How to do street photography legally without permissions?

4 years 5 months ago #663762 by Paul Velasco
What's the trick to street photography?  You can't use a persons photo you took on the street with out their consent right?  If you ask for permission before you take the photo, you loose the impromptu photo capture and it looks staged. So how are the greats doing this?  Is there a statute of limitations that expires after so long?  Meaning I take a photo of you today on the street, 10 years goes by, so now I can sell the photo, or use it in a gallery or book?  


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4 years 5 months ago #663784 by effron

Why so serious?
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4 years 5 months ago #663901 by fmw
There was a well known case a couple of decades ago.  A photographer shot a young girl riding a carousel horse and sold the image to an ad agency that used it in an ad.  The child's father sued the photographer and ad agency and won.  Yes it is impractical to nearly impossible to get model releases from people in public but there was a situation where it became necessary much to the photographer's surprise and expense.


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4 years 4 months ago #663968 by Roy Wilson
I suspect these sort of cases will only get worse with the trigger happy to sue, and privacy issues becoming more and more delicate.  I had interest in street photography at one point, but after looking into things further opted my interests elsewhere.  

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4 years 4 months ago - 4 years 4 months ago #663975 by garyrhook
As fmw illustrates above, the problem is with "commercial use".

Everything else is fair game.

Paul Velasco wrote: You can't use a persons photo you took on the street with out their consent right?

As discussed in the article referenced by Effron, mostly incorrect, but (as is often the case) it depends.

If you ask for permission before you take the photo, you loose the impromptu photo capture and it looks staged. So how are the greats doing this?

Go do some reading. There was a recent PBS show (American Experience) about Garry Winogrand, and they discuss his method.

Is there a statute of limitations that expires after so long?  Meaning I take a photo of you today on the street, 10 years goes by, so now I can sell the photo, or use it in a gallery or book?

No limitation in that sense. If I can use the photo in 10 years, I can use it today.

You can sell the photo as art from day one. You can't sell it for commercial use (no stock, no advertising) without a release.


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4 years 4 months ago #664305 by Finn
This guys does a good job with how to get your arms around street photography



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4 years 4 months ago #664306 by Finn
Better one



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