California State Parks gestapo is looking for you!
One guy taking a Christmas card photo of his family got busted at Seacliff State Beach this week. I think the state parks gestapo will be looking for a reason to bust you based on your gear and will want to fill their pockets with cash. Be careful out there. As far as I am concerned, no parks pass for me this year. I'm not rewarding this kind of behavior.
Read the story in the Santa Cruz Sentinel:
Family photo shoot at Seacliff State Beach highlights obscure state law
Gestapo? Over react much?
"The ranger stopped short of ticketing the photographers, but McGhee, a longtime Seacliff resident and professional photographer who regularly shoots at area beaches, ...
"A little-known State Parks regulation requires commercial photographers to acquire a permit ... "
From reading the article I'd say the ranger went overboard a little in this exchange, if it's accurate:
"We didn't become irate or anything like that, we just told him it was not a commercial venture. It was just our family and we were doing Christmas cards," McGhee said. "He said it didn't matter and if we wanted to shoot, we had to go to the district office and get a permit."
They did not need a permit if it was not a commercial shoot. It could be the ranger was a bit defensive from some earlier unpleasant encounters with commercial shoots. I'm sure not all that are warned or confronted are as polite as this photographer was.
I agree with you Sam. This was not a pro gig - it was a family shoot. The equipment you are using is meaningless, and I don't think I'd have been so forgiving to the ranger. That arrest would make a great lawsuit.
Same applies to commercial photographers in Natl Parks. It does not apply to taking
photos for personal artistic use, even if prints of the subject are sold in the future.
If you are filming a commercial movie or taking shots for a postcard company for mass reproduction, or staging an event with models, then you probably need a permit. Only once have I even been asked, and that was by a new ranger who was confused about
the rules.
The rangers at Seacliff have been targeting photographers for required permits for years. The first time I encountered a situation like this was at Seacliff in the mid 1980's. In this situation, I was the subject, not the photographer.
Is that a Hasselblad?
If you read that law (as posted with the story) you will see that permits are only required for comercial shoots, not commercial photographers. As long as the photographer was not shooting for comercial purposes no permit should be required.Originally Posted by Robert Hughes
"California Code of Regulations Title 14, Section 4316, Commercial Filming
Except when authorized by State Parks, no person shall photograph, videotape or film for commercial (profit and sale) purposes in any unit, or portion thereof, owned operated or administered by the department without a permit from the California Film Commission, pursuant to Government Code section.
SOURCE: State Parks"
Actually, I believe as long as you do not have models, crews, staging, props, etc., or are giving a class, seminar, etc., and stay in areas that the public is allowed in, a permit is not needed regardless of whether you're shooting comercially or not. You could be on assignment for someone without the need for a permit. Matter of fact, if you search the LF archives, QT has an article on this whole subject for photographing in the national parks. ( I think he's probably familiar with the guidelines.) Jim
Next it’ll be the thought police after you.
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