The next time you’re in the City of Lights and are about to snap nighttime pictures of the Eiffel Tower don’t: you could be fined.If it's out in public, it's fair game for photography. Yes, I can understand a few narrowly-tailored exceptions, but landmarks are not within those exceptions.
An obscure clause in EU law states that the tower's evening light display is an “art work” -- and therefore is copyrighted. link
Good luck enforcing that. Sounds like the "fines" tourists incur when in Mexico. Funny how they can just pay the cop....bet the gendarmes do that as well.
ReplyDeleteToo late to confine it to Europe. From the National Park Service web site:
ReplyDelete"The Three Servicemen Statue, located adjacent to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, is a copyrighted piece and, therefore, may NOT be filmed or photographed for commercial purposes without express permission from the artist."
You'll find similar restrictions on other national monuments. (e.g., can't take pictures at the Washington memorial from within the circle of flags)
A permit to shot pictures in a national park is $50 a day.
Granted, all of these just apply to commercial photography but I suspect the same is true for the Eiffel Tower. Either not illegal or at least not enforced for the tourists. Unless, of course, you decide to sell calendars of your vacation in Paris you'll be fine.