By Carlos Miller
The Chicago Transit Authority is so “committed to safety,” that it is urging commuters to report people committing “excessive photography/filming.”
The sign posted inside the train stations places photographers on the same level as, say, a non-CTA employee walking the tracks or an unattended package or “noxious smells or smoke.”
In other words, it accuses photographers of being possible terrorists or just suicidal maniacs.
The problem is that these signs not only encourage commuters to dial 911 when seeing someone taking photos, which will tie up real emergencies, it contradicts the CTA’s own policy on photography and videography within train stations.
The general public is permitted to use hand-held cameras to take photographs, capture digital images, and videotape within public areas of CTA stations and transit vehicles for personal, non-commercial use.
Large cameras, photo or video equipment, or ancillary equipment such as lighting, tripods, cables, etc. are prohibited (except in instances where commercial and professional photographers enter into contractual agreements with CTA).
All photographers and videographers are prohibited from entering, photographing, or videotaping non-public areas of the CTA’s transit system.
All photographers and videographers are prohibited from impeding customer traffic flow, obstructing transit operations, interfering with customers, blocking doors or stairs, and affecting the safety of CTA, its employees, or customers. All photographers and videographers must fully and immediately comply with any requests, directions, or instructions of CTA personnel related to safety concerns.
Nowhere in the policy does it forbid “excessive photography or filming.” Whatever that means.
By instilling false information and paranoia within its commuters and police officers, they are setting themselves up for another Duane Kerzic incident.
Kerzic, as many of you know, was the man arrested by Amtrak police for photographing trains in the Amtrak contest titled “Picture our Trains.”
His story ended up being mocked on the Colbert Report before he won a five-figure settlement.
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15 responses so far ↓
1 the bulldog // Jan 18, 2010 at 3:46 AM
wonderful!
2 Karsten Sethre // Jan 18, 2010 at 4:51 AM
That seems to be an odd and self-contradicting policy.
Some of it certainly makes sense – the prohibition on entering non-public areas is obvious, and certainly not impeding traffic flow or otherwise affecting safety should go without saying.
On the other hand, they explicitly allow “hand-held cameras to take photographs, capture digital images, and videotape”, but disallow “large cameras, photo or video equipment, or ancillary equipment such as lighting, tripods, cables, etc.”
Prohibiting tripods and cables follows easily from not blocking traffic flow, but many people would consider an SLR a “large camera”, especially if it happens to have a large lens and a flash on it. Related to that, would a shoe flash be considered “lighting”, since it can be detached from the camera? I’d expect the policy was written to prohibit non-attached flashes from being set up, but it could be read either way.
It just seems odd to allow “hand-held cameras” while prohibiting “large cameras” in addition to “tripods, cables, etc.” — I can’t think of any non-”hand-held cameras” that wouldn’t end up needing “tripods, cables, etc.” to use (the kind of cameras inside a TV studio come to mind).
3 Jay // Jan 18, 2010 at 6:01 AM
Ah yes, vague rules about photography. All the better for CTA or CPD to tell you no when they feel like it. Or detain you. Or tase you? Or just break your camera. What’s “excessive” photography? What a “large” camera? My D2X? Is 50 pictures of something excessive? 100? These idiots that pretend they are protecting us are getting more and more stupid with each passing day.
4 mepsipax // Jan 18, 2010 at 9:36 AM
Another lawsuit waiting to happen.
mepsipax´s last blog ..I am going to Hell
5 mjkerpan // Jan 18, 2010 at 2:38 PM
This is not only war against photographers, it’s also horrible stereotyping of railfans. I mean, there’s at least SOME of us who shower regularly and thus don’t cause noxious odors while shooting “excessively”
6 Tom Jankowski // Jan 18, 2010 at 5:00 PM
I sent an email to a friend who works for CTA in the head office. Like me, he’s a railfan. Hopefully these ads won’t be there for long.
