"Carlos Miller and his blog Photography Is Not A Crime has to be the best blog I have come across to date that documents the ongoing battle that photographers and videographers are facing in increasing numbers."Hodson Report
"Anyone who promises to 'mock, madden and maybe even muckrake' has my attention - especially when he's fighting for my right to plant my sticks wherever the Constitution says I can."Lenslinger
"With a seemingly increasing number of stories of police harassing and arresting photographers making headlines, one man has made it his job to watch the police."B-roll
"This is not a partisan issue. It's a police abuse-of-power issue, and 'security' is no excuse for this sort of totally unacceptable and unconstitutional behavior by officers of the law. Carlos Miller is a great source of information about these unfolding stories."Brendan Loy
I have a bunch of RSS feeds on my smartphone, and I tell ya, this is one i read constantly. Great info, and it is unbelievable what is going on right here in the USA.... Virginia Beach Photo Club
“Photography is not a Crime” is informative, well written and takes no prisoners. The Photojournalist
"If you read enough of his site, you start to understand that Miller has a bit of an ability to instigate. I don't blame him for this. I think that in order for society to progress, authority must continually be challenged. [Post] Modern College Life
The Bad
"This Carlos Miller character is just a jerk, no redeeming social or personal value."Conservative Cave
"You're a good writer, Carlos, but until you're able to recognize and acknowledge your biases, your quests for justice will be seen by most as little more than sour grapes by a man with a chip on his shoulder."South Florida Daily Blog
The Ugly
"You are a cockroach and boil on the ass of journalism in Miami and the sooner that responsible journalists in Miami disown you and repudiate your actions the better.""Hank"
"Your arrogant, crass, thug-like behavior crops up at every turn. One only need to read your blog to see that.
You can’t seem to cover anything without getting into a potentially violent confrontation.""Hank"
Recognition
The South Florida Daily Blog Post of the Month February 2008The South Florida Daily Blog Post of the Month June 2008The South Florida Daily Blog Post of the Month November 2008Some Cranky Guy
Uber Amazing BlogNovember 23rd, 2008
By Carlos Miller
I believe I went one day without uploading an iPhone photo to my Facebook page since I posted the first installment of photos last week.
Some, of course, have been better than others. Many don’t even get posted. The ones that follow are my favorites of the second bunch.
Besides the challenge of shooting with a highly limited camera, I really enjoy not having to download photos on my computer and go through the whole processing phase, which can get burdensome, especially considering I shoot everything in RAW.
Not to say these don’t go through any processing. I use iPhone apps for basic processing. I usually use Best Camera but have also been experimenting with PS Mobile, Camera Bag and a few others. But processing here takes a few seconds because it never leaves my iPhone.
I should be getting a Nokia n900 here in a month or two, and i might start taking a lot of pictures as well; it has a 5mp camera with a glass lens.
Why is the iphone’s 3mp camera so “limited”?
No flash or something? or is it just your standard run of the mill point and shoot with very little options to adjust exposure and whatnot?
I’ve never even used an iphone or ipod touch so i have no frame of reference.
Surprisingly, I haven’t been harassed yet for taking photos with my iPhone although I was expecting to get harassed a couple of times, including the top shot of the train and the ones near the airport fence.
I wasn’t trespassing on either one but that has never stopped authorities before.
In fact, a security guard even drove on the inside of the fence of the airport and saw me standing there, which required me to cross several train tracks, and didn’t even slow down or anything.
Now I wonder how they will act if I return to the same spot with my two Canon 5Ds and telephoto lens.
carlos: If you are standing around near a fence at LAX you’ll have a cop harassing you nearly instantly (under a minute the two times we did it post 9/11).
Haven’t tried at long beach international (although they have a ton of cops too and it’s smaller) or santa ana/john wayne.
and it’s not security, it’s full blown LAPD or sheriffs (or whatever subsidiary works just at the airport).
You know what they say, the best camera is the one you have on you.
Other than technical considerations, we carry the same rig in appearance and size, Carlos. And, as you know, sometimes it’s bloody inconvenient.
Right now, I’m touring for a bit, and it’s not always practical to use my DSLR in certain situations. So, I’ve got a little iPod nano with video for some of those little candid tour moments.
Hi Carlos, thanks for everything you do; Love the blog.
“Carnival” is the most colourful, really caught my eye. However, my favourite shot is “Flags”, I love the play of light and dark, it really adds a mystique to the whole idea of patriotism.
Blogging is passe because Twitter makes it so much easier to post random ramblings that no one cares about anyway. http://bit.ly/duKDGy22 hours ago
If you've never been to the Calle Ocho Festival and plan on going tomorrow, check out this article I wrote last year
http://bit.ly/a2EZnr23 hours ago
@AlishaVera Yes, you'll be laughing all the way to the bank. Even if you have no money in there. 1 day ago
My Story
My name is Carlos Miller and I am a multimedia journalist who was arrested by Miami police after taking photos of them against their wishes, a clear violation of my First Amendment rights.
