Christine Chang Photography

(Note: …especially for those of you interested in hiring me as a wedding photographer, no, I’ve never been in jail. My record is clean.)

My semester is finally over, and now I am doing some independent photo stories. Since my photo projects are more long term in nature, I won’t be posting up pictures for a while. But for your entertainment and education, every few days I’ll try to post some tips for taking pictures and also what I have been learning recently.

Since photojournalists often have to photograph spur-of-the-moment news (shootings, accidents, bombings, you name the catastrophe, we try to be there), one good skill to have is avoiding being arrested. For spot news, we almost always have to deal with the police. Though it is legal to take pictures in public places, sometimes we have deal with a police officer who’s at the bottom of the totem pole and when they enjoy messing with photographers, then we have to know our legal rights. But most of the time my experiences with police officers have been good.

I’ve been in situations when people pretty much just stop me; I usually judge the situation and look at it in longer terms. I ask myself who I am affecting, and am I infringing on another person’s privacy? Is this an issue that the public needs to know? Sometimes I just go ahead and shoot, and sometimes I shoot until a person threatens me. And then sometimes I do the “ask another parent thing”, where I’ll keep on asking different people until someone says yes.

Here’s some of the things my textbook says about avoiding incarceration. It’s called “Photojournalism” by Kenneth Kobre, and it’s the best textbook I’ve ever had. If any of you have any further suggestions feel free to comment.

TIPS FOR AVOIDING JAIL

The following suggestions come from Luch A. Dalgish, executive director of the Reporters Committe, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting journalists’ First Amendment rights.

-Carry your credentials at all times.

-Do whatever a police officer orders you to do, even if it seems unreasonable or rediculous or interferes with your job, unless you’re willing to live with the consequences of being arrested.

-Do not call the arresting officer names or get into a shoving match

-If covering a demonstration or other event likely to result in arrests, keep $50-$100 cash in your pocket to purchase a bail bond

-Keep a government-issued photo ID (in addition to a press pass) in your pocket at all times. It may speed up your release from custody

-Know the name and phone number of a criminal lawyer, bail bondsmand, and the police department spokesperson.