Video/photos in a Supermarket

I make YouTube videos for my family. Since moving to Japan, I have heard over and over that recording video, or even taking pictures, in a Supermarket, is not allowed. One Japanese person told me I could even get deported! Is any of that true?

When I first got here, I was taking pictures of food items, in the store, and then taking the pictures home to translate them. I know people don't like to be in pictures/video, so I only want to take pictures or get video of the food. I think it's very interesting.

Does anyone know the laws in Japan regarding this? Thanks.

You "might" be infringing potentially on copyright if you are taking photos of the displays, which they put ideas into to create. And of course people don't want to be taken photos/videos of without their knowledge and explicit consent.

Considering that a supermarket is for shopping, not a sightseeing spot, I would refrain from doing so. If you want to, for example for language study purposes, I would probably go and ask for permission from the store manage.

I have heard over and over that recording video, or even taking pictures, in a Supermarket, is not allowed.

That's not something you "hear." You actually see signs (not in letters but as a picture of a camera with an X on it) at the entrance or on the walls. Technically speaking, if there are no signs and you take a photo/video, the store can't blame you for doing it.

One Japanese person told me I could even get deported! Is any of that true?

As suggested, you may be violating copyright laws, and if you violate a law you can be deported, again technically speaking, that is. But I've never heard of anyone just taking photos/videos and then being deported without any warning or whatnot.

Nowadays, local consumers including myself take snapshots of merchandise just so that they can re-think about buying them after they leave the store, and store clerks say nothing.

But of course, it's safe to ask first.

You may ask to leave the store if you take photos and video there.
There are many competitors near the store come and check their price. Therefore, majority of stores don't allow to take photos.
Some competitors still do voice recording, or taking memo there.
The store or store manager don't even know whom you are, thus they ask you to leave there if you take photos.

and this is no different from "home". you can't just snap or shoot away in a supermarket, or any shop. But with a smartphone these days you might get away with it if you take quick snapshots.

I've been in the business of retailing for years and have been taking pics of packaging, displays and foodhalls for years. However, I have never taken a video.. I think thats a no-go, and I have always been discrete. It is so much more simpler with a smartphone than a digital camera.

For real? Is this such a big deal? Take pictures of whatever you want. My God.

You can not be deported for taking photos in a supermarket, that is ludicrous. It'll never happen. I've lived in Japan for 8 years. I sometimes take photos (especially with smartphone) of places where the "no photos" sign is (for example displays inside castles or something).

I'm not intending to be rude, I just want a @#$%ing photo of something that I just saw with my own 2 eyes anyways.
I've been asked to stop taking photos in certain places but never kicked out. It usually comes in the form of someone approaching and saying "photos not allowed photos not allowed" and making the "ダメ" gesture with their hands. I feign mild surprise and put my phone in my pocket, boom, it's over.

I've also made videos of the supermarket and took photos for my friends and family. Yes, they often want to see daily life videos of Japan. It's not a big deal. I'd be shocked if a supermarket actually asked you to leave. You'll be warned first if anything.

If your taking it with your Smartphone then how in the Holy Hell are they to know that you're even taking video or pictures in the first place. Every single other person in the store is walking around starring at their emails and playing games on their phone anyways.

Seriously OP, this is a non-issue. You will not be deported over this, no chance.

P.S. To the person above who mentioned "this is the same as your home country" - you obviously have never been to the United States (my home country).

I'll bet you my entire annual salary that you can stroll through any supermarket, Walmart, Target, large retailer etc. and take all the pictures you want and not only is it okay, but that 1) the store employees will not notice or care at all and 2) the store employees wouldn't know if this action was wrong or not anyways and 3) IF it WAS wrong, and the employees DID know, that most of them still wouldn't care and confront you over such a stupid thing anyways.

