Sure. Sometimes you do that approach. Much of the time, not. That’s how photojournalism works. I do my best to have people comfortable with my presence, of course, but there’s plenty of times when asking before shooting will ruin the moment. While I have not done editorial work for years, I would still approach you at some point, usually afterwards, to get caption information for the picture, so you’d be aware of who I am and what I’m doing. A lot of the iconic, great slice-of-life photos wouldn’t be there if photographers always asked before taking a photo.
I didn’t insult you. I didn’t say that you, Charlie Wayne, are stupid. I said that your statement was the stupidest statement in this thread full of stupid statements.
It’s not for me. It’s the way this message board works. People who make factual statements at the Straight Dope are expected to be able to back them up. This is enforced most clearly in Great Debates and General Questions but it is true in any of the forums. It is always appropriate to ask a poster for citations of dubious claims.
I did not imply that you are stupid. I said that your statement was stupid. This is acceptable according to the rules and traditions of this board.
Of course, we’re going a little astray here. What did you want this kid to do? Ask every single person on that public beach whether they minded being photographer before taking a scenic shot of bathers on the beach from above? That sounds absolutely crazy to me that one would have to ask anyone in any picture taken involving humans in the picture their permission to be in the picture.
No. I’m saying that maybe he shouldn’t record people at the beach, and if he really needs to, he should be ready to be confronted when eventually somebody decides to do something about it. Same goes to you if you want to go around taking pictures of people.
Because doing that is getting in the space of others.
Maybe people shouldn’t go to the beach, because doing that gets in the space of others.
But it doesn’t. Taking a camera and filming them does. And don’t tell me that you wouldn’t be uncomfortable if you saw somebody filming you at the beach, because you would.
So, you’re not getting Google Glass, then?
I’m not filming people without their permission, and I hope you don’t either if you buy a pair, especially at the beach.
This is a public beach. People can take cameras there. Cameras are rather omnipresent these days and with digital photography the barrier to taking a decent photo is pretty low.
In a public place, even if you are wearing a swimsuit, someone can take your photo.
Legally.
Forget the ridiculous hyptheticals like they are inches away from your children’s tiny crotches.
WHAT THIS KID WAS DOING, was completely legal and not even perverted in any fashion.
Those of you crying “pervert” are the ones who have some sort of sexual problem. Like the anti-gay conservatives who get caught with a young boy, there is clearly something wrong with you.
People’s personal boundaries have nothing to do with the law. We are not each of us a Law unto ourselves that we get to deal out to each other like we’re Judge Dredd.
If you get freaked out when you’re out in a group and someone ‘stares at you too long’, see a doctor. You are a danger to society.
But it does. It restricts my airspace.
Nah. I don’t think I would, but it depend on what you mean by “filming [me]”. A drone flying 50" above? Wouldn’t even notice it. A guy who has his camera on me for a few seconds, then pans over, wouldn’t even register. Somebody up my crotch? Yeah, that I might notice. But, someone casually filming or a flying copter going by with a camera, or even a pro taking a couple long lens shots of me, I wouldn’t give the mildest fuck in the world.
But nobody is arguing the legality of it, just what’s considered acceptable behaviour.
I don’t think there’s anything weird with feeling uncomfortable when somebody’s staring at you for too long. I honestly don’t believe for a second, and I mean, for a second that you wouldn’t either. It’s actually not human not to be weirded out by somebody staring at you.
Really? “Hey, why are those guys taking pictures of me?” wouldn’t you be even curious at least? I find that incredibly hard to believe.
And how is this comparable to a quadcopter flying across a beach? I don’t even know how I would even notice such a thing. Now, if the woman is complaining because the kid hovered the copter directly above her and left it there, yeah, I could understand her reaction somewhat better. But it strikes me as odd to be freaked out at all, much less enough to go apeshit for a guy doing runs of the quadcopter across the beach at 50 feet.
I was responding to Zebra, who said that, because I feel weirded out if somebody stares at me for too long, I’m some sort of danger to society.
And in this case, modern cameras can zoom up to impressive detail, even at 50 feet, so it isn’t that different from walking along the beach with a camera. If you can understand how anybody could react to a guy filming people at the beach, then you should understand how the same goes for a quadcopter.
Well, find it incredibly hard to believe all you want, but that’s the case. Why should I give a damn if somebody takes a photo of me in public? I’ll only wonder if somebody pays undue attention to specifically me, otherwise, I don’t see any reason to be bothered.
But that’s what you said, that there was an hypothetical couple taking a couple of pictures specifically of you. Me, I’d find that odd.
A “couple of pictures” I truly and honestly wouldn’t care. I’m in public, you can photograph me all day long for what I care. But that’s still a hell of a lot different than a drone flying across a beach 50’ up in the air. That’s more like someone going apeshit because a tourist decided to take a panning shot of the beach, like tourists do every single day in pretty much every single beach in the world. Now, if this “drone” was hovering 20’ over that particular woman for an uncomfortable amount of time (however you define it), yeah, I could see her getting annoyed. But that doesn’t seem to be what happened.
But the possibility of zooming makes that 30 feet distance negligible.
Still, the point here is that there is a line that somebody flying a quadcopter could cross to make you feel uncomfortable.
You must be confused. I wasn’t answering a question.
Your post gets even more nonsensical from there, as I made no statements about how I feel about your expectations of privacy.
You couldn’t have made less sense if you tried. Thanks for the histrionics, though.