The intellectual property rights on photographs are protected in different jurisdictions by the laws governing copyright and moral rights. In some cases photography may be restricted by civil or criminal law. Publishing certain photographs can be restricted by privacy or other laws. Photography can be generally restricted in the interests of public morality and the protection of children.
Reactions to photography differ between societies, and even where there are no official restrictions there may be objections to photographing people or places. Reactions may range from complaints to violence for photography which is not illegal.
Australia
General Australia's laws in relation to this matter are similar to that of the United States. In Australia you can generally photograph anything or anyone in a public place without permission assuming that it isn't being used in an otherwise illegal way such as defamation and does not contain copyrighted material. Furthermore photographing in a place where people would reasonably expect to be afforded privacy such as in a public restroom may also be illegal.
Private property While one can generally photograph private property and the people within it if the photographer is not within the bounds of the private property and cannot be asked to stop or delete the images, the owner can restrict recording whilst the photographer is on the private property. Failure to comply with orders to stop recording on the private property is not a criminal offence although it may be against the terms or policy of entrance and the photographer may be asked to leave; if they refuse to leave, they may be liable for trespassing.
Publishing and rights The photographer generally has full rights of the images meaning they can publish it to places such as social media without permission from the people in the image. However, there are exceptions in the following scenarios: A breach of the Privacy Act 1988 Was taken while trespassing on private property A breach of duty, such as sharing confidential information
A photographer can generally also not be forced to show or delete the images unless the photographic practices were at breach of the law.
Commercial purposes If you are seeking to photograph for commercial purposes you may be required to gain permission from anyone who was involved in the film or photograph. Commercial purposes usually means that you are photographing for financial gain or to promote goods or services.
United Kingdom
Legal restrictions on photography
In the United Kingdom there are no laws forbidding photography of private property from a public place. Photography is not restricted on land if the landowner has given permission to be on the land or the photographer has legal right to access, for example Byways Open to All Traffic or a public right of way or an area of open access land. The Metropolitan Police state in their own advice "Members of the public and the media do not need a permit to film or photograph in public places and police have no power to stop them filming or photographing incidents or police personnel". The IAC, Film and Video Institute recommends that one follows instruction given by police as there may be a reason/reasons for not filming, ignorance of said law(s) notwithstanding. An exception is an area that has prohibitions detailed within anti terrorism legislation. Civil proceeding can be taken if a person is filmed without consent, and privacy laws exist to protect a person where they can expect privacy. Two public locations in the UK, Trafalgar Square and Parliament Square, have a specific provision against photography for commercial purposes without the written permission of the Mayor or the Squares' Management Team and paying a fee,http://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/art-culture/trafalgar-square/managing-trafalgar-square/filming-trafalgar-square/application-process Application process and permission is needed to photograph or film for commercial purposes in the Royal Parks or on any National Trust land.
Persistent and aggressive photography of a single individual may come under the legal definition of harassment.Linda Macpherson LL.B, Dip.L.P., LL.M – The UK Photographers Rights Guide
It is contempt of court to take a photograph in any court of law of any person, being a judge of the court or a juror or a witness in or a party to any proceedings before the court, whether civil or criminal, or to publish such a photograph. This includes photographs taken in a court building or the precincts of the court.Criminal Justice Act 1925 (c.86) s.41 Taking a photograph in a court can be seen as a serious offence, leading to a prison sentence.Mobile court photo sentence upheld – news.bbc.co.ukRegina v Vincent D No. 2004/01739/A7 EWCA Crim 1271 The prohibition on taking photographs in the precincts is vague. It was designed to prevent the undermining of the dignity of the court, through the exploitation of images in low brow "picture papers".Rubin, G. "Seddon, Dell and rock n' roll: investigating alleged breaches of the ban on publishing photographs taken within courts or their precincts, 1925–1967" Crim. L.R. 874
Photography of certain subject matter is restricted in the United Kingdom. In particular, the Protection of Children Act 1978 restricts making or possessing pornography of children under 18, or what looks like pornography of under-18s. There is no law prohibiting photographing children in public spaces.
Taking photographs on private property is also legal. The landowner may, as a condition of granting entry to the private property, choose to place conditions or restrictions on photography, but the only consequence of failure to comply with these conditions is the photographer being required to leave. Landowners and their agents cannot inspect or delete, or require the deletion of, photographs taken this way.
