Hi, Earlier today I posted photos from the 3 nights in London but unfortunately there are not many from last night as for the first time in 25 years of concert going I had my camera confiscated by security. All the pictures were taken on a small ''point and shoot'' camera without flash.
On the first 2 nights I had no problems but last night they were really clamping down and I was escorted from my seat and taken to security hq and all the O2 security would say is ''The rolling stones management have told us to confiscate as many cameras as possible''.Not surprisingly when I went back to my seat people were still taking pictures as it was an impossible task to confiscate them all.
I was wondering if anyone else had a problem last night and is this normal practice at a Stones concert.Nowadays some groups actively encourage fans to take pictures and post them on the official sites but I do realise some hate it, I just thought the Stones were ok about it because of the first 2 nights.

Bob.

seems like a very random problem. most confusing case for me - wiltern gig in '02. we kept getting told while waiting outside the gig that NO cameras were allowed. so some of us dispensed with the digitals and just brought in cheap disposables. while waiting for the stones to hit the stage i asked a security person standing next to me at the catwalk if (hypothetically) i could take photos. he said "okay" so long as no flashes were used. so, while i'm taking closeups of mick and company, i noticed said security person was snapping them too - WITH FLASH. I turned mine on and took a bunch more....

The security at the Prince shows on Friday was very tight with cameras. Was told not to take any more at the main show and I didnt even dare try at the aftershow.

Had no problems at all at the 3 Stones shows. We were right at the catwalk last night and were snapping away all night as were everyone else around us. The security people did nothing to stop anyone.

I am amazed that you had your camera confiscated. I also was right at the catwalk and front rail and no one so much as batted an eyelid at me or any of the many others taking photos. As Gazza has said, it was a different story for Prince. Security came down the queue for the aftershow warning against cameras (a positive sign to us that Prince was likely to put in an appearance!). During the aftershow, security would immediately focus a little blinding light on anyone who raised their cellphone until they put it away. Someone even had their cellphone confiscated for trying to take photos with it and any photos already taken were apparently deleted.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-08-28 00:40 by Beast.

Generally artists do not have a problem with small point n shoot cameras. Where the problem comes in is a miscommunication between the head of security or tour manager for the artist in the way they brief loal venue security heads and how the local security heads breif the general security for the show.

I work quite a few shows and it always amazes me how every security person hears or preceives something different.

If local security ask me what I know of policies, I generally tell them that something that can fit in a pocket is fine and if they are in the first several rows to try not to use the flash. If I know the artist has a NO Camera policy...then it means no cameras.

Last year I was working a Paul Stanley show and the tour manager said to me that "small cameras were fine, the people at the shows are fans, let them bring the point & shoots in...they are harmless" Somehow that translated into: Use Metal Detectors at the door, no cameras period.

Very few artists have a zero tollerance to cameras. The Eagles, Prince and Neil Diamond are three artists that freak out over photography. I remember a couple years ago two of Neil Diamonds personal security men hunting down a woman several rows back who took a shot with her cell phone. Eagles security walking half-way back on the floor and up the sides 10 rows to take someones film out of a point n shoot and exposing it before dropping it on the ground.

The strangest policy I saw was for American country singer Toby Keith. He allowed small digital cameras, but they had to be no larger than 4 megapixil. That's a good rule for security guards to hold up lines and check while people are entering a show.

Seeger Tour Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi, Earlier today I posted photos from the 3
> nights in London but unfortunately there are not
> many from last night as for the first time in 25
> years of concert going I had my camera confiscated
> by security. All the pictures were taken on a
> small ''point and shoot'' camera without flash.
> On the first 2 nights I had no problems but last
> night they were really clamping down and I was
> escorted from my seat and taken to security hq and
> all the O2 security would say is ''The rolling
> stones management have told us to confiscate as
> many cameras as possible''.Not surprisingly when I
> went back to my seat people were still taking
> pictures as it was an impossible task to
> confiscate them all.
> I was wondering if anyone else had a problem last
> night and is this normal practice at a Stones
> concert.Nowadays some groups actively encourage
> fans to take pictures and post them on the
> official sites but I do realise some hate it, I
> just thought the Stones were ok about it because
> of the first 2 nights.
>
> Bob.

This is most bizarre. I was right at the rail, in fact I got friendly with one female member of security on the other side of it and they even allowed me to put my backpack safely out of the way on THEIR side of it. I was taking pics with my little digital compact right in front of her all throughout the show, not a mention out of her, or any of the other security, in that general area. How very strange.

Hey Bob (aka "Seeger Tour")...tell me more...

How long did they keep you in Security HQ...while you missed the show?
Did they actually take your camera...and give it back after the show?
Did they make you erase the pictures you had taken? Did they take
your memory card? Did you at least get to have the pix that were
on your camera before they took it?

If they made you erase the images...there is a way to salvage some
or all of the pix. Whatever you do...do NOT re-format the card.

I have software called DIGITAL IMAGE RECOVERY (there are others too) by
Media RECOVER. www.mediarecover.com

Maybe it would be worth it to you...to purchase such software...I think
I paid $30.


