I am planning to attend Fall 1 as my new character Chip Kicklighter! Whose concept, if you didn't already hear on the discord, is being an investigative photographer/photojournalist. This means I'm planning to carry cameras at game (both film and digital) and use them! I figure we all put a lot of work into our costumes and equipment, and then we all look very cool running around and fighting in them. It's a bummer that that usually doesn't get documented much since we'd have to break character to snap a photo. Thus: in-character photography.
Of course, taking photographs raises privacy concerns. This character can only work if everyone is comfortable with what photos are being taken and where they're being shared. This is my plan for making sure that happens:
First, anyone at any time can tell me that they don't want any photos taken of them, in which case I will take no photos of them, at all, in any way (and delete any I already took, if they say it halfway through game). If I can't be certain that there's nobody in my shot who opted out, then I will not take that photo! So e.g. in a big town fight, I'm going to err on the side of caution and not do any crowd shots, in case I didn't notice that the crowd includes someone who said no.
Second, any photos I do take, I will clear with all the people in them before I share them anywhere with anyone. If a photo has just the one person in it, I'll send it to them and they can decide what happens to it (deleted, or only they have a copy, or I put it on the discord/share it publicly on social media, or whatever.). If a photo has multiple people, it's a little trickier, since i can't show it to anyone without everyone else already approving that. In that case I'll describe the photos to the subjects and then give them all copies if everyone approves.
I hope that sounds workable and will let everyone be comfortable with Chip taking photos in-game. If that system wouldn't fly for you, please let me know (or staff if you don't want to talk with me about it direct) and we can work something out.
I've talked with Ken, and currently, we're thinking that only the film photos will exist in-universe; this short-circuits a lot of weird implications of digital photography existing in the setting and doing things like backing up to the cloud, or being instantly available to show to people (which wouldn't really be compatible with the privacy process above). Film is a physical object and therefore way easier for the game rules to work with. I want to take digital photos so that we'll have them afterwards, but the digital ones won't exist in-character (and therefore can't be used as proof of any murder accusations or whatever).
Oh, and I forgot to mention- if rather than a blanket no you want to give a blanket yes in advance (or just one for specific kinds of photos), and avoid the approval rigmarole, that works too! just lmk and I can put you down as "all photos good to share [to discord/to the public/whatever]"
The below is what was put in the Event Announcements for Fall 1 2025. These are the basic rulings we came up with, posted here for posterity. I will update this thread if these change.
This event (and some events going forward), we have a player (Cordelia) carrying cameras to take photos (some in-game, some not). As per his forum post, contact him if you do not want your picture taken.
Staff will not be acting as an intermediary --- though we will get permission from everyone concerned if we want to use any of the photos for publicity.
Cordelia's digital camera(s) and the photos they take are not in-game. You can't go through them when searching him, and he won't use digital photos for any in-game purposes.
Cordelia's film camera(s) and their photos/film are in-game. If you do decide to rifle through his stuff when searching him, please do not damage the props; if you want to destroy any photos or film (perhaps you think he took incriminating photos of you?), simply declare you do so; do not break anything for real.
Hi all-
I am planning to attend Fall 1 as my new character Chip Kicklighter! Whose concept, if you didn't already hear on the discord, is being an investigative photographer/photojournalist. This means I'm planning to carry cameras at game (both film and digital) and use them! I figure we all put a lot of work into our costumes and equipment, and then we all look very cool running around and fighting in them. It's a bummer that that usually doesn't get documented much since we'd have to break character to snap a photo. Thus: in-character photography.
Of course, taking photographs raises privacy concerns. This character can only work if everyone is comfortable with what photos are being taken and where they're being shared. This is my plan for making sure that happens:
I hope that sounds workable and will let everyone be comfortable with Chip taking photos in-game. If that system wouldn't fly for you, please let me know (or staff if you don't want to talk with me about it direct) and we can work something out.
I've talked with Ken, and currently, we're thinking that only the film photos will exist in-universe; this short-circuits a lot of weird implications of digital photography existing in the setting and doing things like backing up to the cloud, or being instantly available to show to people (which wouldn't really be compatible with the privacy process above). Film is a physical object and therefore way easier for the game rules to work with. I want to take digital photos so that we'll have them afterwards, but the digital ones won't exist in-character (and therefore can't be used as proof of any murder accusations or whatever).
Oh, and I forgot to mention- if rather than a blanket no you want to give a blanket yes in advance (or just one for specific kinds of photos), and avoid the approval rigmarole, that works too! just lmk and I can put you down as "all photos good to share [to discord/to the public/whatever]"
The below is what was put in the Event Announcements for Fall 1 2025. These are the basic rulings we came up with, posted here for posterity. I will update this thread if these change.
EDIT: Player's name updated.