Freedom to Photograph – Reclaim Our Shopping Centres
Few people know about the restrictions on photography in ‘public’ spaces like shopping centres unless they have been frog-marched out of Canary Wharf, Westfield or the Arndale Centre by burly security guards.
These private shopping meccas welcome people spending their money but threaten to call the police if they bring out a camera.
We have picked a typical shopping day in September to highlight to the public these ‘photo free zones’ and we encourage all photographers, amateur and professional, to Flashmob their local shopping centre on Saturday 12th September at 3pm. Or come to the flashmob in London.
The Brief
At 3pm on the dot everyone will take their cameras out and start photographing something interesting, this might be:
- The hundreds of other photographers
- A puzzled security guard trying to work out what’s going on
- Security Guards trying to stop someone from taking photographs
- Interesting architectural features
Wait a sec, is this legal?
Yes.
Ok, well sort of. It’s not illegal!
Canary Wharf and many other shopping centres around the country are owned by private companies who can set any conditions on entry, most of the time this includes no photography.
However as we will just be ordinary citizens who happen to be carrying cameras and taking them out at the same time an offence isn’t committed unless you refuse to leave. You could download our bust card just in case!
Trespass is a civil offence so you can’t be arrested for it.
It’s probably a good idea if you don’t turn up looking like a Terrorist, that will get us into trouble and that isn’t cool.
Elsewhere
If you can rally a good number of people in your city for your own flashmob event announce it using the #PHNATMob hashtag on Twitter or on our Facebook page.
Get in touch with us and we’ll help you promote it.
