Tripod Permissions

Planning to travel to Orccha and Khajuraho next month. I wanted to know if a tripod is allowed there ? If not how can i take permission for that ?

I went to Khajuraho in February, with a gorilla pod, and was not allowed to take it into either the eastern or western temple complex.

I do not know of any means to obtain permission.

Tripod is not allowed in any monument under the control of ASI. For using one, a prior approval in writing must be obtained from its regional office which has control over that particular monument.

Biman is correct that one can in theory get permission to use a tripod or monopod at ASI sites in Inida. In practice it's more difficult.

Have you reviewed this thread?
tripods in india

Hi!

I plan to visit Northen India this December. I intend to use my Canon 550D camera both for shooting movies and pictures. Usualy, I don't use tripods, which, I know that are not allowed in Taj Mahal and other places under ASI. What I would like to know, is whether iI can use in such places a so called DSLR Rig with Follow Focus together with my camera. Would somebody will be so kind and help me with an answer? Thanks.

source

As you know, Prakaant has answered this on another thread. I post his answer here to tidy things up. Also to agree with him. The guards at these sites seem to have one rule and one rule only: nothing attached the camera may touch the ground (nor the top of a wall, nor any other hair-splitting).

I was very nearly beaten with a lathi stick by a guard at Khanuraho when I tried to screw my camera onto the top of a walking staff as a monopod. I had reasoned that tripods were forbidden because the legs might trip some other tourist, which would not happen with a monopod. Nothing of the sort – I had violated the cardinal rule and had some appurtenance attached to the camera and touching the ground.

It has not been made clear to me why this is so fundamentally evil. In my blacker moods I suspect ASI is just consumed with the a paranoid notion that someone might somehow actually take a good and stable picture on site, while they want to reserve that privilege to themselves. Why, I can't imagine, as they don't seem to be in the business of retailing photos. And I've never been challenged for actually resting the camera on something inherently stable, like a wall, and taking a steady picture.

But ASI have their whims. They don't permit anyone to take a picture of any archaeological site where work is going on, and they can be quite ferocious about this. But I have never, ever been able to get anyone in charge to explain to me what's wrong with it, only that there is a rule. Sometimes, in fact, I worry a little bit about a country where the norm is mindless adherence to arbitrary rules, in the absence of any understanding of nor even interest in why such an arbitrary rule shall have been enunciated.

If you think for sometime, you'll understand the reasons for not allowing cameras on an active archeology site.

I was able to take pictures of ASI guys ruining temple of Ta Prohm in Cambodia. ASI were helping Combodian by removing tress growing through the cracks and putting the building together with gray cement mix.

In fact I have thought for some time and haven't come up with a satisfactory explanation.

The only approximation I've made is that they're protecting their right to publish their work in some learned journal. But surely you know that that's one of the scandals of the archaeology world – the excavation is done but the archaeologists never get around to publishing their findings.

Otherwise, I can think of nothing except that they're worried about your getting in the way. But I've had officials charge across tens and hundreds of meters from where they're actually digging to yell at me for aiming the camera in altogether another direction.

So if you could kindly answer my question and tell me the real reason, I'd appreciate it. Thanks.

One of the reasons could be that your pictures can be evidence of ALL things found. Now if there was no such evidence ...
Other reason might be that they may use unscientific methods and would not like proof of the same. Restoration is more susceptible to this one, as someone earlier said about using grey cement to patch up cracks.

The only thing I can definitely say about archeologists, is that they are the best professional a woman could have for a husband. For, I believe, the older she gets, the more interested he becomes in her. ( asuuming professional dedication, of course)

There are two separate issues here - the matter that http://asi.nic.in/asi_faq_photography.asp

and taking photographs at all.

f/8 1/250sec ISO-100 82mm

ASI lives in a dinosaurs world .. there is no need of a tripod or a monopod to take a professional looking picture. With the advent of sensors capable of handling noise and lens/camera stabilization technology the whole argument of not being able to take professional pictures without tripods stands redundant.. ASI need to revisit whats been instituted years back and come up something more sensible and relevant. but I guess they will leave these rules alone for the benefit of local enforcers. One should also check the rules relating to use of flash, which I find dumb and ludicrous.

Maybe. I've done a handful of photography courses, and the professionals presenting these would take every shot with a tripod if they could. (and with a remote shutter release).

Simple really - if you want maximum sharpness, maximum depth of field, capture quality - ie, low ISO speeds - perfect framing, night shots, time exposures, and making you stop to look at what you're photographing - then a tripod is the only option.

I found this guideline document on the asi website, that lays out the rules, but does not speak of the reasoning for those rules.

Those guidelines and rules are from 1959. I doubt if they ever revisited them in last 54 years.