As a general rule, if a location is open to the public, such as a mall, park, office building lobby, store, etc, you will not need express permission to enter the premises and shoot – as it is assumed that entry is permissible. However, if you are shooting somewhere and the property owner asks you to leave, you must do so or you could face potential criminal or civil liability for your trespass.

Essential to the American culture is this underlying protection of an individual’s right to privacy; both in terms of governmental interference in personal affairs, but also freedom from invasion of privacy by other individuals. There is a lot of law on the subject and through all the confusion and conflicting precedents; four fairly clear categories of privacy protection have emerged.