Anti-terrorism law It is an offence under the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 to publish or communicate a photograph of a constable (not including PCSOs), a member of the armed forces, or a member of the security services, which is of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism. There is a defence of acting with a reasonable excuse; however, the burden of proof is on the defence, under section 58A of the Terrorism Act 2000. A PCSO in 2009 cited Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 to prevent a member of the public photographing him. Section 44 actually concerns stop and search powers. However, in January 2010 the stop-and-search powers granted under Section 44 were ruled illegal by the European Court of Human Rights.
While the Act does not prohibit photography, critics have alleged that powers granted to police under Section 44 have been misused to prevent lawful public photography. Notable instances have included the investigation of a schoolboy, a Member of Parliament and a BBC photographer. The scope of these powers has since been reduced, and guidance around them issued to discourage their use in relation to photography, following litigation in the European Court of Human Rights.
Following a prolonged campaign, including a series of demonstrations by photographers dealt with by police officers and PCSOs, the Metropolitan Police was forced to issue updated legal advice which confirms that "Members of the public and the media do not need a permit to film or photograph in public places and police have no power to stop them filming or photographing incidents or police personnel" and that "The power to stop and search someone under Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000 no longer exists."
It is an offence under section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000 to take a photograph of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, or possessing such a photograph. There is an identical defence of reasonable excuse. This offence (and possibly, but not necessarily the offence) covers only a photograph as described in of the Terrorism Act 2006. As such, it must be of a kind likely to provide practical assistance to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism. Whether the photograph in question is such is a matter for a jury, which is not required to look at the surrounding circumstances. The photograph must contain information of such a nature as to raise a reasonable suspicion that it was intended to be used to assist in the preparation or commission of an act of terrorism. It must call for an explanation. A photograph which is innocuous on its face will not fall foul of the provision if the prosecution adduces evidence that it was intended to be used for the purpose of committing or preparing a terrorist act. The defence may prove a reasonable excuse simply by showing that the photograph is possessed for a purpose other than to assist in the commission or preparation of an act of terrorism, even if the purpose of possession is otherwise unlawful.R v K EWCA Crim 185
Copyright
Copyright can subsist in an original photograph, i.e. a recording of light or other radiation on any medium on which an image is produced or from which an image by any means be produced, and which is not part of a film.Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s 1(1)(a) and s 4(2) Whilst photographs are classified as artistic works, the subsistence of copyright does not depend on artistic merit. The owner of the copyright in the photograph is the photographer – the person who creates it,Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s 9(1) by default.Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s 11(1) However, where a photograph is taken by an employee in the course of employment, the first owner of the copyright is the employer, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s 11(3)
Copyright which subsists in a photograph protects not merely the photographer from direct copying of his/her work, but also from indirect copying to reproduce his/her work, where a substantial part of his/her work has been copied.
Copyright in a photograph lasts for 70 years from the end of the year in which the photographer dies.Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s 12 A consequence of this lengthy period of existence of the copyright is that many family photographs which have no market value, but significant emotional value, remain subject to copyright, even when the original photographer cannot be traced (a problem known as copyright orphan), has given up photography, or died. In the absence of a licence, it will be an infringement of copyright in the photographs to copy them.Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s 16(2) When someone dies the rights will have transferred to someone else, perhaps through testamentary deposition (a will) or by inheritance. If there was no will, or if the photographer has not specified where the rights in the material should go, then the normal rules of inheritance will apply (although these rules are not specific to copyright and legal advice should be sought). Scanning old family photographs, without permission, to a digital file for personal use is prima facie an infringement of copyright.
Certain photographs may not be protected by copyright. Section 171(3) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 gives courts jurisdiction to refrain from enforcing the copyright which subsists in works on the grounds of public interest. For example, patent diagrams are held to be in the public domain, and are thus not subject to copyright.
Infringement
Infringement of the copyright which subsists in a photograph can be performed through copying the photograph. This is because the owner of the copyright in the photograph has the exclusive right to copy the photograph.Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s 16(1) For there to be infringement of the copyright in a photograph, there must be copying of a substantial part of the photograph.Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 s16(3)