Since that arrest on Feb. 20th, 2007, I've fought a lengthy battle against the State of Florida to prove my innocence. After going to trial in June 2008, I was acquitted of all charges except resisting arrest without violence. I appealed that conviction pro se, meaning I represented myself, and I won a reversal.
However, I am now fighting another arrest for photographing cops against their wishes. On Memorial Day Weekend 2008, I was arrested on Miami Beach on a single charge of resisting arrest without violence after I photographed a couple of cops against their wishes.
Click here to read more.
Their side of story
Police “escorted defendant to the middle of the street and told him to cross to the sidewalk. Defendant for the fourth time refused the verbal commands and that’s why he was arrested.” Read arrest report.
A legal view
The general rule in the United States is that anyone may take photographs of whatever they want when they are in a public place or places where they have permission to take photographs. Absent a specific legal prohibition such as a statute or ordinance, you are legally entitled to take photographs. Examples of places that are traditionally considered public are streets, sidewalks, and public parks.(more).
SPJ’s protest letter
National leaders of the largest journalism organization in the United States have expressed their disappointment in Miami-Dade County Court Judge Jose L. Fernandez for violating my First Amendment rights.
Fernandez, as I mentioned in a previous post, gave me an extremely harsh sentence and criticized me for having blogged about my case.
Read the press release from the Society of Professional Journalists.
Sarcasm Disclaimer
I am a very sarcastic person in person. And I am probably even more sarcastic in my writing.
But if you’ve never met me, you might not see that sarcasm. After all, sarcasm depends on tone and delivery for pure effectiveness, something that is hard to do with the written word.
So if you are ever offended by something I write, whether you are a conservative, liberal, Catholic, Jew, atheist, American, foreigner, black, white, southerner, yankee, homosexual, straight or whatever, chances are, I am just being sarcastic.
Truth is, I am not a hater. I don’t even hate cops. I just want them to abide by the law.
Support the blog
Each time you make a purchase through B&H Photo by clicking on the ad below, they send a few bucks my way that goes toward operating this blog.
I should be getting a Nokia n900 here in a month or two, and i might start taking a lot of pictures as well; it has a 5mp camera with a glass lens.
Why is the iphone’s 3mp camera so “limited”?
No flash or something? or is it just your standard run of the mill point and shoot with very little options to adjust exposure and whatnot?
I’ve never even used an iphone or ipod touch so i have no frame of reference.
What an eye.
Would it surprise you that I like the bloggers and boobs photo best?
“Boundaries” is my choice. “Texting” is a close second.
Nice shots. How many times did you get hassled for the first one?
Genewitch,
The iPhone is limited compared to my Canon 5Ds.
It also doesn’t have a flash, so it’s limited compared to other point and shoots.
But because it doesn’t have a flash, it really forces you to find the light, which ultimately result in better photos.
SFL,
That’s Maria and Christina from Sex and the Beach and 305 Misadventures.
http://sexandthebeach.blogspot.com
http://305misadventures.blogspot.com/
Richard,
Thanks for the feedback.
xdamousex,
Surprisingly, I haven’t been harassed yet for taking photos with my iPhone although I was expecting to get harassed a couple of times, including the top shot of the train and the ones near the airport fence.
I wasn’t trespassing on either one but that has never stopped authorities before.
In fact, a security guard even drove on the inside of the fence of the airport and saw me standing there, which required me to cross several train tracks, and didn’t even slow down or anything.
Now I wonder how they will act if I return to the same spot with my two Canon 5Ds and telephoto lens.
Um, I personally think you could not have found any hotter models than in bloggers and boobs! lol
carlos: If you are standing around near a fence at LAX you’ll have a cop harassing you nearly instantly (under a minute the two times we did it post 9/11).
Haven’t tried at long beach international (although they have a ton of cops too and it’s smaller) or santa ana/john wayne.
and it’s not security, it’s full blown LAPD or sheriffs (or whatever subsidiary works just at the airport).
You know what they say, the best camera is the one you have on you.
Other than technical considerations, we carry the same rig in appearance and size, Carlos. And, as you know, sometimes it’s bloody inconvenient.
Right now, I’m touring for a bit, and it’s not always practical to use my DSLR in certain situations. So, I’ve got a little iPod nano with video for some of those little candid tour moments.
Hi Carlos, thanks for everything you do; Love the blog.
“Carnival” is the most colourful, really caught my eye. However, my favourite shot is “Flags”, I love the play of light and dark, it really adds a mystique to the whole idea of patriotism.
Flags is #1 and I also like Espirito Santoas well as Texting which is a great example of street photography IMO
I really like “Intermission”
Suddenly I’m thirsty.
Bloggers and boobs, of course!
Seriously I like the airplane descent one. What color! Composition is good too.