Many States of Mind

Public vs. Private
Some years ago I had been approached by security while trying to photograph the Christmas tree outside the Bloomberg Tower on 58th Street. The guard’s argument was that no professional photography was allowed at that location. I clumsily argued that I wasn’t a pro yet the fellow made references to my professional looking equipment and asked me if I thought him stupid. Well, I did but of course diplomatic me [cough, cough] didn’t argue and instead asked him what was an acceptable location for my snapping of photos. He pointed to the street as well as the sidewalk across the street. Apparently in his mind, simply being on the sidewalk outside the building with my gear was enough to warrant suspicion.

Let’s forget about the harebrained notion that I was going to obtain top secret information through the overhead windows with my wide angle lens. Hmmm, have I mentioned they were tinted glass? All I can say is that I’ve no idea what all the concern was about and since then I never gave it another thought. I merely chalked it up to a fanatical concern for building security. As if my snapping photos with a point and shoot camera would’ve made a huge difference.

You see, there appears to be a big difference between photographing within public property and photographing within and around private property, and well, in NYC there’s a heck of a lot of private property out there. Certain museums will outright ban photography whereas others will allow you to snap shots during particular hours. Stand outside any one of a number of Manhattan skyscrapers with your camera pointing straight up the side and you’re likely to be shooed away even though according to some sources sidewalks are public property. Plus it’s anybody’s guess why one office building will take the subject more seriously than another.

Let’s face it. When it comes to private property, a theater, restaurant, mall, sports facility, arena or even your place of work have and should have within their authority the right to deny anyone the ability to carry out photography. Of course deciding how such actions would affect their place of business is totally up to them to judge. Their concerns about protecting copyright issues, the privacy of others, their private corporate information or whatever else are surely justified in my opinion.

Yet despite all that’s been mentioned one can’t ignore the world which exists post 911. At what point does Paranoia become more a heightened state of fear instead of a heightened state of awareness? I’m referring not merely to those folks who in response to this city’s “If You See Something, Say Something” campaign might report me for taking photos of something which your average citizen may never consider capturing. I am also referring to when I myself feel reluctant to visit certain locations with my gear simply due to the anticipation of what such actions might result in. Have already been down that road quite a number of times myself in the months following September 11, 2001.

Even today, years beyond that fateful day folks are still very shook up and on edge. It may not be quickly evident on our faces but send a low flying 747 over Lower Manhattan and watch how panicked the folks become. Watch as they run for their lives. Watch me as I sit before my television later in the day dumbfounded beyond compare as I watch and hear about the photo-op which had been pre-planned without the slightest intention of public announcement. Watch me as I sit there both furious yet in tears since my own wounds are still fresh. Such was the case on April 27, 2009.

I mention all this since this was not the world I remember prior to 911. The world back then wasn’t filled with propaganda trying to protect us from terrorism or as some might say, trying to keep our hearts filled with fear. It’s such sorts of campaigns which are dangerous ones.

Someone once said that ‘The road to hell is paved with good intentions’.

Well, there certainly seems to be a lot of paving going on these days.

The next part in this series will be about Tripods – Part III.

Again, thank you for reading this far.