Taking pictures and Video in Europe

Quick answer: it depends.

Different places have different policies. E.g., very few churches or museums in Florence allow pictures or video. In Rome, most/all churches allow it. Some museums do, some don't. The Vatican allows it except in the Sistine Chapel.

Places that don't allow it will have a posted sign usually showing a camera with the red circle and slash through it. Also keep in mind that churches/museums that allow photos, generally ban photos with flash.

That's what I thought, thanks for the info!

The other thing that is generally not allowed without a permit is a tripod.

Pam

...and of course, many venues allow pictures, but no flash.

Personally, in churches and museums, even if nothing is said about flashes, I still turn mine off since it seems rude and usually does little good anyway.

Brendon,

In my experience, most Museums and Art Galleries are fairly restrictive about photos and videos. Flash photography and Tripod are usually banned (although many people seem to ignore the flash restrictions).

There are exceptions though. For example, the Louvre seems to allow photos within reason. I've never seen any Tripods so assume those are banned. The Borghese Gallery in Rome doesn't allow ANY photos and in fact visitors are required to check Cameras. Even if someone was able to "sneak" a small Camera into the Gallery, there are Guards and CCTV Cameras in every room so a breach of the rules would probably result in a humiliating explusion!

The rules also seem to vary a bit in Churches. I've taken photos in the Duomo's on both Siena and Orvieto and at St. Peter's in Rome with no problems (again, no flash or Tripods). However, the Duomo in Milan has strict restrictions against ANY photography, although once again some people were ignoring this. When I asked one of the Priests why they weren't enforcing the rules, he simply shrugged his shoulders and walked away.

The simple answer is that the rules vary at different locations. Watch for a sign at the entrance as that will explain the rules at that location.

Happy travels!

Having the flash on can be annoying, but what I find doubly annoying are the little peeps and chimes that some cameras have. Is this something that people can turn off?

Just to piggyback on what Pam said. Some places, notably churches, have a policy of selling you a permit to take pictures. The cost isn't that much. York Minster is one that, as I recall, had that policy.

Other places are very strict about no photos, Florence sticks out as being one of the most consistent "no photo" places.

Still others are no holds barred, take as many pictures as you want including flash pictures. If you can use a flash, make sure you understand not to use it too close or too far from your subject. Your flash has a range, outside of that you will just create an annoyance without getting a good picture.

My little camera has museum mode that turns the flash off (along with a few other adjustments). If I'm careful with the camera (minimum movement), I get nice pictures.

I try to find out what the policy is first thing and honor it regardless of what it is.

Ken--I'm surprised you got photos inside the Duomo of Orvieto, because I thought they weren't allowed. On the other hand, I have a few pictures of Santa Croce where photos aren't allowed, so it really depends on how much the site cares to enforce the rules.

Jo--It may vary from camera to camera. Mine has the options for 1) silent, 2) chirps, or 3) mechanical 'whirs' like an old style film camera. The noise doesn't really bother me, but flashes are annoying and as someone else pointed out, not really that helpful in getting quality pictures.

For people sitting in the church, possibly trying to pray, the chirpy noises can be quite annoying, possibly more than the flash if they aren't looking that way or have their eyes closed. Guess neither one isn't very respectful to those trying to worship.