Please Don't Block My Shot

[b-roll]

I wanted to pose a question after my day at the office…

This morning I'm traveling around the streets of DC, tracking down the anti-war protestors in our fair city. Our morning crew needed some fresh footage of protesters for the noon show, so I only had about 30 minutes to shoot and head back to the office.

I finally find a group of protesters in a public park on the corner of 15th and L ST. There is not a lot going on, mostly a B.O.P.S.A (Bunch of People Standing Around).

A group of about 30 college kids are in a circle and the “boss” is talking with a megaphone. I slowly realize that they are planning out their next protest.

“Ok, we have eight people willing to get arrested in front of Halliburton,” the leader says, then looks over at me, “and it appears we’re on camera.”

“Hey man, you can’t shoot this…” a voice from the crowd says to me. It seems they didn’t want their plans to be released to the public. They didn’t want the police to know the next place that they were going to lay in the street.

“I’m sorry, but we’re in a public park, I have every right to shoot here.” I explain as pleasantly as possible.

With that, their “henchman,” a scrawny, tall guy with a goatee, jumps up and stands in front of my camera. Any time I move, he moves to always be between me and my shot.

I attempt to reason with him that there is no need to block my shot, but he says, “it’s not illegal for me to stand here.”

If there was actually compelling video to shoot, I would have used every trick in the book to get the shot. But, basically this was useless b-roll, so I explained that if was his wish, I would give him no media coverage at all. Seems counter-productive to their need to get the public’s attention, but no media coverage it shall be.

My question is: What do you do in that situation? If someone is purposely blocking your shot, but not touching you in any way, you have absolutely no grounds to do anything. You legally can not push them out of the way.

If you can’t reason with them, what options are there?

kev

[Hiding Under Here]

I hate to say it but you walk away. Frustrated. But you walk away. They have every right to do what you are doing -- to be in that public space in whatever peaceful way they see fit.

It would be nice to have a little mini-taser on the side of your camera in those situations.

[LongTimePhotog]

You are right. If you have every right to to shoot them, they have every right to stand in front of you. My suggestion...back off, maybe cross the street like you are leaving and get some from a distance. If they follow you and continue, it may be harrassment.

[Lensmith]

Hey Kev,

The above advice is right. You don't have much choice but to walk away if you are the only camera there. If someone else is there...you can have a little more fun by separating and making them be more aggressive against your joint efforts.

I'll admit, if I had to deal with your situation today...I'd have chosen to walk away but I would have also put a big grin on my face and loudly thanked them for the great sound of them planning there future moves. Making sure they believed whatever they had done that I already had on camera was going to make air and they were going to look pretty foolish.

Maybe it would air. Maybe it wouldn't. But you would have caused them some uncomfortable moments. A little mental jab back at them plus teaching them they should have gone some place private to make their future protest plans.

They have every right to stand in front of you. You have every right to give them a little mind-"F" in return.

But that's just me.;)

[Aaron12345]

Tell him that his antics make the story much more fun to shoot and how great he'll look on TV making an arse of himself. Walk forward and when he physically blocks your path, scream assault? If your truck is close you could should from the roof. I'm guessing he wouldn't climb up on top of your news vehicle to stop you. But I've been wrong before. If you were to get very close to the group would his actions have interrupted their planning session?

[f11vid]

You should have suddenly "recognized" goatee-guy and said " BOB!?, Bob Collins?? Is that you? I haven't seen you since school,how the hell are ya? ...I thought you were still working for the FBI....."

[Frank McBride]

I do believe this to be the other edge to the "we have a right to be here" sword. Bill O'Reiley decided he had the right to get physical. I'm pretty sure he was wrong.

I think your best weapon is to get good shots of the person doing the blocking and let their own actions speak for them. Right or wrong, when a viewer sees the hand on the camera or other attempts to hide, the immediate thought is that person is guilty of something.

[JoeyO38]

Find a way to get a few feet higher than he can. Once on a street, I stood ontop of the station vehicle. Even had my tripod up there. He can't block you from up there.

