5/3/2013 - JFK - T5 garage x2
After getting a bit frustrated by the 13/22 split that was being used yesterday, I decided to try photographing from the top of the T5 garage for the first time yesterday. When I arrived there was an individual in a PANYNJ SUV parked up there in the corner by T4 and that was where I parked to start. He didn't seem to pay any attention to me for the short while that I was there. After a few minutes I moved over to the T7 side of the garage and photographed 31L arrivals there for probably about an hour. As I heard a line of European arrivals headed to 22L, I moved back over to the T4 side to at least get some taxi shots.
After a few minutes shooting from there, I noticed that there was an FJC Security SUV that had stopped a short distance away. After several minutes he starts honking at me (and I will agree with others from previous incidents that this is a terribly unprofessional way of getting somebody's attention. An older Asian security guard gets out of the vehicle and approaches me. "Excuse me, we don't want you photographing up here. I don't want you photographing up here." I calmly but firmly responded with "I'm sorry, but who doesn't want me photographing up here" since he apparently couldn't get his story straight. "the Port Authority doesn't want you photographing up here. It's against the rules." I said, "I'm sorry, but the Port Authority has no rules against photography." The guard picked up his radio. "He says there is no rules against photography...." as he trailed off. Moments later he got back into his vehicle where he waited, and I went back to shooting, with the full knowledge that I was doing nothing wrong. The SUV stays parked in the same spot and while I am by no means blocked in, I did feel a bit uncomfortable at this point since I din't feel like I could move back and forth around the upper deck.
About 15 minutes later another FJC SUV arrived and the 2 chatted for about 5 minutes. Then the second one pulled up along the rear of my car and the male African-American gentleman called out very professionally with a "how ya doin?" He briefly chatted with me regarding how its not their rules its the Port Authority's rules, to which I once again asserted that the Port Authority actually has no rules for or against photography. Then came the biggest whopper: "well you're really supposed to contact the Port Authority before you come up here and get authorization." He mentioned that somebody from the Port Authority would be up to speak with me before pulling away to chat with the Asian guard briefly after which they both took off. The entire encounter took roughly 25 minutes and other than the times that I was speaking with them I kept doing my thing. I remained calm though perhaps slightly flustered the entire time, though I was definitely assertive of my rights.
40 minutes later I am back on the T7 side shooting the CX oneworld 777 when another FJC SUV pulls up very close behind me in the no parking area in the corner. This time it is a younger, female African American guard. "Escuse me, you can't be takin picshas up here" (misspelling intentional) I was flabbergasted! I wheeled around to speak to her. "It says right here that you aren't supposed to take pictures without authorization," as she pointed about three-quarters of the way down a handwritten page on a writing pad. Again, I asserted myself: "There are no rules against photography. I just finished dealing with this a little while ago." She picks up her radio and rolls up the window as I wheel back around to catch the CX 777 taxiing back towards the terminal. As I am shooting, I hear her back away a bit, before pausing for a short time and then pulling away. The whole confrontation from the time she showed up until the time she left took maybe 2 minutes, with the actual communication being maybe 30 seconds.
This was my first time encountering any form of security or law enforcement while I was out spotting, and I felt that I handled it well. I also felt that two out of the three guards that I dealt with lacked the basic level of professionalism that I would expect from a guard, while the third one (likely a supervisor) was very professional. To be honest, I half expected to have one encounter with security there when I went, though the second one surprised me. The overall feeling that I came away from this experience with was this: how many times do we need to go through these encounters before it is considered harassment, both as individuals and as a group.
(EDIT: Just for the record, this occurred on 5/5/13. I'm not exactly sure why I got it wrong in the title.)
