Potential terror threat at car boot sale

Greywolf

Suspended / Banned
Messages
320
Edit My Images
Yes
I had my first anti photographer encounter today. While waiting for my grandchildren to finishe their football training session, I decided to spend 20 minutes going round a car boot sale.

Gettin out of the truck I picked up my camera (brand new 5D mk II with 24 -105 This tells you how big it was) from the passenger seat. I couldn't be bothered to open the boot so I just slung it over my shoulders and tucked it against the small of my back.

Bought a small book about the King's won Scottish Borderers and brand new set of boules. I was ambling along one of the rows ( there must have been at least 12 stalls at this event which shows you how big it was, when a bloke passed me and the following exchange ensued.

Bloke: "you can't take pictures in here, they don't like it. You can't have a camera.!"
Me: "I'm not taking pictures"
Bloke: "What have you got a camera for then?"
Me: "I didn't want to leave it in the car".
Bloke: "That wouldn't matter, the alarm would go off".

At this point I decided I couldn't be bothered to think of a suitable reply to that and just ignored him and carried on.

Bizarre if nothing else.

I would quite like to know who 'They' were though.
Faceless bureaucrats in Whitehall, The Lancaster car boot sale mafia, ........
 
Ah, I would (and have) quizzed him about where were these rules written, who were they etc. "I'll just take your picture so I can show them who told me the rules..>"
 
The Lancaster car boot sale mafia, ........

Probably not far off the mark. My bet would be on the guys selling hooky DVDs!

I would've just pointed out that 99% of the people there would have had a camera in their pocket as part of their phone... Numpties.
 
Yeh, they don't want pictures of themselves appearing on the net just in case the social see them working. Or someone sees their stolen items sitting on a table.;)
 
Yeh, they don't want pictures of themselves appearing on the net just in case the social see them working. Or someone sees their stolen items sitting on a table.;)

lol its probably those ex pikeys who live in the house with the giant stone lions :lol: - (morcambe residents will know what i'm talking about )

mind you technically speaking if the event was on private land there could be rules about no photography from the landowner.
 
Maybe i misunderstand the thread, but what part of the OP's post makes this a potential terror threat? sorry if missed it.
 
Maybe i misunderstand the thread, but what part of the OP's post makes this a potential terror threat? sorry if missed it.

he's suggesting that the intollerance of cameras is because of the "terror threat" ie you cant take your camera round nuclear power stations because of the terror threat, so you can't take it round car boot sales because of the terror threat - a joke.
 
It normally means they are selling dodgy gear at the car boot, i.e. cigerettes, pirate dvd's etc, etc, they probably thought you were the press or a pap
 
Let's face it, in the great scheme of things this was less than a minor irritant but I'm not aware that simply carrying a camera is a problem, even on private property.

In other circumstances could you be prevented from carrying a camera on the basis that you might use it.

Oh yes, thinking about it I think I've seen posts somewhere about the London eye not allowing people on carrying cameras.
 
Oh yes, thinking about it I think I've seen posts somewhere about the London eye not allowing people on carrying cameras.

Really? I distinctly remember a friend and I taking cameras onto the London Eye and we weren't exactly hiding them. Still have the photos that we took on the London Eye, in fact.
 
Let's face it, in the great scheme of things this was less than a minor irritant but I'm not aware that simply carrying a camera is a problem, even on private property.

In other circumstances could you be prevented from carrying a camera on the basis that you might use it.

Oh yes, thinking about it I think I've seen posts somewhere about the London eye not allowing people on carrying cameras.

on private property there is no right of access or compulsion to admit you at all - so yes they can say no cameras if they wish ,
 
Personally I think you did well to just take it I really have had it with people telling me what I can and can not do with my camera everyone with compacts and mobile phones don't get any hassle but if you invest in a semi/pro camera people think they have the right to come up and put there nose in your business, would have just started taking pictures and asked him to show me the signs that say no photography and said to him mind your business :-)
 
W all know that terorists carry huge DSLR's around with them dont we.
So as not to stand out in a crowd

it's dripping in irony isn't it. You get looked at like some sort of fiend for having a camera, when a truly dodgy person would never be so conspicuous.....
 