[Ecks76]

I would have replied to his "it’s not illegal for me to stand here" with a similar retort of my own, "It's not illegal for me to be here either, and I'm legally allowed to video tape you and your group since we're all in a public place. But, if that's what you want, I'll take what I have of you guys and just put that on air... either that or you group gets no exposure at all... but I'll offer you a third choice, I can shoot you here, or I can shoot you getting arrested at Halliburton and pair it with the bite of you all planning it"

[Chicago Dog]

Should've asked him why his group is so selective about what parts of the first amendment are appropriate and which are to be ignored.

I was involved in a similar situation. We were reporting on a shooting. A handful of bouncers from the nightclub emerged, quite perturbed we were there, claiming we were on private property. One of them got on the phone and called the police, claiming we were "causing a disturbance."

The cops came out, obviously annoyed about such a stupid call. As soon as the squadcars stopped, the bouncers swarmed the car, pointing and gesturing, arms flailing about.

The cops informed the rent-a-muscle goons we had every right to be there. Unfortunately, this gave one of the less-stupid goons an idea: stand between my camera and my reporter.

Then, one of the cops piped up with something I didn't think of: causing interference like that is harassment. Sure, he has a right to be there, but he's harassing us by preventing us from doing our jobs.

Admitted, your situation is a little different, but perhaps educating this skinny jackass that he's infringing on your first amendment right and is, therefore, a hypocrite might help him understand.

Unfortunately, I doubt it. So, you handled it the best way you could've.

[svp]

You should have suddenly "recognized" goatee-guy and said " BOB!?, Bob Collins?? Is that you? I haven't seen you since school,how the hell are ya? ...I thought you were still working for the FBI....."

That's awesome. I'm going to use that if I'm ever in Kevin's situation. I'd also roll on the guy being a complete a$$ and post it on youtube to show everyone what idiots these people are.

[Fearless Leader]

you know, in some situations I'd be all for the philosophical angle (debating their 1st amendment selectivity), but these people "know" (as in, blindly believe) that they can't trust "The Media".

Its interesting that it could count as harassment though I don't really know if there's any truth to that, but -hey- if they'll believe it so that I can do my job, I'd use it.

[cameradog]

Wait, how is standing in front of your camera supposed to keep you from recording the audio of their boss giving instructions? I would be sorely tempted to point that out. I have come to the conclusion that protesters are generally idiots.

In addition to the other tactics mentioned here, I have found that you can sometimes get what you want by just resigning yourself to the standoff and sort of digging in. If you keep shifting and shooting, shifting and shooting, shifting and shooting, without retreating but without actually arguing with the morons, sometimes they'll get tired of playing the game and leave you alone.

[Rack Focus]

I had almost the same exact thing happen to me while covering a war protest. Hippie tried to block my shots by standing in front of me while I was moving around (on a public sidewalk). He finally lost patience and shoved his hand in my camera lens. Needless to say, that was a big mistake. Hopefully he still has a nice imprint of my boot on his foot and a sore back from the wall he fell into. Unfortunately, I believe he was too stoned to even realize what happened. That's ok, cause he finallly got tazed by the cops when he insisted on dancing in an intersection during rush hour.

[FTOJRLST]

I like a lot of the other ideas, especially the Bob Collins in the FBI comment.

Here's another angle that could work....

Stop and talk to them with the camera obviously off, or on the ground or pointed the other way.

Tell them that by the time this airs they would be done with what they're planning and at home to watch it all. Tell them it would be an interesting angle at how they go about planning their event.

If they balk at that you could move on to explaining plan B...they get no coverage at all....Plan C....they get coverage of being a jackasses in front of a camera....Plan D...harrassment charges if they follow you around as you move to try to get around the guy interfering...or even Plan E....the guy knocks you down or pushes you while you try to get around him he earns some assault charges. (Last Resort for sure)

[pre-set]

I love confrontations with idiots like that, so I'd prolly take the opposite tack. Instead of walking away, I'd actually walk right into the middle of the group and start shooting the guy speaking from 12" away. Anytime he backed off so the "blocker" could get in front of you, I'd sidestep him and close in again.

Their patience would quickly wear thin with this and they'd lay a hand on you or give you a shove - while you're rolling, of course. Bingo!!! Self-defense precedent established, time to work out some frustrations...

You could play nice, but why?

[AlexLucas]

I agree.

I would have asked them exactly why it was so utterly important to harass a camera. Especially in a public place, where a phone call from anyone standing around could have told them what a public crowd was doing.

"Why do you insist on using your freedoms to block mine?"

