fbpx

DIY Photography

Hacking Photography - one Picture at a time

Search

Submit A Story

Woman Who Assaulted Boy With a Quadcopter Gets Probation

by 23 Comments

Last month, a video was uploaded online by 17 year-old Austin Haughwout, showing the assault carried out on him by 23 year-old Andrea Mears after she saw him using a quadcopter at a beach. After assaulting him, she lies to the police that arrive on the scene by claiming that he attacked her. Police chose not to arrest Austin only when he showed them that he has video evidence.

Andrea faced up to one year in jail with the charges brought against her. Last Wednesday, she was instead granted Accelerated Rehabilitation, and put two years of probation.

[Read More…]

Photographer Denied Access From Six Flags For Wearing An ‘I Shoot Raw’ T-Shirt

by 45 Comments

Having spent a few days with Jared Polin (AKA FroKnowsPhoto) I have not seen him wear anything but a variety of ‘I shoot RAW’ T shirts. I am not sure he actually has any other shirts in the closet. Being a well coined photography term, Jared went to a New Jersey Six Flags wearing this shirt and was detained at the gates by security for wearing the I Shoot Raw shirt (after getting a ticket), and was asked to replace the shirt with another one.

Jared told the security that he is going to film the discussion and tried asking the security guards why he can not wear the shirt. To this he was replied with a series of recursive answers, ranging from ‘it is a family friendly park’, ‘it is up to management discretion’, ‘Several guards pointed up your shirt’ but they could not explain why the shirt was deemed inappropriate.

In the end, Jared had to go in the park and get a different shirt to be allowed in (see lead photo for his selection).
[Read More…]

The Dangers Of Urbex – Photographer Could Be Facing A Year In Jail And A 15,000 Euro Fine

by 16 Comments

While Urban exploring (also referred to as Urbex) provides both wonderful photos for the viewers and a thrill for the photographer is it not always fun and games. Urban Explorer The Other Side (full name with the system) just shared a story with us about getting detained, almost arrested and practically being banned from doing any Urbexing in France or he will get in the slammer for a year and have to pay a fine of 15,000 Euros. [Read More…]

NSFW: Woman Assaults Man on a Beach for Using a Quadcopter

by 105 Comments

Warning: Strong Language in the video above.

We’ve been covering stories over photography and it’s run-ins with the law for a while now. Most of the time, it’s the same frustrating types of events happening in different situations; a cop might tell someone to turn their camera off in a public area, someone might get a verbal harassment – whatever it is, it tends to make its way across social media everywhere each time it happens. People get frustrated to see things like that happen to them by the very force that should be upholding the law.

But this is something entirely different, and on an entirely different level of sickening.

Shot at Hammonasset Beach in Madison, CT, this video started recording after the cameraman had finished his last round of quadcopter photography around the park. At that point, a woman named Andrea Mears, 23, approached him and proceeded to call the police, apparently not liking the fact that he was using the device in a public area. This is where the video starts, after the guy realizes just how aggressive the woman is being.

[Read More…]

LAPD Reaches Out to Social Media and Launches a Crowd-Sourcing Tool For Gathering Photo and Video Evidence

by 1 Comment

Recently, there was a riot in Isla Vista, California. As the investigation behind it continues, the LAPD’s decided to try something unusual in the hopes of gathering evidence; they’re initiating an online app designed for users to help out by submitting their own photos.

[Read More…]

Security Guard and Photographer Skirmish ends with Memory card Deleted and Damaged Gear

by 13 Comments

http://youtu.be/zok3oCfm8Bk

Over the time we’ve seen a lot of Police activity we tag under photography is not a crime, but I think that this is the first time we are covering anti photography actions not by a cop, but by a security guard.

Videographer Benn Jordan was doing a timelapse shoot next to an Acme Refining facility was faced with a security guard who was upset about the filming taking place. Benn found himself in quite a Kafkaic situation when he agreed to leave, but had his memory card taken and photos erased.

According to Benn:[Read More…]

NYPD Gets A Lesson In Social Media – #myNYPD Tag Backlashes To Show Police Brutality

by 2 Comments

It is not uncommon for “older” bodies of the industry to “not get” how social media works. At it’s core, a social campaign give a lot of power to the community so if they decide to change it around, there is very little anyone can do.

I wonder if NYPD thought about this when they started their #myNYPD Twitter campaign. The campaign calling for new-yorkers (and twitter users in general) to upload a photo with a local NYPDer quickly turned into a massive outbreak of photos showing police brutality. [Read More…]

Baltimore Agrees to Pay $250K for Police Seizing and Deleting a Citizen’s Cell Phone Videos

by 8 Comments

This isn’t the kind of crime you’ll find in The Wire, but it’s pretty big for the photography community. The City of Baltimore has just agreed to pay a fine of $250,000 in a settlement over the “unlawful seizure and destruction” of videos from a citizen’s cell phone. The videos contained footage of Baltimore Police allegedly arresting and beating another person.

[Read More…]

Complaint Upheld Against Police Officer Who Threatened to Make Street Photographer’s Day a ‘Living Hell’

by 9 Comments

Last november, at the scene of a deadly collision, a photographer on the scene got into it with an on-duty officer who approached him about his camera. He recorded the chat they had under the officer’s nose, and then uploaded it to the internet. The video gained a good amount of attention, showing the officer acting aggressively, and now the police department he’s from has decided to uphold the complaint put against him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpP6tRqLaM8

[Read More…]

With Photography Comes Responsibility: Why Recent Paparazzi Activities Are Dangerous for Photographers and Their Rights

by 11 Comments

We’ve done reports over stories that we hear of how people have been treated by police when practicing photography in public. Most of the time they’re journalists, bystanders, or someone trying to expose police in acts they probably shouldn’t be committing in the first place. And we’ve always treated the subject with importance because photography isn’t a crime. A state isn’t truly free if it isn’t a state that builds on a right to a freedom of speech, and photography is one method of that freedom of speech. But what about when photography itself is used in an abusive manner? Like the case just a few weeks back involving the subway guy from Massachusetts? Photographers should never be punished for taking pictures in public, but that statement itself comes with responsibilities on the photographers themselves. I want to focus a bit on something that really blurs the line between what’s appropriate and what isn’t: paparazzi photography.

This post comes after recent news of Kanye West settling a case involving an incident last July in where he assaulted a photographer as he was trying to leave the LAX airport. Before you pick up your pitchforks at me bringing him up, understand why I decided to bring him up. Out of any of the many celebrities that are mobbed today by paparazzi, Kanye West is arguably the most controversial through how may times his impulsive actions have become headlines for paparazzi on TMZ.[Read More…]

Recent Posts