I suspect that the perceived threat, in this case, was that the OP may have from Trading Standards, rather than the Taliban.
 
I suspect that the perceived threat, in this case, was that the OP may have from Trading Standards, rather than the Taliban.


:lol:
Exactly what I was thinking,

as for not leaving the camera in the car, I with you all the way there, I doesn't take much to put the window through and take it
 
:lol:
Exactly what I was thinking,

as for not leaving the camera in the car, I with you all the way there, I doesn't take much to put the window through and take it

..and most insurers won't cover possessions left in an unattended car?
 
Should've told him you just bought the camera for a tenner and that he needs to look better :D

(I purchased an EOS 650 with a 50mm f/1.8 at a car boot sale this morning and walked round the rest of the sale with it slung in plain view round my neck with no botheration)
 
Cant see many declaring extra income to the Taxman or the Benefit Office.
 
(I purchased an EOS 650 with a 50mm f/1.8 at a car boot sale this morning and walked round the rest of the sale with it slung in plain view round my neck with no botheration)

You might need oven gloves on when you use that... One imagines it may be a tad warm
 
DorsetDude said:
You might need oven gloves on when you use that... One imagines it may be a tad warm

Long established car boot at the local catholic girls' school that I've been attending for many years. They police it well.

I've very rarely (if ever) felt that there were any shonky goods on sale. You talk to people running the stalls and they're quite genuine.
 
I would have thought an EOS 650 would end up in the bin if it was hot, they're in the area of £10 on eBay and film is completely defunct in most people's eyes.
 
I would have thought an EOS 650 would end up in the bin if it was hot, they're in the area of £10 on eBay and film is completely defunct in most people's eyes.

Easy... SOme of us still have our original EOS kit. A 620 in my case :lol:

Steve
 
I've got a 3000 and a 33v myself (and a Zenit 12XP, a Bencini Koroll S and a Polaroid six-something-something for that matter) but if you showed them to most people they'd ask why on Earth you'd want a film camera :P
 
At this point I decided I couldn't be bothered to think of a suitable reply to that and just ignored him and carried on.

Seems like the most sensible reaction, although I would have probably done that after the opening line! :D
 
Seems like the most sensible reaction, although I would have probably done that after the opening line! :D

Maybe the response should have been "And you are ?"

Followed by "Oh, nobody that matters then"

At which point you can continue about your business but also have a little smile to yourself. :D

Steve
 
DazJW said:
I've got a 3000 and a 33v myself (and a Zenit 12XP, a Bencini Koroll S and a Polaroid six-something-something for that matter) but if you showed them to most people they'd ask why on Earth you'd want a film camera :P

The 650 will be a backup for my EOS 3. Though the 50mm f/1.8 Mk1 alone was worth comfortably more than the asking price.

There was a woman on another stall selling an Olympus 35 AF. She'd put up a sign saying THIS IS NOT A DIGITAL CAMERA IT TAKES FILM THAT YOU HAVE TO GET DEVELOPED because of the number of times she'd been asked where the screen was. :D
 
Last edited:
Maybe the response should have been "And you are ?"

Followed by "Oh, nobody that matters then"

At which point you can continue about your business but also have a little smile to yourself. :D

Steve

If you are going to head down that route a better riposte would have been 'Why? What have you got to hide?'

In the original situation though, any discussion is like to be utterly pointless and a waste of oxygen, as well as potentially leading to being on the receiving end of a Chav slanging match, unless it was in a school in which case you are likely to be branded a Perv.
 
I would have thought an EOS 650 would end up in the bin if it was hot, they're in the area of £10 on eBay and film is completely defunct in most people's eyes.

Ah! :$

I was thinking it was the latest digital canon after the 600D, my bad.:bonk:
 
Some people are really strange. I wonder how many of the boot sale attendees were carrying a mobile with a camera? Probably about 95% of them. I think to old MYOB and long walk short pier suggestion would have been appropriate.

Paul
 
I suspect that the perceived threat, in this case, was that the OP may have from Trading Standards, rather than the Taliban.

Trading Standards, DHSS and HMR&C.
 
Back
Top