Where I come from, we call those people members of the "Mini Cooper rage club," meaning they are going to rage against the machine, but not until their 'independent coffee house' opens up.
(Seriously people, you can't really wake up enough to change the world without their non-corporate sponsored non-Starbucks latte that tastes just like Starbucks and is just as overpriced. You're a tool of evil if you get a 'venti half cream espresso' from that culture of corporate enslavement! Fascist! )

Collegiate granola a-holes.
They're like hippies, without the loving attitude. And the loving attitude is what makes hippies nice.

[goodfoot]

i've had a lot of this lately..actually today protestors tagged our front door with spray paint, a paint ball and I heard that they also chained the door. It didn't do anything to us, but I felt bad for the really nice maintenance guy who had to clean it up.

I will say most of the protestors are really cool and appreciate the coverage along with a good discusion on rights (both ours and theirs). When one of them gets in my face or tries to block my shot, I usually don't say anything (I'd rather not be heard on the video) but smile and roll on everything. These shots actually tell the story very well and also sometimes end up being the best stuff for nats. When I absolutely have to get the protest shots, I step back and use my zoom to get what I need.

Dont sweat it Kev, we do our best and go home to our families at the end of the day for what really matters. The best thing about this job is that you can leave a bad or frustrating day behind you completely and start all over again tomorrow.

[detroitsprings]

I have used this a few times... I would say to him "I don't stop you from doing your job when the Fry machine is beeping" or "I don't jump on the bed when you are trying too work" That is of course, keeping it light, but that might just tick him off.

[(Sin)ical]

Are you saying he was 6'8" Kevin? I can't believe anyone who isn't basketball player height could block your shot.

[HamCam]

Instead of walking away, I'd actually walk right into the middle of the group and start shooting the guy speaking from 12" away. Anytime he backed off so the "blocker" could get in front of you, I'd sidestep him and close in again.

I'd be careful with that approach... if you're one and they are many... they could mob YOU! If they've are doing a head count of who's gona be arrested at the next target site... what's stoppin them from being arrested for beatin you down??

I've been through many a protest - with fists flying, blood spillin on my shoes, rocks, sticks, ice chunks and molitov cocktails being hurled. Close up "as it happens" shots are great... but just make sure you have someone to watch you back! Sometimes shooting from the sidelines is a better, safer bet. We all want to go home at the end of the day.

[Sentinel94]

I subscribe to the "You have the right of free speech, but not the RIGHT to be heard." You don't want me there? Fine, I'll leave you to be- just don't expect me to be there later when it's convenient for you. Wanna get arrested, have fun in the lockup, but I won't care when it happens.
I'll respect your First Amendment rights when you repect mine! Back off, or kiss off...it's your choice!
(steps off soapbox)

[code20photog]

I too probably would have avoiding the confrontation, and simply either let him block my shot or walked away. I actually give the guy credit for thinking on his feet with the "have the right to stand in front of your camera" comment. Pretty good for an out-of-work bookstore employee.

These single-viewed protests stories are often cooked up by some producer who shares the same viewpoint, and is a way to get an editorial opinion into a news show without any sort of counterpoint or rebuttal. We have these kinds of protests nearly every weekend, but you have to start to think what the intrinsic news value is, short of any sort of traffic and/or commerce impedence. Yes, people don't like the war, yes people think Bush lied, ys Haliburton killed puppies in an orphange with dismembered nuns...yadda yadda yadda, and what has iany of these protests changed.... nada.

Again, if they don't want us there, then fine, I have better things to go shoot, and they end up not getting thier rhetoric on the 6 o'clock news.

[Sentinel94]

AMEN to that!

[Sore Shoulder]

You should have suddenly "recognized" goatee-guy and said " BOB!?, Bob Collins?? Is that you? I haven't seen you since school,how the hell are ya? ...I thought you were still working for the FBI....."

LOVE this one! Reminded me of the scene in Groundhog Day where Bill Murray see his old school class mate (for the 100th time) and gives him a big hug in an extremely friendly way.

You could add the hug to the scenario. :D

[jim sitton]

This happened back in the day of battery belts and mega watt color tran camera mounted lights.


