Can people legally tell you to not take a picture of something with your iPhone?

I snap pictures… pictures of just about everything. About the only exceptions are where I think I might make someone uncomfortable if I aim my iPhone camera at them. You can usually tell when someone doesn’t want their picture snapped. There are the general good rules of thumb too… don’t make parents uncomfortable by taking pictures of their kids without asking them, avoid trying to take pictures of things that have ‘no photos’ posted, and when your driving. I guess that is more than just one exception to the ‘take pictures of everything’.

I have heard that in some areas around the US, it is illegal to take pictures of people in public places. I have also heard that if the person in the photo is recognizable, you need to get a release signed. So many laws that might be laws or might be urban legends. Searching on the Internet doesn’t result in clear answers very quickly.

Luckily, I found Photographers Rights app. It has the rights of the photographer broken down by countries. The other areas, Your Rights, Copyright and Privacy has similar information, just divided down a bit differently so you can find the information you need quicker. I won’t be trying to use it to fight a court case about if I should or shouldn’t have taken a picture. It will be handy to double check anything that I am curious with little searching.