permit for navajo land photography

[daniel dumitru]

To all, I am planning a trip to monument valley and antelope canyon in October and contacted the Navajo Film Board for a permit since a number of books suggested this action and was told by the film board that it would cost a little over $750.00 for four days. I explained I am taking these photos for personal use but will be using a tripod and a view camera. They said the $750.00 is a discount since I am do not plan on using these photos for magazine covers. I don't mind paying a hundred dollars to help out but the requested prices seems outrageous to me. I am a serious amateur and do not "feed my kids" as it were and just cannot afford to write this type of fee off. Has anyone got any advice in this regard? Should I just show up without a photography permit, set up, start shooting, and see what happens. By the way, I have no problem with paying for day use permits to the various areas but the $750.00 fee has not been discussed on this forum or others to my knowledge or searching. Your sage advice is much appreciated.

thank you, dan dumitru

[Dave Moeller]

Dan-

The $750 price feels high to me too, but it's the right of the Navajo nation to charge whatever they want to for use of their lands. Remember that these are private lands, and that the owners have the right to make the rules.

I'd be exceedingly cautious about just showing up without a permit and starting to shoot to see what happens. If you're on Navajo land then you're subject to Navajo laws. Although I've never had anything but good relations with the various Native American groups and individuals I've dealt with, I imagine it's well within the rights of the Navajo police to take not only your film but also your camera if you show up and shoot without a permit. I also imagine that there'd be nothing you could do to get your equipment back if should they choose to keep it.

If I were in your shoes, I'd either look for someplace else to shoot that didn't have such high fees, or consider finding out the cost of one day of shooting and spend the other days scouting locations and just enjoying the views.

Be well.

[Ralph Barker]

I would agree with Dave regarding the private-property aspects. But, I'd be tempted to inquire if the $750 is just for a paper permit for the 4 days, or if other services (e.g. a guide, perhaps?) are included in the fee. In some areas, I believe the Navajo Nation insists that you have a Navajo guide, as a means of controlling potential damage to historic or sacred sites.

[Morey Kitzman]

Daniel

I've been to both Monument Valley and Antelope several times with my large format rig and tripod. You pay daily fees or permits. In the case of Antelope in runs around $20.00 and Monument has a $5.00 admission charge. To access the more interesting parts of Monument Valley you need a guide, but that is generally around $80.00. Perhaps the $750 is for a professional outfit shooting a commercial or something like that. Unless this is something new, within the last six months, I would disregard it. Incidentally, they have never even asked me the purpose of my photography. Hope this helps.

[John Cook]

This sounds like the wild west version of a southern red-neck speed trap. Many greedy people have discovered the value of ripping-off the rich yuppies.

One day while assisting a still photographer shoot a fashion model on the street in a Los Angeles suburb, a local policeman drove up and hauled us all off to the station where we were forced to purchase a $1000 movie permit. The reason a movie permit was required was that we were using a Hasselblad EL with a 70mm film back and an NC-2 finder. We could not convince the police that any camera that large was not a move camera.

I hear NYC is worse. Shoot a bridge, lose your camera.

Would you consider vacationing in down Maine instead? Aftah shootin, you can go out fowa lobstah. And blu-brie pie. Ayah!

[Kevin Crisp]

The ingratitude. And after the way they've been treated...

[Pat Kearns]

If the photos are for commercial use purposes then indeed the Navajo Nation does require permits. The term "feed my children" can be intrepretted one way by you and another way by someone else. If you are going to sell it then they are going to say it is commercial use and then they are going to insist upon a permit. There is an public 18 mile drive through Monument Valley after passing the admission gate. I have shot in Monument Valley many times using tripods and LF cameras without any problems. My photos are hanging on my walls and have never been sold. Access to areas off this drive requires a Navjo guide. There will be 2 dozen guides in the parking area that charge fees already mentioned. Some areas have signs that prohibit photography. Obey the rules and you will not have any problems. Break the rules and they can confiscate all equipment and film. Different reservations have different rules so be aware. If you wish to take a portrait ask the Native American for permission, give them a monetary payment, get their name and address and send them a print. Being courteous will pave the road with good thoughts of you and all the other photographers that will follow. Have a good trip.

[Brian Ellis]

I've never been to Antelope but I've been to Monument Valley several times, as recently as a year ago. Unless there's been a drastic change since I was there the fee is nothing like $750. You pay an entrance fee like any tourist and for that you can drive around a long and dusty loop, photographing whatever you like. If you want to do anything else you hire a guide. They have booths set up around the visitor center and you can hire them for a half day or a day. The first time I was there we hired one for a half day, I think the cost was around $75. The last time I was there we used a guide that the friend I was with had used before. He spent an hour or more driving us (not over roads, over raw land) to the highest point in Monument Valley where we photographed in late afternoon and early evening, ate a dinner provided by him, slept in tents provided by him, photographed in early morning and then left. The cost for that was $300 for the two of us, $150 each.

I'd just show up, pay the entrance fee, drive around photographing from the road, then if you want to do more find a guide at the visitor center.

[Jon Wilson]

If you have access to AAA or have a friend who is a AAA member, their AAA Idaho Via magazine for Sept-Oct 2004 has an article encouraging visitors for guided tours of Monument Valley et al. There are a number of phone numbers and email addresses you can contact which are referenced in the article. I would tend to believe the quoted $750 price was for the TOP dollar tour.

[Dick Baznik]

My experience matches that of Pat Kearns, though it's mostly been with medium format. My practice is to check in at the Pueblo reception area, where they normally can provide a set of rules and a schedule of fees for the use of cameras other than P&S. BTW, it's completely normal that there is a prohibition against any commercial use of images taken, even if you pay a fee.

In most cases I pay the required fee, usually $5 or $10 per camera (which gets interpreted sometimes as per component, i.e., per body, per lens, per back, etc.), get the receipt that certifies that I've paid, and then go on my way, all the while minding the rules they've established. For example, don't try to shoot any jewelry, pottery, textiles, or other crafts being sold in the pueblo without getting the vendor's permission. The only time I haven't paid the fee is when it seemed out of line, in which case I don't shoot there.

While I am an amateur, I've gotten offers for prints of my images, such as one of a ladder at the Akoma Pueblo ("Sky Pueblo") west of Albuquerque, which I display on a wall at my home. I have never sold a copy, and will not, though I have given a few prints as gifts -- always stamped clearly as not for sale or commercial use.

The $750 fee does seem to be intended for a different kind of shooter. I'd recommend talking to the people you find at each site you visit.