Alaska Photography Laws

This post attempts to highlight Alaska laws that may be relevant to photographers (please read disclaimer below).  It is part of my ongoing effort to catalog the various state laws relating to photography.  You can see more on the main photography laws page.  If you are aware of other significant Alaska statutes or cases that relate to photographers’ rights or duties, please use the contact form to pass them along.

The only relevant photography prohibitions that I can find for Alaska is a statute that is somewhat similar to federal child pornography laws.

The statute (reproduced below) basically prohibits the photographing any private parts of a child under the age of 16.

The prohibition is limited to places where the kids have a reasonable expectation of privacy.  For example, a water park (does it get warm enough to swim in Alaska?) with toddlers running around without their swim suits on would not meet the elements of the statute.  A bathroom with some creep hiding a camera in the wall would violate the statute.

Additionally, a parent or guardian can clearly give consent to photograph a kid (say of a naked baby portrait that parents want for the cuteness factor) without violating the law.

There are also exceptions for law enforcement surveillance.

This is clearly a fair law for photographers and one that is clearly intended to protect children from sexual predators.  The complete text of the statute is below.

Alaska Statutes – Section 11.61.123.: Indecent viewing or photography.

(a) A person commits the crime of indecent viewing or photography if, in the state, the person knowingly views, or produces a picture of, the private exposure of the genitals, anus, or female breast of another person and the view or production is without the knowledge or consent of

(1) the parent or guardian of the person viewed, or who is shown in the picture, if the person who is viewed or shown is under 16 years of age; and

(2) the person viewed or shown in the picture, if the person viewed or shown is at least 13 years of age.

(b) Each viewing of a person, and each production of a picture of a person, whose genitals, anus, or female breast are viewed or are shown in a picture constitutes a separate violation of this section.

(c) This section does not apply to viewing or photography conducted by a law enforcement agency for a law enforcement purpose.

(d) In a prosecution under this section, it is an affirmative defense that the viewing or photography was conducted as a security surveillance system, notice of the viewing or photography was posted, and any viewing or use of pictures produced is done only in the interest of crime prevention or prosecution.

(e) In this section,

(1) “picture” means a film, photograph, negative, slide, book, newspaper, or magazine, whether in print, electronic, magnetic, or digital format; and

(2) “private exposure” means that a person has exposed the person’s body or part of the body in a place, and under circumstances, that the person reasonably believed would not result in the person’s body or body parts being (A) viewed by the defendant; or (B) produced in a picture; “private exposure” does not include the exposure of a person’s body or body parts in a law enforcement facility, correctional facility, designated treatment facility, or a juvenile detention facility; in this paragraph, “correctional facility” has the meaning given in AS 33.30.901, “designated treatment facility” has the meaning given in AS 47.30.915, and “juvenile detention facility” has the meaning given in AS 47.12.990.

(f) Indecent viewing or photography is a

(1) class C felony if the person viewed or shown in a picture was, at the time of the viewing or production of the picture, a minor;

(2) class A misdemeanor if the person viewed or shown in a picture was, at the time of the viewing or production of the picture, an adult.

The materials offered on and through this website are provided for informational purposes only, and are believed to be accurate, but are not intended to be and should not be considered or relied upon as legal advice regarding any specific topic or matter. Further, the information contained herein does not reflect the legal opinions of Photography Bay or its authors and is not intended to be a solicitation or to render legal advice. If you think you have a legal issue regarding photography or your rights as a photographer, seek the advice of an experienced licensed attorney in the jurisdiction in which you live.