Do I need to get an owners permission to take pictures of their houses?

[WePurrsevere]

In the area we live in there are a lot of wonderful old run down and/or abandoned houses where you can still see their beauty and some pretty interesting archetechure/paint jobs and I'd like to take pictures of them for a website I'd eventually like to do on this area. At some point I might also look into doing a book (probably about the run down abandoned looking ones.. maybe the interesting and funky ones) but time will tell.

I'm guessing one doesn't need permission since we recently were visited by a gentlemen who sells already taken aerial photos of houses but if this was not correct I'd like to know before I take any shots. Since we tend to be rather private folks I'd be very careful not to get people or anything terribly identifying in them... since it sounds like then I definately would need to get their permission.

Thank you. :)

[Ms. Toad]

1. You're pretty safe, with houses

unless you're planning on recreating the houses - in which case there have been a few nasty copyright battles :)

[photogirl12]

2. But still...

it is nice to ask, just so they don't think that you are stalking them or you are hired by their ex to photograph them. I actually had that happen once. I was photographing leaves in my own yard with camera aimed toward a neighbor's house and he came storming out at me. I just feel safer asking permission.

[Ms. Toad]

3. I agree.

I have two houses I pass on the way to work each day that I would love to stop and take pictures of - one has the entire front yard planted with cosmos, and the other has a barn and silo that often have 20-30 turkey vultures (buzzards in the local vernacular) roosting. When conditions are REALLY right the majority of them have their wings stretched out to dry.

I've been itching to pull in the driveway and take a few photos (there's no shoulder or anywhere convenient to stop - so I would have to stop in the driveway). Before I do, I'll send them a note on one of my photograph notecards and asking if they would mind if I added their buzzard roost/yard to my collection of photographs.

[photogirl12]

4. Not only that

but then you can offer to give them a photo in return for photographing their property. Kind of like a thank you gift.

[WePurrsevere]

7. OT: Turkey Vultures...

My DH and I had to actually look up what those birds are when we first saw it's blood red head feasting on an unfortunate road kill deer.

We've lived all of our life in upstate and NNY and, although we know a bit about native birds and are fairly observant, we'd never noticed them being around before, certainly not up close and never in the amounts we do up here. Now we see them all the time and in large amounts. All we can think of is that it's possibly because this is a rural area and therefore good "hunting" and it's been a bit warmer then "normal" lately. :shrug:

Hopefully you can get some good pictures of them. I've been trying but no luck yet... they seem to know when I have my camera. ;)

[Ms. Toad]

8. They seem to be more prevalent recently

I've lived in the area for 25+ years and I saw my first one on "Buzzard Day" (http://www.hinckleytwp.org/news/buzzardhistory.php ) 6 years ago (The timing was just a coincidence - it just happened to be the first day I saw one on the route to work). Now I see them all the time.

[WePurrsevere]

6. Good point... so if I do any inhabited houses I'll ask... abandoned are

probably okay though... well.. unless I tick off a ghost. ;)

[WePurrsevere]

5. The only way I might ever recreate a house would be in a mini

or stained glass form so I'm probably safe that way.

Thanks for the response. :)

[NashVegas]

9. I Once Freaked Out a Porn Shop Owner

For shooting the front of their building. I think they feared I was a religious whacko.