Can I get sued for taking photos?

So there are fairs happening all over the place.  I have been going to a couple and taking photos of the livestock.  Cows, horses and other random animals.  Copyright laws are really strict for all the right reasons.  But are there any laws that would prevent me from posting online and possibly selling photos of other peoples animals?  All these photos are taken at the fair, on public grounds.  So we aren't talking about private property. 

Do you have any experience with this sort of stuff?

Not for animals, and not for people if taken in a public place where privacy isn’t an issue. (Nude beaches are obviously a no-no!)

Where you want to be careful is with children, and if your photo somehow creates a compromising or liable situation. For instance, if the photo gets them in trouble or causes them some kind of trauma. Otherwise, a “normal” photo of a person or animal in public are usually free game.  

I'll assume the OP is in the USA.

In the USA, in public, there is no expectation of privacy, for anyone, for any reason. Period. That includes, it turns out, children. And naked people.

You are not entirely clear, but one guesses that you mean, "can I post images online, to Flickr, for example, or Instagram, of people I've encountered out in public places?"

The answer would be yes.

Can you use those to drum up business? That's stickier, and implies self-promotion, which implies commercial use (in a roundabout way) and the answer would likely be "no, not without a release." Folks have the right to control the use of their likeness in a commercial context.

Then there's the question of the wisdom of posting whatever you want. While, legally, you can share images of children captured in public, do you want to deal with ignorant parents raising a fuss?

Naked people bring up even more issues, which we'll just avoid here. Because, you  know, nipples. #againwiththeeyerolls

Animals: they're property. Photos of property for commercial use are usually going to require a release. So we're back to: what are you doing with the images?

As someone that attends festivals and fairs, on both private and public property, I've never had pushback for posting photos of anyone. Even children. But that's only to document the event, which I usually do under the auspices of "event photographer".

I would have guessed with being on a public event, that would be free game there.  

Keep in mind, the question is “get sued”, not “what’s legal”. My advice is simply general guidelines I like to follow so that I don’t set off creeper alarms. You can still get sued, or a disorderly conduct/disturbing the peace fine, in the US, if enough people complain about your presence. People get weird around cameras, mostly because the internet has made out anyone with a camera in public to be a potential creeper. 

Troponin wrote: Keep in mind, the question is “get sued”, not “what’s legal”. My advice is simply general guidelines I like to follow so that I don’t set off creeper alarms. You can still get sued, or a disorderly conduct/disturbing the peace fine, in the US, if enough people complain about your presence. People get weird around cameras, mostly because the internet has made out anyone with a camera in public to be a potential creeper. 

Absolutely. One can get sued by anyone, at any time, for any reason. In the context of photography, I think it's helpful to know what the law says, however.

And I think you mean, anyone with a serious camera must be a potential creeper. Despite the fact that essentially every single person around you has a camera in their pocket now. But for some reason, that's "different." #againwiththeeyerolls

garyrhook wrote:

Troponin wrote: Keep in mind, the question is “get sued”, not “what’s legal”. My advice is simply general guidelines I like to follow so that I don’t set off creeper alarms. You can still get sued, or a disorderly conduct/disturbing the peace fine, in the US, if enough people complain about your presence. People get weird around cameras, mostly because the internet has made out anyone with a camera in public to be a potential creeper. 

Absolutely. One can get sued by anyone, at any time, for any reason. In the context of photography, I think it's helpful to know what the law says, however.

And I think you mean, anyone with a serious camera must be a potential creeper. Despite the fact that essentially every single person around you has a camera in their pocket now. But for some reason, that's "different." #againwiththeeyerolls

So true, #metoomovement is on full effect, so many are suing for stupid reasons as well.

An event is attended by the general public, but that doesn't mean a venue is necessarily publicly owned. The fairgrounds most likely is, probably by the city/county, and the fair board may be as well or could be a separate nonprofit organization.

What are the fair's policies on cameras/photography? You're probably able to take photos at the fair. What matters is usage. Posting/sharing your photos on social media is considered editorial use where releases aren't needed. You're talking about making money from images of people's livestock, and I'm not sure if that would be considered their 'property' or not. Supposedly you need property releases to use images of peoples' property if it's recognizable to make money

Who would you sell the photos to? If there was interest in buying photos of prize winning livestock, etc. I'd think it would be from the families who owned the animals. You'd probably need to go through the fair about taking photos during showing and judging or of exhibitions to sell to make money.

You certainly can.   Icepics made some good points.  +1

Thanks gang, but I'm not talking about naked people.  Animals I've been photographing at the local fair.  And yes posting them on various social media platforms and my site.  But the intent is to use for promotional purpose too. 

Thank you

Promotional... what? Not sure what you mean.

Cory J wrote: Thanks gang, but I'm not talking about naked people.  Animals I've been photographing at the local fair.  And yes posting them on various social media platforms and my site.  But the intent is to use for promotional purpose too.

You specified a subject, and the conversation explored that aspect by touching upon alternatives. Seems perfectly reasonable because the issue isn't "animals", it's more about "property". "People" may have gone too far afield.

That said: you mention "promotion", which I interpret as self-promotion. A property owner might have a problem, but only if the property is identifiable. We haven't seen your images, so only you can make that determination.

I wondered about what was meant by promotional use because the OP mentioned possibly selling photos. When you get into selling prints or licensing usage of images that's when permission/releases can come into it.