No photos on Walking Street

[JohnJay]

A lady stands half naked on the side of the road, where thousands of people walk every night. She thinks that she has an expectation of privacy. What's up with that?

 

The guards shine flashlights at your camera when you film or take photos, and that's OK. I have a right to film, they have a right to light. What a couple of go-gos are doing now is giving their guards green laser pens. I have nearly had a lot of problems in walking street after having a green laser shined in my face by a security guard. Sorry, those things permanently damage your eyesight and no-one has the right to shine a laser pointer into someone else's face.

 

I recently saw a bunch of half naked girls standing out side an a go-go. One of them was holding a sign that said (in English only) "NO PHOTO - FINE 5,000 BAHT". How can they charge a damn fine for taking photos on the street? This street belongs to HRH the king of Thailand. How can a glorified brothel claim to have a legitimate stake over the road?

 

I suppose it doesn't matter about the law. If you take a photo and refuse to pay 5,000 baht for the privilege, you will quickly be surrounded by a dozen 4 foot tall security guards demanding you pay. And then a volunteer from the tourist police might show up and suggest you delete the photo and pay 3,000 baht as a 'compromise'.

 

Here's a crazy idea: If you don't want to be photographed, maybe don't stand in the busiest street in Pattaya half naked all night.

[colinneil]

Well my friend, only thing i can say about this, is if you are not happy with the guards using laser pointers in walking street.

Stay away.

[moonseeker]

Welcome to Thailand :-)......Have a nice Sunday!   MS>

[JohnJay]

2 minutes ago, colinneil said:

Well my friend, only thing i can say about this, is if you are not happy with the guards using laser pointers in walking street.

Stay away.

It's fine, I bought a blue laser to shine at their faces when they do it to me.

[champers]

People feel that because their phone has a camera they have a right to take anyones photo without their permission  first. The half naked ladies probably don't want their image plastered all over social media by anyone who passes by. I don't know about the law, but there is such things as respect for others and good manners.

[champers]

4 minutes ago, JohnJay said:

It's fine, I bought a blue laser to shine at their faces when they do it to me.

You must like hospital food.

[JohnJay]

8 minutes ago, champers said:

People feel that because their phone has a camera they have a right to take anyones photo without their permission  first. The half naked ladies probably don't want their image plastered all over social media by anyone who passes by. I don't know about the law, but there is such things as respect for others and good manners.

It's more because they're scantily clad, standing in public, on a public road, that we pay taxes to maintain. Inside a bar on their property is something else. It's not as though their bully tactics work - just type in "walking street pattaya" on YouTube.

Edited July 29, 2017 by JohnJay

[colinneil]

15 minutes ago, JohnJay said:

It's fine, I bought a blue laser to shine at their faces when they do it to me.

That is one of the most stupid comments i have seen in a long time.

With your attitude you are just looking for trouble.

[Jingthing]

Interesting.

I agree about the lasers in the eyes. So obnoxious.

I've had them shined in my eyes for nothing just by people having sick fun, so at least they have a reason.

No photos? 

If you're outside their club on a public street, I assume you have a legal right to take a picture of anything you like. Technically. Of course it's polite to ask and some photographic objects ask for a reasonable or unreasonable fee which I think generally people respect. 

To do candid street photography which can be a real art, you can't really ask permission. Ruins the mood.

It's outrageous that they're even allowed to legally put up those 5K baht fine signs, much less enforce them.

I can see a compromise, like pictures allowed, charge is 100 baht per snap per person.  Then you can take it or leave it. Probably also of questionable legality but you know where we are.

As far as the tourist police being on the side of the extortionate fine claimers, yes, I agree they must likely would say you must pay but we can "help" you negotiate it down. Lovely, huh? 

 

[NanLaew]

32 minutes ago, JohnJay said:

...that we pay taxes to maintain...

Citation needed.

[Pattaya46]

To take pictures on Walking Street, take the "Chinese train"  . There are many Chinese tourist groups, often rather big (50 people?) who go up and down the street just to see this "famous" place and take a few pics. Join one of this group. Many of them will take photos and they are so many that girls and guards don't even try to stop them to take pics

 

BTW, where did you see "half naked girls" along Walking Street ??