No one would waste their breath getting into a confrontation over a picture. Tell a person from a Western country that they are in violation of the store's display rights when they take a photo and be prepared to be laughed at.

there are unwritten rules not to take pictures without permissions in Japan.

just think about from another side:
if Japanese watch and take pictures foreigners all the time in Japan. they will feel they are under surveillance. is that OK for you ?

if you take pictures freely without permission, you permit to be taken by others freely.

because it is unwritten rules, if you violate the rules, I am sure that you will never be arrested.
are you still intending to violate the rules, if you are a civilized human being.

if you are not civilized and not sophisticated, well, I don't know how to advice for you.

You of course won't be deported...
But, you aren't really supposed to take photos, especially videos in the supermarket.
My local grocery store for example, every so often over the store radio that plays music and stuff it will say that taking photos/videos is not allowed.
Now, if you just take a photo of something on a shelf or something, I doubt any body will care, but if you are walking around the store recording your experience etc, then A) that is kind of rude, the store is not a sightseeing spot for tourists, and other shoppers/employees will feel uncomfortable. B) You may be asked to stop or at worst to leave. Emphasis on may.

Thanks for the replies. That's kind of how I thought it would work, but the Japanese people I've talked to have warned me otherwise.

If you don't know, Japanese police and law will follow whatever their books say, almost always. That's why, if you are caught without your residence card, even if you just left it at your place, and can get it within a few minutes, they might still arrest you, or even deport you, since the rule book says it must be on you at all times.

Some people may think I'm joking, but it has happened before. It's super rare, but Japanese are strict with their rules. This is also why prostitution is illegal, but almost every sex act except actual sex is legal in Japan. They follow the rules, word for word.

I was hoping someone could give me some evidence, rather than just more hearsay. Can anyone produce a link with laws against video in the supermarket?

I was going to just go to a supermarket I never go to, during a time when there are barely any people around, and then shoot video of the food. If I see people, I'll put the camera away. I assumed I'd just get kicked out of the store if I got caught. But, still, I don't want to take a chance if it means I could be deported, even if it's probably not going to happen. With my luck, I'd be that 1 in a million that would get deported or something.

In reply to the person that said I'd get in trouble for taking video in America: hahaha Never. I actually want to go home to America, after my time here, and shoot video in American supermarkets, and then compare the two, maybe even in Japanese, so Japanese people can get a kick out of it too.

I can't produce a website with a law that says filming in supermarkets and such is illegal. The reason is because there is no such law!

If you want to get technical, then there are laws about disturbing the peace and interfering with a businesses right to practice business and other similarly worded laws. Good luck proving that someone snapping a few photos caused actual business damage. Though I do suppose that if there was one place on the Earth where such a ridiculous thing would be upheld in a court, it might just be Japan.

It's like Ken said (albeit with no class whatsoever, in his usual judgmental and miserable-sounding tone), it is a unwritten rule. Major difference between a LAW and the rule of a supermarket! The supermarket, or any business, can ask you to leave. If they do, and you don't, THEN they have grounds to call the police and yes, the police might have grounds to arrest you. But in this case, you would be arrested for trespassing, disturbing the peace, interfering with a business, or some crime like that. You would NOT be being arrested for taking a photo!

So, it's simple. If you are ever asked to leave a business or privately owned place, then do so! Don't make a stink about it or get into a confrontation, just feign ignorance and leave.

I guess overall, my point is that it *shouldn't* be a big deal to take a few pictures of the shelves in a supermarket. I *do* understand that people don't want to be filmed. Oh well. You are probably filmed and recorded dozens of times a day without your knowledge or consent. There are security cameras everywhere. We live in a unique age where filming and pictures can be taken instantly and yes, society is still adjusting to this concept.
Personally, I don't care if I'm caught on a camera or recorded, I don't. I *do not* go around recording people all the time. I don't even want to record people. If I happened to be recording in a supermarket, then it's because I wanted to show friends and family at home what the inside of one looked like.

OP, be careful about your idea to go to one when there aren't a lot of people around. I would say that your chances of being seen and confronted are much higher during that time. Your best chance to be taking photos and video without being noticed is actually during a very busy time, when no one will be paying the least bit of attention to you.

