Demo-Lition Student Protest - Policing

lareneg

lareneg

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Julian
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Hi all,

I am a student, and will be taking photographs at the protest on Wednesday in London. I just have a few questions about the law, should I fall out with the police - I don't plan to, but I've heard many 'horror stories':

a) Am I actually doing anything wrong by photographing police at the protest?
b) If they ask me to stop, do I have to?
c) Under what circumstances could a police officer confiscate my camera? I understand that they are not allowed to delete photographs for any reason.
d) Is there any law which they could use to take me to the station for taking photographs?
e) Is there any law which they could try to use wrongly for any of the above?

It is my understanding that they can only take my camera/memory card away if they have evidence that I am taking photographs which would aid terrorists - is this right?

Thanks :)
 
A 10 second search on Google would have provided you with the answers to those questions:

http://www.sirimo.co.uk/2009/05/14/uk-photographers-rights-v2/
(note the section on Obstruction and Public Order)

http://www.met.police.uk/about/photography.htm

http://www.urban75.org/photos/photographers-rights-and-the-law.html
(now rather outdated)

If there are any incidents, it's worth being aware of Section 19 PACE covered here:

http://www.marcvallee.co.uk/blog/2010/09/police-seize-protesters-film/
(note Nick Cloke's comments)

Sect 19 of PACE (and its associated sections) is the only genuine reason for impounding a memory card without an arrest for suspicion under Sects 43 or 58a of the Terrorist Act.

Attitude is far more important. Act like a tool and you will get treated like one by the police. Act like a professional and you have far more chance of being treated with a modicum of respect.

Not wishing to be overly rude, but with the wealth of knowledge available on this subject both on here and the internet in general, was it really that hard to find out the info yourself? Are students not taught the basics of research anymore?
 
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As long as you look like you know what you're doing, you should have no problems.
A high-profile event like this will attract a lot of press attention and you'll not be the only photographer attending.
 
Hi Julian I go to quite a few demos in London and have never had any trouble with the police. I find if you act responsibly they leave you alone, after all they usually have more important things to do with the demonstraters.
 
lareneg said:
Hi all,

I am a student, and will be taking photographs at the protest on Wednesday in London. I just have a few questions about the law, should I fall out with the police - I don't plan to, but I've heard many 'horror stories':

a) Am I actually doing anything wrong by photographing police at the protest?
b) If they ask me to stop, do I have to?
c) Under what circumstances could a police officer confiscate my camera? I understand that they are not allowed to delete photographs for any reason.
d) Is there any law which they could use to take me to the station for taking photographs?
e) Is there any law which they could try to use wrongly for any of the above?

It is my understanding that they can only take my camera/memory card away if they have evidence that I am taking photographs which would aid terrorists - is this right?

Thanks :)
Click to expand...

How did it go? Did you get any pictures?
It certainly looked like there was plenty of good photo opportunities. :eek:

Stew.
 
chimper said:
How did it go? Did you get any pictures?
It certainly looked like there was plenty of good photo opportunities. :eek:

Stew.
Click to expand...

According to nearly EVERY national newspaper this morning there was only one good photo op. as only one picture (the same picture) made it on to the front of every newspaper.:suspect:. Baffles me out of all the photographers that were running around that place yesterday probably shooting millions of pictures between them that the press decide to use one picture of one guy kicking a window in:shrug:

anyone else notice the lack of front page footage on the press today:thinking: im baffled by it

Dave:thumbs:
 
It probably reflects how many photographers had the contacts to rapidly exploit the images from that gig.

If you aren't hooked into that game, taking the images is only for your own benefit. The deals on the images will have been done long before most of them even left the location, let alone started to look at their photos.

Most of the people I saw there with cameras were students not press :)
 
Perhaps the OP, and every other 'tog there are still languising in jail, or have had all their cards confiscated 'for evidence purposes'
and this was the only 'tog/photo that managed to make it out, and get it to a paper

(tounge firmly in cheek there, I do not believe that this is the case, and I do not think that the police would have over-reacted that much)
 
desantnik said:
Most of the people I saw there with cameras were students not press :)
Click to expand...

Press photographers were there in abundance yesterday.

Just surprises me that in the media world of exclusivity and wanting to always be one step ahead of the other papers they all decide to use 1 pic :suspect:

Dave:thumbs:
 
Like I say, it all depends on who managed to make the deal :)

Unless the papers had their own people on the ground, they'll have all taken it from agencies.
 