I was alone at night. shooting a traffic fatality ax. The police were giving the driver that caused the crash a roadside sobriety test. I was across the street rolling on the stumbling bumbling fool when his son arrived at the scene. He saw me and began heading my way. He looked like a lineman for his high school footbal team. Over 6 ft and about 250 lbs wrapped in his letter jacket. He was jacked up and wanting to prevent his drunken dad from being on tv.
He was yelling at me and getting in my face. I tried to calmly explain my purpose and told him that he should go and be with his father and not worry about me. He didn't hear me for all of his snorting and stomping of his feet. I turned aside and began rolling again as he stepped in front of my cam. So i took a few steps to my left and kept shooting. He again stepped in front of me. This lil dance continued for a few more steps when he started to lose control. Grabbing my camera (TK76) he tried to wrestle it off my shoulder. At that point I quickly stepped back and turned on my huge color tran light, pointed it directly in his face. Whipped out my handheld mic and began speaking as if we were live on the scene. "Yes, we are live at this fatal accident with the son of the man suspected of causing this horrendous crash. Sir, please tell us your name." I shoved the unplgged mic towards the big astonished bear of little brain and he was in shock. He thought he was "LIVE" on tv and he wasn't ready for that, so he stood there for a second or two mulling it over in his head. Not knowing what to say... Silence. Well I couldn't have dead air so I continued with my questions. Had he been drinking with his father? Does your dad drink and drive often? Ect. He was not a good interview, mostly stammering about how we should just leave his family alone and such. By the time we were "Off Air" he had calmed considerable. I tried to comfort the poor galoat and coax him back toward his dad. He apoligized for being such a hot head and was only trying to protect his father.


As he walked off, I thanked God for protecting me with a glaring light and a really bright idea.


(Across the street, the cops were too busy to notice or care.)

[satop]

I actually think what the protestor is doing is harassment. If you are doing a legal act, standing and getting b-roll on public property, he does have every right to stand in front of you, but when you move over here, and across the street. and everywhere you go he follows and stands in front of you, that is harassment.

Don't remember the details, but thought I read that someone somewhere got arrested for doing that type of thing. It might have been on this web site, or medialine or one of the others.

Not sure how you would get a cop to arrest someone on that type of charge though.

[Chronically Confused]

Jim Sitton...that...was the funniest thing I heard in awhile!

[photogueberalles]

I was covering a shooting yesterday. This guy gets in front of my camera and tells me not to shoot video because, the EMS personnel told me not to. I told him it was a public street and I can shoot what ever I want. So this as-hole kept getting in my shot? Do we have any legal grounds their interference? Can we make file assult and battery chargers if we are touched in anyway?

[elvezz]

I was at a scene once where a carjack had failed and the truck being suppported by the jack crushed the mechanic and killed him.
As I set up across the street, very respectfully, one of his buddies stood in front of my camera.
I calmly explained I was just doing my job, Would soon be gone, yada, yada.
He remained in front of my cam. This went on for about 10 minutes and I then went to get an officer for some assistance.
Well the cop yelled at me for approching the scene and threatened me with arrest. This only emboldened the guy.
He followed my every move for about 30 minutes, all the while I was rolling on him and the cop who, while watching all this, refused to interfere. I was also calling the desk at the same time and they were continually calling the police.
Finally a detective dispatched an officer to lead the guy and the cop away.

I made a dub for PIO and gave it to them.
I never heard a word.
About 3 months later this same cop was in control of an accident scene.
As I approached with the other stations he could not have been more professional and helpful. I suspect he got quite the ass chewing, and actually learned to modify his behavior.
I was impressed. Something actually changed.

[Chicago Dog]

I made a dub for PIO and gave it to them.

I had a very similar situation happen to me with very similar results. Good job keeping your head about you and using your camera appropriately.

In this business, "You should know that I'm rolling on this," is the most powerful sentence we can say to someone mistreating us.

[Canonman]

In this business, "You should know that I'm rolling on this," is the most powerful sentence we can say to someone mistreating us.

Does that trick work on the ND as well? :D

cm

[A Step Above Productions]

The biggest problem with protester, upset friends/ family is that they are not thinking clearly – they are usually acting on emotion and not thinking clearly. No amount of self-control and reason and change their minds. I do like what Sitton did and the FBI idea.

Each day and each scene is different you can’t play by any set fast rules cuz’ what worked yesterday will not work today.