And by the way, I started living in Japan when I was 19. Japanese people are the ones who taught me certain things. For example, just to feign ignorance when caught in this situation. "Oh.. oh!? Sorry, I didn't notice". I didn't even think to do that until I came here and was taught. There are different types of people everywhere. There are people who are really stuck up about rules here, and there are PLENTY of Japanese people that break the rules too! Tell me the last time you went to a site-seeing place and had someone ask permission or apologize to you for accidentally capturing you in a few photos or videos that they took! YEAH RIGHT.

I've only been here 4 months. I can't really read or understand a lot of Japanese yet, but I am learning. It's not hard to feign ignorance, when I am quite ignorant in the first place. haha

I have never seen the no videos/photos signs, but I'll look for them, the next time I go to the store. It doesn't matter though; if it's an unwritten rule, then most people already know, regardless of whether there is a sign.

I guess I won't bring my video camera and take video then. It seems really stupid to not allow that kind of thing, but it's a different culture; I can't do much about it. I guess I'll just try to take pictures of the food and maybe that'll be enough.

Thanks for the advice.

I've taken photos of merchandise in shops quite a few times, directly in front of the clerk, and they never said anything. Generally if the shop owner has a problem with it, they'll ask you to stop, just like security guards at temples do when tourists whip out their cameras. It would only become a big deal if you refused to put your camera away, or refused to leave the shop.

Can anyone produce a link with laws against video in the supermarket?

http://www.bengo4.com/fudosan/1110/1245/b_191707/
http://lmedia.jp/2014/11/01/57763/
http://www.hou-nattoku.com/consult/962.php

Generally speaking, it's not against the law to take pictures inside a store. It's that most stores forbid photography, and let's say you are warned and asked to leave but didn't. You would be causing "songai" (damage) to the store and you can be sued for that.

By the way, these are the signs.

https://www.google.co.jp/search?q=%E3%82%B9%E3%83%BC%E3%83%91%E3%83%BC...

the foreigners who do not follow rules are disliked by natives. that is the common sense all over the world.

Ken,
I don't think the OP is trying to break rules. (S)he is just trying to make sure if there are unwritten rules in the first place. I don't think there are. When I travel in Japan as a Japanese tourist, stores and restaurants often let me take photos for fun. A lot of places also appreciate foreign bloggers to upload photos so as to promote tourism in Japan. Of course, there are many place that forbid that, and that's why it's best to ask.

Kenさん
トピ主さんはルールを破ろうとしているのではなく、そもそも暗黙のルールは存在するのかと質問しておられるのだと思います。正直、私は暗黙のルールがあるとまでは言えないと思います。私が日本人観光客として日本を旅すると、多くの店が写真を撮らせてくれますし、日本には、外国人ブロガーによる撮影を、観光資源の宣伝として歓迎する店も少なくありません。もちろん、撮影を禁止している店も多く、現にあれだけ標識があるわけです。だから、お店の人に確認するのがベストなわけではありますが。

well, I have questions to Uco.
about supermarket matter:
why Japanese don't take photos and videos in supermarket or public streets in Japan ?
what that means, if a Japanese takes photos and videos in supermarkets without shop permission ?

about opinions by foreigners:
by unknown reasons (for me),
foreigners always finally have asked that are there laws ?
is that mean that foreigners only obey laws ?

even if there is a clear law, some foreigners advise to ignore the Japanese laws, for an example, dual-nationality, if the penalty is not charged.

So. my current thinking about foreigners is they may obey Japanese laws (and rules), if the penalty is charged to them by laws.
is that mean that foreigners have no ability to self-control themselves.

my opinion:
laws are there for all, to live in safe and happy. laws are not the one to restrict our behaviors, but to avoid future conflicts.
if there is no conflict, no law is necessary.
(I do not think about laws in everyday's living. I don' feel that I am restricted by laws.)
if all people behave independently and selfishly, very frequently conflicts occur. therefore, self-regulating ability is indispensable, especially in crowded areas like Japan.
to live comfortably, it is desirable that laws should be as little as possible. that can be provided, if everybody regulates oneself.