radloser wrote:
the stores don't want you photographing in them because they don't want you to steal their display ideas. i used to work in one and that's what they practiced. it's a joke though, if you were visiting from a rival store, all you have to do is remember the stupid display.
Some stores have large, clear windows through which cameras can capture images of inside displays. A zoom lens could probably show pretty well what a shot inside might capture.
Some stores, such as the Jewel grocery chain, claim they prohibit cameras solely to prevent price recording to discourage competitors, but there's no policy prohibiting using a tape recorder or cell phone to orally record/transmit the same information. Unfortunately the practice mostly discourages consumers, as prices are not labeled or stamped on the products, so it becomes more difficult to catch price scanning errors, and impossible to clearly document and report violations of consumer protection ordinances (such as that similar goods be displayed with unit weight pricing, and often Jewel will show price per ounce for one brand, but price per pound or container for a different brand of the same size same product adjacent on the same shelf).
Jesper wrote:
Suppose that you were a terrorist, would you then start taking pictures of potential targets with a big and conspicuous camera and lens? No, you would probably try to do it secretly, with a small and inconspicuous camera.
Would it really help you as a terrorist to take those pictures? Probably not.
I'm not a terrorist, and I'm not supporting terrorism.
But--if I were one (and I'm not OJ Simpson, either BTW), then I would want to act exactly like all the other people in the vicinity. A criminal or terrorist wants not to call special attention to himself (or herself). So if an area has people taking photos and videos, or making sketches by hand where student artists gather, then I would also.
And those still or video graphic recordings can be very valuable. Human memory is largely unreliable without specialized training. Images can document traffic patterns (pedestrian, vehicular), security posts and traffic, security monitoring devices, layout of buildings, access and exit points, police monitoring staff and patterns, common delivery service companies and vehicle types, etc. With one or two known measurements of major structures, most of the others can be extrapolated.
. Over the two days, I got in trouble three times for taking pictures; once in a department store, once in the lobby of the World Financial Tower, and once by a police officer in the Newark airport. In all three instances I was told photography was prohibited, however no one asked me to delete the shots I'd already taken. I'm just wondering if this is normal in NYC specifically, or the states in general? I've never had similar problems before.