So you dont think its odd that they all decided to choose the same image:thinking:

Dave:thumbs:
 
Best of what was available at the time of chosing?
 
It's the common editorial line. 50,000 students getting off their arse is nothing, but 200 people (almost certainly in part unrelated - the black bloc love to rock up to absolutely any protest and stir ****)

The photo in the bbc gallery shows a SINGLE person kicking a window... with 50 or so photographers and video crews in a semicircle around them. It's how the news, and politics, works...
 
itsdavedotnet said:
The photo in the bbc gallery shows a SINGLE person kicking a window... with 50 or so photographers and video crews in a semicircle around them. It's how the news, and politics, works...
Click to expand...

And the cameras were getting in the way of the policeman behind them.
Although, by the look on his face, I am not sure he really wanted to try and stop the vandalism in front of a mass of recording devices.
 
Cameraman said:
i dont buy that sorry
Click to expand...

What is it you don't buy? Are you saying that there is some sort of black helicopter Roswell cover up conspiracy going on here? :runaway:
 
Nice to see they still had time to perform a dance routine.

High school musical?
riotvicedo.jpg


What you need after a good protest and kicking down doors/windows is to relax with a good spliff
_49880378_protest_millbank_bbc.jpg
 
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LOL looks more like Michael Jackson than HSM :)

Great shot though :D
 
desantnik said:
What is it you don't buy? Are you saying that there is some sort of black helicopter Roswell cover up conspiracy going on here? :runaway:
Click to expand...

yep:thumbs: but maybe not the helicopter bit.

I dont buy the fact that nearly every newspaper used the same image of 1 guy kicking in a window, no other protesters, no bloodied faced coppers, no fire, no throwing of fire extinguishers off roofs, no usual heavy handed coppers dragging away unruly youths, no nothing except 1 picture, the same picture used by all the papers. I find that a bit sus:suspect: if you dont :shrug: oh well but i do

Dave:thumbs:
 
I wonder whether there was a request to make sure that none of the photographs included people who were identifiable performing criminal acts?
And that with that request, this was the 'best' photograph which demonstrated the hooliganism, whereby the perpetrator is clearly not identifiable.
 
coldpenguin said:
I wonder whether there was a request to make sure that none of the photographs included people who were identifiable performing criminal acts?
And that with that request, this was the 'best' photograph which demonstrated the hooliganism, whereby the perpetrator is clearly not identifiable.
Click to expand...

Certainly been a request from someone for something :suspect: as this just doesnt happen imho

Dave:thumbs:
 
god dam moron art students - should make them pay more for doing their pointless degrees
 
Cameraman said:
yep:thumbs: but maybe not the helicopter bit.

I dont buy the fact that nearly every newspaper used the same image of 1 guy kicking in a window, no other protesters, no bloodied faced coppers, no fire, no throwing of fire extinguishers off roofs, no usual heavy handed coppers dragging away unruly youths, no nothing except 1 picture, the same picture used by all the papers. I find that a bit sus:suspect: if you dont :shrug: oh well but i do

Dave:thumbs:
Click to expand...

The picture "in question" comes from a staffer working for the Press Association. Near enough every media organisation in the country has a contract with PA, and pays a subscription to allow them to download material.

These days that material includes copy (ie. the articles themselves), photos, audio and video. Given that any newspaper has already paid for the image (by virtue of having a subscription) why would they pay for another image, when the one they have will do fine?

There's no conspiracy to speak of...simply that newspapers will go to PA first because it's cheapest for them. :cuckoo:
 
Cameraman said:
yep:thumbs: but maybe not the helicopter bit.

I dont buy the fact that nearly every newspaper used the same image of 1 guy kicking in a window, no other protesters, no bloodied faced coppers, no fire, no throwing of fire extinguishers off roofs, no usual heavy handed coppers dragging away unruly youths, no nothing except 1 picture, the same picture used by all the papers. I find that a bit sus:suspect: if you dont :shrug: oh well but i do

Dave:thumbs:
Click to expand...

What exactly do you think is being covered up?

Not being sarcastic, it's a serious question. I'm genuinely curious about why you'd think there was some sort of conspiracy :shrug:
 
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