Thanks in part to you lot, I have for some time been the top hit on Google for “film photographer“, which doesn’t do my business any harm. Anyone familiar with my style of photography will understand why I am disturbed by the news story on the BBC Website that’s currently in the number three position:
An amateur photographer has told how police seized his film as he was out taking snaps in a Hull shopping centre.
Steve Carroll, of Kent, was visiting relatives in Hull in December when he decided to do some “street photography” in the city’s Prospect Centre.
Shoppers reported him to the police, who took his film because he seemed to be operating in “a covert manner”.
Mr Carroll lodged a complaint against Humberside Police but an investigation concluded its officers acted correctly.
Officers have common law powers of seizure, a force spokeswoman said.
Having developed Mr Carroll’s pictures, the force conceded that none of the material was out of the ordinary.
Whilst taking some photos of my girlfriend and her family ice-skating, a “helpful” stranger skated up to me and informed that if I didn’t want my camera taken away by “the management”, I’d better put it away.
Ah ha – I spy a way of getting ye olde bille to pay for my holiday snaps to be processed. Off to the arcade….
Ah, the Prospect Centre. I know it well. Good to know that while smackheads are busy shooting up in nearby phoneboxes Humberside Police have an eagle eye trained real perpitrators of crime.
Just think of the major publicity coup you’ll get when they throw you in jail for indiscriminate shutterbugging… i think i can picture you as a less buff V (See Alan Moore’s comic classic V for Vendetta).
Hello, Maoser. Glad to know you’re still alive and kicking (me).
Seizure… hmm… let’s take a look:
Seizure:
A sudden occurrence (or recurrence) of a disease
“he suffered an epileptic seizure”
Strangely fitting 😉