Okay, no upskirt shots, got it. What else?

July 20, 2011 3:09 PM

What are the photography laws in South Korea?

I am interested in street photography and I want to take full advantage of my freedom; however, I do not want to overstep my legal boundaries.

Also, are any photo laws different for foreigners?

Thank you.

posted by Knigel to law & government (4 answers total)

Koreans are quite fond of photography and it is quite common to see people hauling their DSLRs around Seoul, up mountains, etc. I've read that Korean law is somewhat stricter than usual about how you can publish someone's image, but mostly if it's something that would hurt their reputation. If you aren't planning on publishing then you should be fine taking pictures in public.

Also, don't photograph the military, that's definitely illegal. I've certainly seen people do it openly without anyone getting rolled up for it, but intentionally breaking laws abroad isn't really a smart idea.
posted by Winnemac at 3:43 PM on July 20, 2011

Well, there's legality and then there's politeness. Taking close-up shots of people without asking them is always a dick move, and a bit racist as well ("Ooh, look as these colorful natives!").
posted by bardic at 1:25 AM on July 21, 2011

Scribblings of the Metropolitician is a blog by an American-Korean working in Seaoul who does a lot of street photography. Browse among his posts or just go here: Korean Photo Law and You
posted by zaelic at 1:36 AM on July 21, 2011 [1 favorite]

Zaelic, thank you for that. Michael from Metropolitician has actually been helping me with my photography recently. During one of our meetings we had a discussion about Korean photography law and was an inspiration for this post. I feel all Inception like and stuff.
posted by Knigel at 2:22 AM on July 21, 2011