 

 

 

[bbi1]

1 hour ago, JohnJay said:

It's fine, I bought a blue laser to shine at their faces when they do it to me.

Don't be surprised when 4 bouncers chase after you and give your ass a good bashing if you do that.

[bbi1]

@JohnJay I've got some good news for you bro! If you like taking pics of half-naked peeps then Beach Rd and the Chinese are the place & peeps for you. Seems @Balo managed to snap one of some Chinese kid taking a poop:

 

 

[BEVUP]

Well that isn't going to help the happy family holiday shots

[JohnJay]

2 hours ago, colinneil said:

That is one of the most stupid comments i have seen in a long time.

With your attitude you are just looking for trouble.

I find it a bit silly to suggest that I should allow people to permanently, and irreversibly damage my retinas with impunity.

[KittenKong]

3 hours ago, JohnJay said:

I suppose it doesn't matter about the law. If you take a photo and refuse to pay 5,000 baht for the privilege, you will quickly be surrounded by a dozen 4 foot tall security guards demanding you pay. And then a volunteer from the tourist police might show up and suggest you delete the photo and pay 3,000 baht as a 'compromise'.

 

Here's a crazy idea: If you don't want to be photographed, maybe don't stand in the busiest street in Pattaya half naked all night.

 

I have a better crazy idea: dont go to Walking Street. Plenty of other nicer cheaper and more interesting places to go.

[Rimmer]

Multiple off topic bickering posts have been removed

[petermik]

20 hours ago, JohnJay said:

I find it a bit silly to suggest that I should allow people to permanently, and irreversibly damage my retinas with impunity.

If you did not give them reason to in the first place this would not happen,if anything here in Thailand does not meet with your approval you could try Cambodia/Vietnam    

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎7‎/‎29‎/‎2017 at 5:02 PM, colinneil said:

Well my friend, only thing i can say about this, is if you are not happy with the guards using laser pointers in walking street.

Stay away.

Like button not working, so a "like" to you.

 

Plenty of people taking photos on Walking Street, but they aren't sticking the camera in people's face, which is a big no no without the person's permission. I had a katoey threaten me with a baseball bat because he thought I was taking his photo, and in a Bangla barbeer after I took a photo of the area a katoey tried to make me pay 100 baht, but took the 20 I gave him to go away- he was so far away, I could barely see him on the photo, but I had to wait to see that as on film.

Even taking photos at all has only happened recently, after the Russians moved in en mass. Before that, I had to hide the camera in a bag and take it out when no one was looking, or take the photo under the table.

 

BTW, if one wants a photo of W S, hundreds on the internet.

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎7‎/‎29‎/‎2017 at 6:01 PM, Pattaya46 said:

To take pictures on Walking Street, take the "Chinese train"  . There are many Chinese tourist groups, often rather big (50 people?) who go up and down the street just to see this "famous" place and take a few pics. Join one of this group. Many of them will take photos and they are so many that girls and guards don't even try to stop them to take pics

 

BTW, where did you see "half naked girls" along Walking Street ??

 

 

 

BTW, where did you see "half naked girls" along Walking Street ??

 

Exactly. No half naked girls on W S.

I once saw a photo of some half naked katoeys somewhere, but I think that must have been staged, as it's not a "normal" sight anywhere outside in Pattya. Sometimes gogo dancers come out, but they always wear a robe to cover up outside.

[KhunBENQ]

13 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Exactly. No half naked girls on W S.

All depends on definition of half naked

Some cultures would look at a woman in bikini type wear as half naked.

 

About the topic as such:

it's indeed part of hypocrisy and so naive that they make a fuss about taking pictures on one of most populated red light streets in Thailand.

Do they really believe they could avoid friends/family to stumble upon such a picture?

It's as naive as naive can be.

So many hidden cams on the way.

One quite well known youtuber can even interview the women at the beer bar without them noticing (and that in HD).

There is another group that should be afraid: the men who claim to be on a business trip

 

[thaibeachlovers]

27 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

All depends on definition of half naked

Some cultures would look at a woman in bikini type wear as half naked.

