Can you take pictures inside of a public library?

Answer 1

Yes, you can take a picture anywhere, of anything, as long as you, yourself, are standing on public property.

Here are the general rules for the United States:

"Local, state, and national laws may exist pertaining to photographing or videotaping. Laws that are present may vary from one jurisdiction to the next, and may be stricter in some places and more lenient in others, so it is important to know the laws present in one's location. Typical laws in the United States are as follows: * It is generally legal to photograph or videotape anything and anyone on any public property, with some exceptions. * Taking a photograph while on an airplane is banned in many places, and many mass transit systems prohibit taking photographs or videos while on board buses or trains or inside of stations. Photography is illegal in New Jersey's PATH Train system. Photography and videography are also prohibited in the U.S. Capitol, in courthouses, and in government buildings housing classified information. Bringing a camera phone into one of these buildings is not permitted either. * Photographing or videotaping a tourist attraction, whether publicly or privately owned, is generally considered legal, unless explicitly prohibited by posted signs. * Filming while on private property follows many restrictions. The owner of the property is permitted to film their own property. However, they must receive permission from others on the property to be allowed to film that person. * In order to film on someone else's property, permission must be received from the owner. * Photographing of privately-owned property that is generally open to the public (i.e. retail) is permitted unless explicitly prohibited by posted signs. * Some jurisdictions have laws regarding filming while in a hospital or health care facility. Where permitted, such filming may be useful in gathering evidence in cases of abuse, neglect, or malpractice. * Filming of private property from within the public domain is legal, with the exception of an area that is generally regarded as private, such as a bedroom, bathroom, or hotel room. In some states, there is no definition of "private," in which case there is a general expectation of privacy. Should the individual not attempt to conceal their private affairs, their actions immediately become public if using an average lens or video camera. Although this may make the action legal, it does not make the action moral in which case it is left to the photographer to utilize moral senses. * Many places now have laws prohibiting filming private areas under a person's clothing without that person's permission. This also applies to any filming of another within a public restroom or locker room. Some jurisdictions have completely banned the use of a camera phone within a restroom or locker room in order to prevent this. It is expected that all 50 states will eventually have laws pertaining to surreptitiously filming a person's genitalia. The United States enacted the Video Voyeurism Prevention Act of 2004 to punish those who intentionally capture an individual's private areas without consent, when the person knew the subject had an expectation of privacy.[41] Additionally, state laws have been passed addressing the issue as well.[42] * In certain locations, such as California state parks, commercial photography is subject to insurance requirements and usually also requires a permit[43]. In places such as the city of Hermosa Beach in California, commercial photography on both public property and private property is subject to permit regulations and possibly also insurance requirements[44]. * If a photograph shows private property in such a manner that a viewer of the photograph can identify the owner of the property, the ASMP (American Society of Media Photographers, Inc.) recommends that a property release should be used if the photograph is to be used for advertising and/or commercial purposes.[45] According to the ASMP, a property release may be a requirement in such a situation[45]. * One must not hinder the operations of law enforcement, medical, emergency, or security personnel by filming. * Any filming with the intent of doing unlawful harm against a subject may be a violation of the law in itself."

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