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Filming Government Buildings

Where a camera may go, and where it may not

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Two questions decide almost every one of these, and people usually only ask the first. What kind of place is this, and am I standing somewhere I am allowed to be. The camera is rarely the actual issue.

  • A public street, park, or sidewalk outside a building is a traditional public forum, and filming what is in plain view from there is at its strongest.
  • A lobby, a counter, or a waiting area is government property but not automatically a public forum, and reasonable rules about conduct can apply there.
  • A non public area, meaning staff space, secured areas, or anywhere the public is not admitted, is not opened up by the fact that the building is government owned.

Federal buildings and post offices are governed by their own written regulations rather than by local judgement. Both allow photography for news purposes in entrances, lobbies, foyers, corridors, and auditoriums, unless a posted sign, a court order, or security personnel say otherwise. Anything outside that needs permission from the building head or the postmaster.

The regulation is narrower than the slogan. Both rules are written around news photography in common areas, and both leave room for posted signs and for direction from security. That is a real limit, not a bluff, and it is a different question from whether an officer can lawfully make you identify yourself for filming.

Being annoying is not a crime. Speech that challenges, criticises, or irritates an officer is protected, and it cannot on its own be turned into disorderly conduct or obstruction. What is not protected is physically getting in the way of someone doing their job.

“I am in a place open to the public and I am filming. Am I being detained, or am I free to go.”

Local buildings can adopt their own conduct rules for their public areas. Ask which rule is being applied and write the answer down.

Sources for this section (7)
  1. U.S. Const. amend. I — Freedom of speech and of the press
  2. Perry Ed. Assn. v. Perry Local Educators' Assn., 460 U.S. 37 (1983) — Government property is sorted into public, designated, and nonpublic forums
  3. 41 C.F.R. 102-74.420 — Photography in federal buildings for news, advertising, or commercial purposes
  4. 39 C.F.R. 232.1 — Conduct on postal property, including when photography is allowed in a lobby
  5. City of Houston v. Hill, 482 U.S. 451 (1987) — Speech that annoys or challenges police is protected, and cannot be criminalised for that alone
  6. ORC 2921.31 — Obstructing official business
  7. Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (1968) — Investigative stops require reasonable suspicion

Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Talk to a licensed Ohio attorney about your situation.

MyRightz is legal education, not legal advice. Nothing here creates an attorney client relationship. For your specific situation talk to a licensed Ohio attorney.

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