w/o waiting in line. While the OP's sister may have been at a reasonable distance, other people tend to get all crowded in near the characters, trying to catch their attention. It can be quite a problem at times.

 

[goofy4tink]

It's mostly an issue of a stranger taking someone else's child photo. More than likely, it's not going to be an issue. But in this day and age, most parents get nudgy about seeing someone they don't know, with a camera taking a photo of their child. You never know who that person could be.....there could be a parental custody issue and the non-custodial parent has hired someone to track the child and the custodial parent. I know, I know....it's a stretch. But, I know that we aren't allowed to take group shots of kids in our church...there could be a random child who shouldn't be shown in a photo due to some legal issue.
The CM could have been a bit more tactful though.

Oh, and by the way...I'm 61 and stand in line for character photos....especially when traveling with either me family or with friends. We love those photos!!!

 

[ramkam]

The article at this link discusses the right to take pictures.

http://www.photosecrets.com/can-i-take-this-photo.html

 

[dburg30]

You can pretty much take pictures of anything you want in public. Unless it's a place that you can expect privacy, ie: your house, your hotel room, a restroom, a changing room etc, there is really nothing you can do about someone taking your picture. IF you see someone taking your picture, you CAN ask them to NOT take your picture. If you are in a large group standing in front of the castle at WDW, you cant just go up and tell everyone not to take a picture if you are in it. If someone takes your picture and you ask them not to take any more of you, you can not demand they destroy any of the pictures or demand they give you their camera or anything.

It's why even though they are pretty scummy, the paparazzi can take pictures of people in their yards and such if they can find a public place to take the picture from, or if someone gives them permission to use their property. Again, if you are shooting over a privacy fence or shooting into a dwelling, then you cant do it.

 

[dburg30]

You aren't allowed to take photos of other people's children without their permission.

Where do you have that as a law anywhere or even a rule at say WDW?

 

[CarolAnnC]

Since this topic is not DVC specific, I am moving this over to our Photography board. Thank you!

 

[mom2rtk]

This will only be an issue when you take pictures of character with other kids in the shot. In that case, it is a very specific kid with a character, not just a random group shot on the street somewhere.

I have to say we were at DL this summer, and visiting the princesses at the Princess Fantasy Faire. The dad from the group ahead of us delayed leaving and started taking pictures of my daughter with Aurora. This sort of thing generally does not bother me. But to have a complete stranger stop and focus on my daughter exculsively without asking bothered me. I just stepped in front of him to take my own pictures and he got the message.

You CAN take pictures of the characters in BETWEEN them greeting kids. Remember, you might be focusing up close on a character with no kid in the shot. But the parents don't know that. I really do think it's the right thing, but the CM probably should have handled it differently.

 

[dburg30]

This will only be an issue when you take pictures of character with other kids in the shot. In that case, it is a very specific kid with a character, not just a random group shot on the street somewhere.

I have to say we were at DL this summer, and visiting the princesses at the Princess Fantasy Faire. The dad from the group ahead of us delayed leaving and started taking pictures of my daughter with Aurora. This sort of thing generally does not bother me. But to have a complete stranger stop and focus on my daughter exculsively without asking bothered me. I just stepped in front of him to take my own pictures and he got the message.

You CAN take pictures of the characters in BETWEEN them greeting kids. Remember, you might be focusing up close on a character with no kid in the shot. But the parents don't know that. I really do think it's the right thing, but the CM probably should have handled it differently.

While you may not have liked it, he wasnt breaking any laws at all.

This site.. talks about something pretty close to this..

You are within your rights to photograph children in a playground, even if they are not your own children. However it's very likely that in most parts of the USA this will be regarded as a suspicious activity and it's very likely people (including parents and the police) will question your motivation. Despite this, the act of photography under these circumstances is not illegal - but it probably is unwise.

Again, this is pretty much equal to WDW except you know people had to pay to get into WDW and there will be MANY more people in WDW then at a local park. Like it or not, you or a family member may be part of someones 'disney story' be it for how you looked, how you were reacting to something or any other number of things.. Again, nothing illegal at all about doing it.