 

About the topic as such:

it's indeed part of hypocrisy and so naive that they make a fuss about taking pictures on one of most populated red light streets in Thailand.

Do they really believe they could avoid friends/family to stumble upon such a picture?

It's as naive as naive can be.

So many hidden cams on the way.

One quite well known youtuber can even interview the women at the beer bar without them noticing (and that in HD).

There is another group that should be afraid: the men who claim to be on a business trip

 

If they were walking about on W S in bikinis I'd agree, but they don't normally ( I'm not there all the time so I don't claim that there are never girls in bikinis on W S ).

I was referring to bikini clad women with my reference to gogo dancers as beneath the robe they are usually wearing a bikini, top and bottom.

 

I added a photo of normally dressed women on W S.

I used a blurry one as no one needs to identify them.

PS I took it off for a bit to crop the identifiable people out.

 

I agree that it's silly to try and stop it when cameras are so small now, but it's more about rude people taking photos of an individual and getting in their face without even asking. I doubt any of us would like that, but nothing is going to stop people walking along and taking photos of the general scene.

 

Edited July 31, 2017 by thaibeachlovers

[KhunBENQ]

A typical group in front of a WS gogo to lure customers (bouncer sitting behind).

Half naked?

 

 

And yes, they don't walk around like this but stand in front of their gogo/bar.

 

[thaibeachlovers]

17 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

A typical group in front of a WS gogo to lure customers (bouncer sitting behind).

Half naked?

NOT my picture.

Positively overdressed on many western beaches.

 

I just checked on google images, where the same photo is posted, and while there are a few pictures of scantily dressed touts outside gogos, they are in the minority. I'll leave it up to others to decide if scanty dress is the norm or not.

 

BTW, I know the gogo they are outside, and when I passed by a couple of months ago, the touts had  clothes that were less scanty on. Strangely, the girls are not dressed in any way relevant to the name of the bar, which is a shame as it would be great to see them dressed up as Bond girls.

Edited July 31, 2017 by thaibeachlovers

[bkk6060]

I am above WS.  Big fire going on now for over 30 mins.  Looks like structure fire.

[mogandave]

I imagine if you were walking up and down a public beach most anywhere snapping relatively close shots of bikini-clad women, it would not end well for you...a laser-pointer in the eyes would likely be the least of your worries.

 

If someone were shining a laser in my eyes I would close them, and or turn my head...

 

 

[gforsi]

Regard the legal aspects:

 

You do indeed have the right to take a photo of the street, if it was empty. But thats about it.

You do not have the right to images of individuals, if they deny it.

They have the so called "Informational self-determination" or "right of privacy" or whatever you want to call it.

I guess there is something similar in Thailand.

[Pattaya46]

23 minutes ago, gforsi said:

Regard the legal aspects: You do indeed have the right to take a photo of the street, if it was empty. But thats about it.

I don't know for which country you are talking about, but I think than in most countries you can take pictures of "the crowd" without any authorisation (that would be impossible to get anyway).

Authorisations "may" be required when you focus on only one or a few people, but I remember a discussion - on a ThaiVisa forum I think - where people were arguing that for Thai law no agreement is required even for a "small part of a crowd", not the same as an isolated/alone person/group.

Maybe best to ask rules/laws from people on the Photography forum...

 

[gforsi]

1 minute ago, Pattaya46 said:

I don't know for which country you are talking about, but I think than in most countries you can take pictures of "the crowd" without any authorisation (that would be impossible to get anyway).

Authorisations "may" be required when you focus on only one or a few people, but I remember a discussion - on a ThaiVisa forum I think - where people were arguing that for Thai law no agreement is required even for a "small part of a crowd", not the same as an isolated/alone person/group.

Maybe best to ask rules/laws from people on the Photography forum...

 

Thats exactly what I meant. As far as I understood the OP he was talking about taking photos of the girls (1,2,3,4 girls). That number is not counted as a crowd.

[jackh]

On 7/29/2017 at 6:13 AM, JohnJay said:

I find it a bit silly to suggest that I should allow people to permanently, and irreversibly damage my retinas with impunity.

Yep, you shouldn't allow it. How about walking up to the laser guy and whack him in the head? See how that works for you.