cambriaman Loc: Central CA Coast

Exactly what has ruined sports for me! It's ALL about the Money! "Show mr the Money."

papakatz45 Loc: South Florida-West Palm Beach

Your view is incorrect. Regardless of where the money came from it is still private property. If the chose to not allow any cameras it is within their right to do so.

papakatz45 Loc: South Florida-West Palm Beach

Of course it is about the money you twit! Do you think they are in business to provide you with entertainment?

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

The NFL is not the only Corporation that has restrictions. Try bringing in a DSLR and a long lens at some famous known singer at a concert, and see how that works out. You will be told to leave by security. Not nicely either.

BuckeyeBilly Loc: St. Petersburg, FL

I could be wrong but it appears the NFL and the teams consider lenses longer than 6" as a security risk...nothing at all to do about money. The link I'm providing seems to back up this because all of the items listed are potential security problems. It seems that the NFL is saying that anything longer than 6" could be more harmful to people and property if it were used as a weapon. To get the answer on why and how they determine this, just call the league office...pretty simple.
http://www.nfl.com/static/content/public/photo/2017/01/20/0ap3000000777096.pdf

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Those restrictions are very common and reasonable. You're on private property and they simply don't want everybody and their dog snapping shots for sale and infringing on their intellectual property rights and trampling on copyright and trademark ownership, intruding on the good will and privacy of the players, spoiling the enjoyment of other spectator. As a professional sports shooter, I can tell you that amateurs and their camera gear are a very big concern.... even dangerous at times. I've all-too-often seen "wanna-be" photogs go places and do things they shouldn't, cause injuries and harm, get in the way of folks trying to do their jobs and generally wreak havoc at events.

In fact, I wish some venues would be MORE restrictive. I would mind it if some of them outlawed any and all unauthorized photography! A few places I shoot have a simple solution... they require proof of liability insurance. If you can't prove that you indemnify them against liability for something stupid that YOU do and cause harm while trying to get that "perfect" shot, you aren't allowed to shoot there at all. Other places aggressively pursue copyright and trademark infringement (i.e.... anything Disney... or Sony... or the lighting at night on the Eiffel Tower... or the Lonely Cypress on the 17 Mile Drive... yada, yada).

Yes, it's about the money. But it's also about other things.

latebloomer Loc: Topeka, KS

This explains so many frustrations and problems that stir one up.

londonfire Loc: NY to NC

I've never had a problem bringing a 'pro' camera to a sporting event because I don't go to any of them...

jab1134

Because they can and they want to maximize $$ flowing into their coffers.

fantom Loc: Colorado

SteveR Loc: Michigan

My guess is that a professional lens would be a 400mm prime and up.

krl48 Loc: NY, PA now SC

My guess, SteveR, is that a professional lens would be whatever the security personnel at the gate says it is.

SteveR Loc: Michigan

When they say a lens 8" or longer, that sounds like a 400mm prime or longer. That's why I think zooms are getting a pass but not telephoto primes.....professional lenses.

14kphotog Loc: Marietta, Ohio

Perhaps the 8" restriction rule was placed by a non photographic person
. At the games look at the end zone photographers. A 15 inch rule might not cover it. Sounds like GREED to me! The price some of these teams pay their players and the cost to watch a game has gotten WAY out of hand. Same with all pro sports.

btbg

They don't care how many mm your lens has. They don't want a security risk or someone accidentally hitting someone else with a lens.

Trust me, none of the professional photographers are worried about you taking their sale. There are free lancers at games, but things like training camp the photographers are mostly there on assignment for a local paper, or to cover someone from their hometown who is trying to make a team. They take whatever photos they get of the person or persons they are supposed to be covering and send them to the newspaper or other outlet that sent them.

You wouldn't even know where to send your photo, especially not in the time frame necessary.

Those rules are for your comfort and safety as a fan. They aren't trying to prevent you from making money.

The only reason that competition on the sidelines even matters is because if people are there and don't know what they are doing they can get hurt or get someone else hurt. Football is a very fast game, and if you can't get out of the way that's bad news for you and your camera.

As far as the responder who said that the teams could set aside areas for photographers. I suppose they could, but do you want to be the one at the security gate that is trying to separate those who legally have a big lens from those who don't.

They make the rules so that they are easy to enforce, not so that they make sense to you if your lens happens to be illegal.

And if you think the NFL is bad try the NBA, (they now limit how many professionals are allowed on the baseline for the safety of the players) and it's almost impossible for a new sports photographer to get a pass.

And sports teams are really accommodating compared to music concerts, plays and the likes. Most venues for those kinds of events completely ban all interchangeable lens cameras completely. Even with a press pass I was stopped multiple times by security at a music festival earlier this summer and prevented from taking photos for several minutes while they made sure that my pass was legitimate.