IORR............but I like it!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-08-28 01:01 by sweet neo con.

@ a macca show in philly a lady next to me was filmin da show with her digital camera " i told her to shut her screen lite off " & security came & took her away for about 20 min.

when she got back she said they took her $150.00 memory stick , but they let her keep her camera

chippy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> >
> when she got back she said they took her $150.00
> memory stick , but they let her keep her camera


wow - i wonder how she'll remember the show without her stick

StonesTod Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> wow - i wonder how she'll remember the show
> without her stick


Not only that Stonestod , she lost her memory !

chippy Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> StonesTod Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> >
> >
> > wow - i wonder how she'll remember the show
> > without her stick
>
>
> Not only that Stonestod , she lost her memory !

sha la la la

Bring 2-3 memory sticks to a show. Shoot a ton at first, eject the stick and give it to your friend or stash it in your wallet. At least you will have some shots in case they take you away mid-show. Memory card/sticks are cheap these days.

I just came back from a weekend away and went straight to the 02. I had an overnight bag large enough to store a 24 track studio. I Got to the security guard at the door told him straight away I had a camera in the bag,(no point in lying), he went nuts and said it was forbidden. I told him it was somewhere in the bag amongst the 3 days worth of dirty underwear, he suddenly lost interest and let me through.

Take note - this is how you get your cameras and recording equipment into concert halls.

Beast Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am amazed that you had your camera confiscated.
> I also was right at the catwalk and front rail and
> no one so much as batted an eyelid at me or any of
> the many others taking photos. As Gazza has said,
> it was a different story for Prince. Security
> came down the queue for the aftershow warning
> against cameras (a positive sign to us that Prince
> was likely to put in an appearance!). During the
> aftershow, security would immediately focus a
> little blinding light on anyone who raised their
> cellphone until they put it away. Someone even
> had their cellphone confiscated for trying to take
> photos with it and any photos already taken were
> apparently deleted.

There have been banners everywhere at the Prince show:
"Strictly NO cameras!"

I used to have one of them fanny pack bags, I'd put small equipment in the back part that would press against my stomach and then load the main pack with wallet, keys and a couple strange items that would get you a free pass to enter a venue.

I had TMJ years ago and the dentist made me a mouthguard. After I was all better, I kept it and let it get really nasty looking. I kept it in a container whilch I kept in my fanny bag. When asked to open the bag, I would say all I have in here is my wallet, keys and then pull out the mouthguard case and open it. You would then get waved it without any more searching.

trainarollin Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I had TMJ years ago and the dentist made me a
> mouthguard. After I was all better, I kept it and
> let it get really nasty looking. I kept it in a
> container whilch I kept in my fanny bag. When
> asked to open the bag, I would say all I have in
> here is my wallet, keys and then pull out the
> mouthguard case and open it. You would then get
> waved it without any more searching.

Great ploy!

Man, this is why I quit shooting concerts, bunch of little men that NEED that power of authority cause they're ALL so fricken INSECURE !!! Last time I shot a show was a couple Dylan ones where the GF buried the telephoto in the bottom of her purse to get through security and the camera body... well, that's too complicated to explain... Actually got some great shots but it ain't worth it. That's why there's such great stuff from the 60' and early 70's, cause no one had a stick up their ass YET.... Janis backstage with her bottle of SOUTHERN COMFORT, the great JIM MARSHALL !! Even ANNIE LEB shooting the Stones '75 Tour.... You don't get shots like those anymore, it's all corporate controlled bullshit.... THE THRILL IS GONE !!!!

Sorry to hear about your situation Seeger - makes no sense to anyone with a 3 digit I.Q........

HelterSkelter Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> THE THRILL IS
> GONE !!!!




Jerry Garcia-The Thrill is Gone video

Helter wrote: "Man, this is why I quit shooting concerts, bunch of little men that NEED that power of authority cause they're ALL so fricken INSECURE !!! Last time I shot a show was a couple Dylan ones where the GF buried the telephoto in the bottom of her purse to get through security and the camera body... well, that's too complicated to explain... Actually got some great shots but it ain't worth it. That's why there's such great stuff from the 60' and early 70's, cause no one had a stick up their ass YET.... Janis backstage with her bottle of SOUTHERN COMFORT, the great JIM MARSHALL !! Even ANNIE LEB shooting the Stones '75 Tour.... You don't get shots like those anymore, it's all corporate controlled bullshit.... THE THRILL IS GONE !!!!

*******************************

I still shoot concerts (as a pro)....it's 2-3 songs and then you're literally
escorted out of the building...unless you're shooting specifically for the
band or for a major story in a Rolling Stone-type magazine. I shoot for venues.

The bands REALLY are obsessed about controlling every potential non-flattering image.
No more professional sweaty encore pix....unless you're Kevin Mazur, Paul Natkin, Annie Leibovitz...or of that status...
....or a music-loving pro that's able to sneak in their pro DSLR.


IORR............but I like it!



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2007-08-28 03:55 by sweet neo con.

