C&C please - drug bust ride-along

[Outlaw]

Snapped off these two photos for the paper on a midnight run with the sheriff to do a drug bust. C&C always requested and welcome!

When shooting something like this where you're not supposed to go on the private property or shoot with a long lens, what kinds of shots do you look for from the road? And how could I improve on the close-up shot of the drugs? I am thinking perhaps shooting from a lower angle to get the out-of-focus faces of the officers in the background, but then you could not see the drugs themselves. Advice always appreciated. :)

[thelegend1472]

Forget the pictures...grab that brick and run JK! Not sure what you could do different since you're stuck in the road, but it's cool you got to tag along on somethin like this? Any running or fighting invovled or was the guy just like @^&@%$!!!!

[HeatherLou]

Man, you get loopy just looking at that! I agree, not sure what you could do from the road but I like the first shot. The color change is kinda cool!

[Outlaw]

Bryan, hah! It's great that we have a good relationship with the sheriff's office, so we get many privileges such as these ride-alongs. And the stories to tell the next day!

I was strapped into a bullet-proof vest and rode in the sheriff's truck to the scene, where about six law enforcement surrounded the house with shotguns and AR-15's. They let themselves in and had the adults cuffed and separated in about 30 seconds.

No running involved, nor guys! The drug house was run by a middle aged lesbian couple, one of whom has a brain tumor. About five minutes after they secured the house, a woman comes flying up in her truck, jumps out with the vehicle still running, and runs up to the front door screaming "my kids are in there! my babies! what's going on!?" Turns out there were five kids in the house, and with the marijuana smoke so thick, the sheriff said they were all high as a kite. Aged from about 3-12 years.

The woman who took the kids after the dealers were hauled off to jail was then arrested the next day on out-of-state felony fugitive warrants while visiting the dealers in jail. I honestly don't know where the kids are now.

No violence or anything, although one of the women did 'fake' passing out for a minute. The meth lab bust this week is supposed to be far more exciting; sheriff expects 25 LE to be in on the bust.

I was surprised that the sheriff said meth is far more prevalent than marijuana, and this whole concept of the "Nazi method" of making meth blows my mind. We ran quite a story on it this week in the paper.

Heather, thank you! I had to take a lot of shots to get the blue of the sheriff's car lights on the house with the taillight in the foreground.

[lscottpht]

I really like both pics, especially the first one. The most important thing in pj shots is to try and get people in the pictures. Sometimes that can be difficult from a distance. Even though you were not allowed on the property (btw, was that via the police or the inhabitants?), you can always get the people coming out of the house and getting put in the squad car, also the woman racing up to get the kids would have been great. Sounds like there would have been some emotion there, which is always good to get. I am usually right up next to the cops when they are arresting people or putting them in the police car. The police don't usually have a problem with that, especially if you are with them for a ride along. I'm supposed to go out with my cousin on a ride along in Houston with the gang unit. After seeing these pics and reading the story, I can't wait to go. Anyway, you still got two very good pictures from this.

[boxofrocks]

Cops always have the best weed.

[Outlaw]

Leslie, thank you for your comments! Unfortunately, the sheriff specifically asks that we not photography suspects on these ride-alongs, so I'm afraid hands are tied there unless I want to risk losing out on getting to even go on these little 2 a.m. forays. Talk about limiting! And staying off the private property is another of the sheriff's requests.

Isn't there a rule, besides, that without permission of the property owner you can't go on and shoot, and even from public property, you can't shoot with a lens past 35mm or 50mm? Or did I dream that somewhere?

Thank you again!

Boxofrocks, interestingly enough, I could not get the sheriff to tell me how they destroyed the weed. I honestly don't believe they do anything but destroy it in a legal and proper fashion, but the exchange was interesting:

"So what happens to this stuff after tonight?"

*shpeel about evidence, trials, and then destruction of the weed*

"How is it destroyed? Do you burn it in an incinerator?"

*blank stare* sheriff: "Well, you're supposed to."

And that was the end of the conversation. Oy!

[lscottpht]

Wow, they were strict with you! Bummer, but you still got some great stuff.

As far as the rule, there are so many different views on that. What is actually correct, I'm not sure. There are photogs that go into houses on drug busts and stuff even though it's private property. Remember the Elian Gonzales pics of him in the closet with, I think, his uncle? If you go in with them, I think you can shoot unless the property owner specifically tells you no, then you have to stop. I also know you can shoot from public property onto private property, but I'm not sure about not being able to use a telephoto. I'm sure there are many opinions on that, too, and what is actually the law, who knows for sure. It would be nice to know that for a fact, although I don't usually do this type of photography. Anytime I go into people's homes to shoot, they don't usually have a problem with me being there b/c I'm telling their story. It will be interesting to see what my cuz allows me to do with him when I do a ride along, but he probably knows to just let me do my thing...lol. It doesn't make sense to me to go on a ride along if I can't shoot pics. The cops have always allowed me to shoot the suspects, so I guess I've been lucky, and they have been very nice about it. Anyway, post more pics the next time you go!

[madams]

James,

Drug raids like these sometimes do open up some interesting questions about private property and where you can go and not go. If the police invite you to go along on a raid and do not tell you that you can not go onto private property, then you can probably get away with doing it (not that it would be legal). In some states if the police invite you along, then you are under the same warrant that they are and can follow them where they go. However if a property owner happens to ask you to leave his property, then you should, but any thing you can see from the street if fair to shoot.

If you are riding along with the police of course you are working under their rules and you just have to follow them.

I personally have never heard of a rule for using only a wide angle lens or what ever and no telephoto. Usually the police agency you are with will ask that you not get certain faces of some of the officers who may be undercover and happen to be on the raid. That is not unusual and may be some explanation for no telephoto shots. But there is no rule.

As for as the shots you have here its hard to tell from the house shot what's going on, a problem with unmarked cars and the rules you were under. Drug shots are drug shots but usually there is a commanding officer that would like to get into the shot showing the confiscated contraband that can help the shot be a little more interesting and with a background of flashing lights or flack jacket and guns that might spice the shot up a little.

Of course Leslie is right in that you need people to really tell the story. Arrests and handcuffs and the emotion of the moment.

[Outlaw]

Thank you Leslie and Milton! There's an interesting article in Outdoor Photography this month that talks about what can and can't be shot, when a model release is needed, etc. Informative, but the "official" opinion is that, in most situations, even if you're in your legal right you can get in trouble, and if you're breaking the law, you probably won't get in trouble. Jeez!