Posting images of cars with visible license plates

[_neofita_]

Hello!
The other day, I took a few pictures of a really nice vintage car parked on the street. In a couple of the best shots (best for me) the license plate is clearly visible. Provided that the car was parked on a public street and not in violation of any road regulation, and that I have no bad intentions (like making fun of the owner/car or else), is it OK to post it on social media? Are there any legal or ethical issues?

Note: I thought about removing/covering the license plate, but it ruins the image.

Thank you all for your help.

 

[AndrewFlannigan]

Hello!
The other day, I took a few pictures of a really nice vintage car parked on the street. In a couple of the best shots (best for me) the license plate is clearly visible. Provided that the car was parked on a public street and not in violation of any road regulation, and that I have no bad intentions (like making fun of the owner/car or else), is it OK to post it on social media? Are there any legal or ethical issues?

Note: I thought about removing/covering the license plate, but it ruins the image.

Thank you all for your help.

Basic British law says that If something is visible from a public area, it may be photographed and shared around.

However, there are specific exceptions, such as: some government sites (where a "photography forbidden" sign will be displayed) schools and so on. Also, there are some newer laws such as the prohibition on "upskirting".

A car parked on a street is not subject to such rules, so far as I know...

 

[LongLensPhotography]

I normally blank them out for commercial use in estate listings. That seems the norm, Not that it is illegal or so. You can always add in your initials or brand name in a matching style.

 

[_neofita_]

Basic British law says that If something is visible from a public area, it may be photographed and shared around.

However, there are specific exceptions, such as: some government sites (where a "photography forbidden" sign will be displayed) schools and so on. Also, there are some newer laws such as the prohibition on "upskirting".

A car parked on a street is not subject to such rules, so far as I know...

View attachment 462389

Thank you, Andrew.

Nice car, BTW.

 

[_neofita_]

I normally blank them out for commercial use in estate listings. That seems the norm, Not that it is illegal or so. You can always add in your initials or brand name in a matching style.

Thank you.

I tried covering it by blurring it or adding something with the same style/colour, but it just ruined the whole thing. To be clear, my photo is not a masterpiece, so it's not like it would ruin Ansel Adams' work! But still messes it up too much for my taste. This being said, it's not for commercial use and I won't put it on any photo stock sites, so I think I should be in the clear as Andrew said. But thank you for the suggestions!

 

[_neofita_]

If interested, I eventually posted it here: https://www.talkphotography.co.uk/threads/pink-vintage-car-with-a-vintage-lens.769926/

 

[Dryce]

Note: I thought about removing/covering the license plate, but it ruins the image.

I think it is down to context.

For classic vehicles it's unlikely to be an issue as you can often find details of the car from its description and searching - and find images from events.

So in this case I wouldn't be inclined to alter it.

I have recorded classic vehicles at events and I don't consider it to be appropriate to obscure the registrations.

However in other contexts such as that described by @LongLensPhotography where the images are being used for publicity or advertising then I think privacy becomes an issue and then either the registration should be altered or permission sought.