A friend of mine had a very bad experience; we were thrilled at being so close and my friend was snapping away for most of the show. Then towards the end a security guard grabbed his camera while he was about to take a picture and focussing just as the stones were approaching and making their way to the Bstage area. Excitement was high at that moment, and we lost vigilance over the security. They confiscated the camera and ripped out the film so it was completely destroyed and threw it in the garbage. They were @#$%& to deal with, and it left a rather bitter taste to what had been such a fantastic, memorable concert. At least my friend still had a roll of completed and awesoome shots in his pocket.

[p207.ezboard.com]



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2007-08-28 04:13 by Miss U..

Well SNC, the industry CONTROLLED CD prices and now Tower Records is GONE and the kids are all downloading everything for free as less and less people buy CD's. Someday they're gonna learn that their control is what f*cked up everything....but man, are they SLOW.....

What happens when all the high quality DSLR's get taken away is there's still images being taken of that show but now they're ONLY the crappy ones on peoples cell phones... better to let the pro's/serious photogs shoot with their good equipment and talent to have better pics of the shows since you're gonna have em, one way or another - This is just more non thinking, ROBOT behavior.... what a stupid waste.....

Yeah, not allowing small point and shoots and BS...
We only use them to share clips and pics of a show with other fans...
The video is usually somewhat shaky but still good enough to put on youtube for others to check out...

MGM Grand Las Vegas is rather strict about cameras but I got mine in to Frankfurt and Paris...



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-08-28 09:32 by NumberOneStonesFan.

It seems really to depend on where you are and what security man is in front of you. My camera was confiscated (only the battery part) two years ago in Portland and only then I took only four pictures. However in all other concerts during these two years I was able to take photos. I mean there are thousands of mobile phones even filming, how could you stop people from making photos. I agree with the flashlights that it is irritating for the musicians on stage.
So it seems just like unluck of the day.

I didn't bother with a camera at this week's shows as the results never compensate for the hassle, but I noticed that the rolling electronic notice over the O2 entrance said "No professional cameras" on Tuesday, but "No unauthorized cameras" on Sunday and wondered then if security had been told to clamp down. It all seemed very relaxed in the sections where I was, however.

You might have to scrape me off the floor at the end of the tour, but it'll be really good scrapings. - Mick Jagger

were peeps lighting joints or was the vibe like totally authoritarian...
i mean if you passed a joint in your row was someone gonna come up and get all heavy on you? just curious. ty.
maybe they need to redefine the law as to no smoking tobacco, so as to leave personal medical situations to the individual in a free society. yeah, right.
;-)

Having the best ticket ever for a Stones arena show - Block A row H seat 14 - I smuggled my Cannon EOS camera in and started shooting without flash. After an hour there were so many flashbulbs going off that I did the same. Must have got 120 pix in all - some of them gems.

Didn't take camera Tues but did on Thurs when I was Row M seat 20 by the catwalk -no problems whatsoever. Also took it Sun when I was in the nosebleeds - albeit Row A - section 421. Also took photos in Paris and Rome this time as well as Sheffield Tickenham and Cardiff last year. Also no problems at MSG Jan 2006. I think you were very unlucky.

I took a small 4 mega pixel Olympus digital camera to the show on sunday night, in the pcoket of my jeans, I was not frisked as I went in, so i got through okay, I did see a sign proclaming NO UNAUTHORISED CAMERAS AFTER THIS POINT. I took around 80 pictures or so and no one stopped me.

I recall a few years ago, going to see the tribute band THE L.A DOORS play their last ever London show, and I was told I was not allowed to bring a camera in, even though I had done so a year earlier, and I would have to leave it at the box offie, one of the promoters was standng nearby, and said she had seen nothing n the contract to say cameras were not allowd, and insisted they let me use it! when the show was almost over, a secruity guard appeared and asked to see my press pass, as I was taking pictures! I told him where he could go, and he got on his walkie talkie, and then said "yeah, okay sorry, go ahead!"

I put my little camera in the pocket of my coat. When I got to the search table I put down my coat, opened my bag to be searched, picked up my unsearched coat and strolled on in.

I did see security stop someone who was standing in the middle of the aisle taking pictures but I took several from my seat and video'd all of HTW on my mobile with no trouble. I gave up on the still camera quite early as I wanted to concentrate on enjoying the show and there are about 276 better photographers with better cameras than me posting shots here anyway.

Re: Camreas Confiscated
Posted by: sweet neo con (IP Logged)
Date: August 28, 2007 00:59


Hey Bob (aka "Seeger Tour")...tell me more...

How long did they keep you in Security HQ...while you missed the show?
Did they actually take your camera...and give it back after the show?
Did they make you erase the pictures you had taken? Did they take
your memory card? Did you at least get to have the pix that were
on your camera before they took it? ...........
..................................................
...............

They did not ask for my card from the camera but I took no chances and managed to take it out before I had to give my camera in.The ''security hq'' was near the back entrance at the O2 where they gave me a 'receipt' for my camera which I had to hand in on my return.In all I missed about 15 minutes of the concert,it did not ruin the night but it definately spoilt it.


Bob