Re:Freedom to take pictures in public spaces (Score 1)

The problem here is that in 90% of these cases you are dealing with $7.50 an hour security guards. If they were experts on the law they wouldn't be making $7.50 an hour. And in Miami where I live, most of these security guards are immigrants from countries with repressive governments where EVERYTHING is illegal. Also since 9/11 we are also dealing in a culture where you have to get permission for EVERYTHING...or so it seems. I'm a professional photojournalist and usually know going into a situation what the reaction to a camera is going to be. So I work fast and get out....without confrontations. But in some cases I've had to deal with stupid security guards. Over the years I've been told I couldn't shoot a model in front of a swank hotel even though I was standing on a public sidewalk, been told I couldn't shoot the interior of a perfume store ... even as I stood on a public sidewalk. In those cases depending on whether or not I'm bored I'll either tell them they don't know what they are talking about or debate them. The problem here is not so much the security guard but the training they receive. Their training can probably be summmed up as follows: Be suspicious of everyone especially those who aren't acting like everyone else.