Photography at Kings Cross

Willid1

Willid1

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David Williams
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Just wondering if anyone else has been invited to go and watch a short "video" and sign in while trying to take photographs inside Kings Cross station??

I don't have any problems with them having rules but wanted to know the reason why they had made this decision, especially as I have never been stopped in St Pancras station which is just the other side of the road.

I was told "data protection" (in case you take photos of people) - NO
I was told "you have have high quality equipment and you MIGHT sell the pictures" - NO
I asked if I would have been stopped if I'd been using an iPhone and was told "yes you would" - NO I don't think so.
And then finally the less obtuse "we need to know who you are" - Mmmm not really

I declined the request to go and sign in, and left, but thinking about I may just go back to see what it's all about as having a "visitor pass" might make things a whole lot more fun in what is actually a very photogenic building.

So anyone else had this??

David
 
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Does seem to be getting harder out their to take photos,only ever taken then at Liverpool Street not had any problems :)
 
Our local museum / Hall has forms I've been asked to sign basically stating I'm not using images for commercial purposes.
 
Just lately when i have been out shooting,their have been quite a few events around my city, i have been approached by people asking if i was shooting for commercial purposes ,i have said no just for my enjoyment.
A couple of times i just asked why they have just asked me when their been quite lot of other people around with cameras,they all have said you seem to know your doing, (i don't know about that ), It has usually ended up with then giving me a bit of paper or card,asking if i can put some photos up on their Facebook page :)
 
King's Cross must be a new thing.
I spent about 3/4 hour there back in March and was never approached.
Maybe they didn't consider my NEX-5 to be a "professional" enough camera, despite the fact that I spent quite a bit of time trying out the VCL-ECU1 and VCL-ECF1 lens convertors.

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Seems strange, especially as they have the area set aside for harry potter fans, with the trolley half in the wall. Perhaps you should mention that
 
i dont think its a new thing ,,,,their station their rules ,,,,you "should " go and ask permission before you go off taking photos .when i went to st pancras with another tp member we went and asked first ,just had to read a bit about elf and safety ( no vid ) and we got a nice little card that said we could take photos ,,,but no one (tried to ) stop us anyway .
 
Watching a video and then signing in sounds a lot like a 'site induction' exercise, which is primarily H&S based.

It's private property and they have a duty of care to their customers (which includes you); perhaps this is their way of letting you get on, perhaps even use more bulky kit, tripods etc while still meeting their obligations? It might even have allowed you to get access to areas with better views? At the very least it would have enabled you to strike up a conversation with station staff and perhaps open up new opportunities?

It's not always about 'stopping people' :)
 
I had a strange experience in Kings Cross last year. I was lying on my back trying to photograph directly upwards to get a wide angle shot just where the new roof interfaces with the older building. A policeman came along and asked if he could look at the picture I had just taken. After looking at it he said " carry on but be quick a about it" and then proceeded to keep people to one side so they didn't tread all over me ! After I had finished he asked of I lived in London - when I told him no he proceeded to point out other really interesting architectural gems to photograph - now that what I call helpful !
James
 
jbw said:
I had a strange experience in Kings Cross last year. I was lying on my back trying to photograph directly upwards to get a wide angle shot just where the new roof interfaces with the older building. A policeman came along and asked if he could look at the picture I had just taken. After looking at it he said " carry on but be quick a about it" and then proceeded to keep people to one side so they didn't tread all over me !
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Doesn't seem at all strange to me. Did it not occur to you that somebody would inevitably suspect that you might be trying for an "up skirt" shot?
 
Thanks for all the replies.

A few observations.

If the reason was health and safety why not say so? If I'd been told H&S was the reason I would have cocked an eyelid and said "OK" and decided weather to comply or not.

The fact that I was given reasons that I know to be incorrect irked me a bit.

And yes when I get a spare day I will go back and see what being signed in will let me do.

David
 
Their are some odd things going on out their,places where i have shot for years sometimes now you get asked what am i shooting and why other times not,and the excuses sometimes its for security reason or H&S or their children around.
 
Kings Cross - Presumably if this a health and safety thing that the station is promoting then it's probably out on the web somewhere. If it is H&S It all seams a bit over the top though! "Thank you for your kind invitation but I'll politely decline, as I'm only going to be here for 5 minutes and I've carried out a dynamic risk assessment I don't deem it to be relevant" hopefully it is that and not some other hidden agenda as in 'we need to know who you are'
 
I spent around 30 minutes intensively photographing at Kings Cross about 6 weeks ago killing time before picking up a new lens. I knew the rules re asking for permission but didn't have time plus it was no big deal if an official asked me to stop. I got what I wanted in the first few minutes, the shots were sussed out before the camera came out. Will be shooting with the 8mm fisheye elsewhere on the tube today while travelling.
 
Lots of people seem to take photos on the the London underground without having to sign in ect?
 
It's nothing to do with H&S although that's often used as an excuse, just check any tabloid paper.

If it's a privately owned area then yes one should comply with their request or don't take photos. If it's a public area then it's up to the police to apprehend you rather than a security guard. As I had to explain to 3 security guards at Paddingtons merchant square that they couldn't hassle me when on public pavements! They threatened to call the police to which I replied go for it... They never did!
 
shapeshifter said:
Lots of people seem to take photos on the the London underground without having to sign in ect?
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There are no restrictions to taking photos on the underground for personal use.
However, TFL request that you do not use tripods or flash during any photography.
 
I think it depends on whether you want to use tripods etc which could be a possible trip hazard, but usually the best bet is to take a shot and move on before you attract the attention of the inevitable "jobsworth". The only time I was asked to sign anything was at Cardiff library and that was simply because I had a D700 slung over my shoulder and was not even taking any pictures - I think I just filled in some made up name and adress as I did not want to end up on some junk mailing list!
 
boliston said:
I think it depends on whether you want to use tripods etc which could be a possible trip hazard, but usually the best bet is to take a shot and move on before you attract the attention of the inevitable "jobsworth". The only time I was asked to sign anything was at Cardiff library and that was simply because I had a D700 slung over my shoulder and was not even taking any pictures - I think I just filled in some made up name and adress as I did not want to end up on some junk mailing list!
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Nice one,i wonder if they would bothered anybody who has a phone in their hand :(
 
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I've done a couple of commercial jobs signed in at Kings X. Never had to watch a video.
 
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