In response to a public request I wanted to bring an awareness to writers on basic photography permits and property release issues. The location photography articles request has been made twice that I know of. I want to make clear (right now) that the request is perfectly legal.
The point that I want writers to be aware of is that all national parks require a photography permit in order to sell the images. Since there is no separate licenses for the images and the articles here on CC, you are in essence selling the images as well. This automatically puts you into the professional category as far as the Department of Interior is concerned. To obtain photography permits for all the national parks you must have proof of public liability insurance. Once obtained the permit acts as a property release.
In the state of California and Virginia, all state and most county parks require photography permits. City parks differ and it is clearly up to the city. Most cities do require photography permits for images of the park to sell. To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure about BLM land. The Bureau of Land Management is still under the umbrella of the Department of Interior so I would imagine they still have permits but use different forms.
I want to make clear that these permits are only for selling the photographs. If the photos are for your personal use only, you don't need the permits.
I just wanted to bring this up, because most people don't realize that permits are needed. What happens if you don't get permits? First you will get warned verbally, maybe even harassed a little depending on the location (City of Ft. Worth is known for this). if you get caught again you will get ticketed. Hefty fines will be incurred. Fines differ from city to city.
Bringing Release Awareness to Writers
Moderators: Celeste Stewart, Ed