7 Nikki // Jan 18, 2010 at 7:38 PM
I think that this headline is a little misleading- it makes it sound like the CTA has it out for photographers, when really they simply updated their signage to reflect what they believe could be the beginning of a planned attack. Give the CTA a break. If some act of terrorism were to happen, the CTA would get the grind because they hadn’t done enough to protect their riders. I doubt this will become a ‘war on photographers’. And maybe I am giving people too much credit, but I would hope people have enough common sense to distinguish a photographer from someone taking ‘excessive photos’ in a suspicious manner.
Anyway, that is my $00.02. If there is a war between the CTA and photographers I will eat my shoe.
8 Theywantyoufired // Jan 18, 2010 at 9:14 PM
Photographers actually fight terrorism. Lots of photos taken before an incident provides valuable evidence. If I were running the country I would ask everyone to photograph any suspicious activity. It might just discourage terrorists altogether. Also, what constitutes a “large camera”? Does that mean a full frame DSLR, a medium format camera (digital or film back), or do they mean large format (4×5 and up)? They need to be more specific. Cops and security guards all have their own ideas.
9 Damon // Jan 19, 2010 at 4:35 PM
I wondered what was up when a conductor leaned out of a train window on Sunday to tell me: “OK, here’s the trick. You can take as many photos as you want, but you can’t use a tripod.”
I was bent down on one knee at the Roosevelt platform. I had a digicam on a mini-tripod at my feet. I had been taking photos of the Moon and the twilight sky before the train stopped and blocked the view.
After he said the bit about taking as many photos as I cared to as long as I didn’t use a tripod, I just laughed. What’s the sense in that (esp. given this caution about “excessive” photography)? And how else am I going to take a one-second exposure of the Moon?
“Now you can laugh,” he responded, “but that’s the rule.”
“OK.” And then when the train left, I went right back to what I’d been doing. Here’s one image:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ocean_of_stars/4283829740/
10 Michaelk42 // Jan 19, 2010 at 6:14 PM
But looking out for “excessive” photographers lets people feel like they’re useful! And feel like they’re doing something! And feel like they’re safer!
Security Theater, the feel-good hit of the 21st Century.
Michaelk42´s last blog ..Again with the cluelessness
11 DXO // Jan 19, 2010 at 11:02 PM
Here’s how much the CTA hates photographers: http://www.flickr.com/groups/chitransit/pool/. 1,200 members and 11,000 photos, with more uploaded every day.
12 Kay // Jan 20, 2010 at 1:16 PM
I’m a Chicago cop. Believe me, I don’t want to be bothered with “Joe Railfan” shooting a few pictures anymore than he wants me bothering him.
I can’t speak for all cops, just myself.
13 akagoldfish // Jan 20, 2010 at 5:00 PM
Kay, I think your attitude is probably pretty representative of most CPD offices on this subject. It’s not a fun prospect to be asked to be asked to come in and investigate some guy with a camera who obviously isn’t doing anything wrong, because some CTA station agent is worried pictures of him napping on the job will show up on the internet.
Last time a CTA worker got really on me for photographing at a station, I asked to see his supervisor, and he said he was going to call the police. I had to restrain myself from saying “yeah, good luck with that.”
No, the cops never showed. If he in fact did call them, I suspect they knew it was BS and found a way to make it a 19 paul and go back to doing something useful.
The only time I can think that the CPD has actually gotten involved in fighting the CTA’s war on photography for them is in the incident at the O’Hare station where a photographer ended up being detained and having his images deleted (he recovered them). But given it was in the run up to the Olympics bid, and I suspect being a CPD officer stationed at O’Hare involves some heavy clout, that incident had politics involved in that makes it less than typical.
14 mr k // Mar 9, 2010 at 8:20 PM
As long as I’m not trespassing or being in areas where I’m not allowed or interfering with passenger traffic I will continue to take as many photographs as I damn well want, as this still is the last time I checked the United States of America, and not some Communist run country the CTA wishes it was period.
15 Jason Epstein // Apr 1, 2010 at 7:12 PM
Having photographed many of Chicago’s trains I can say this is dissapointing. No one ever harrassed me or called the cops. I was asked to stop photographing a courthouse which is likely not legal but I didnt press it as I had already taken the photos I wanted.
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