What pictures are acceptable to take and which ones violate privacy rights? This is a delicate balancing act that has caused a great deal of trouble for me. I spend a great deal of time photographing but also find myself uncomfortable with that I am doing.

I tend to lean towards the conservative side avoiding photographing the following:

• Houses and private property except for streetscapes and prominent buildings in significant towns or villages.
• Farms except for rolling landscapes that are devoid of buildings and livestock.
• Anything to do with people, except close friends.
• Livestock of any sorts.

It is difficult to avoid those things, particularly when they add such beauty to the landscape. There have been many a beautiful barn, a pasture, or a rural homestead that ought to be photographed. I am polarized by this question: do you want some stranger taking pictures of your beef cattle? I certainly don't want people shooting lots of pictures around my house.

The flip side is that a cow grazing along a road is a public image. Driving or walking by that field at that particular time you will see that particular cow. At worst, your camera is preserving an image to be viewed at another time. You are simply transporting your viewers to that farm to see that picture. Similarly, a picture containing cars with their license plates showing is no different.

My desire to get better photos that are more creative seems to suggest I take a new doctrine that is far less limited:

• Photography is generally acceptable as long as it's taken from public lands or roads.
• The object being photographed is being photographed for aesthetic or political value and not to promote or demote the cause of a specific landowner.
• It does not evoke a reaction from the landowner, such as the owner coming out and waving his shotgun in your face.
• People photographs are generally anonymous to who they are taken off, and instead should represent a stereotypical personality of an area.

That will allow me to get more pictures of interesting houses, barns, and livestock. Such a limited definition of acceptable use is well within the law and protects the privacy rights of landowners. People should have the right to run their farm or homestead as they please, but their publicly viewable areas are fair game for documentation and discussion.