Photographer wants DuPage forest district to ease $200 daily permit fee

Sometimes, Warrenville-based photographer Sheila Rutledge adds a special touch to her portraits.

Instead of shooting students' school pictures, family photos or other sessions strictly in her studio, Rutledge will take clients to scenic locations such as St. James Farm in Warrenville — just a few doors away from her home studio.

But while the earthy backdrop is a bonus for clients, Rutledge said it's a blow to her business because the DuPage County Forest Preserve District charges $200 a day for any commercial photographer or videographer shooting on district grounds.

“The median income for a photographer is $28,000 per year, so this is exorbitant,” she said.

Forest preserve officials say they want to discourage people from profiting off public space, whether it's a professional photographer or a mobile food vendor.

“You don't want to stop people from taking beautiful pictures, but you also don't want (the forest preserve) to become a place of business,” spokesman Bill Weidner said.

Since 2010, Rutledge received two warnings and one ticket for photographing clients without a permit. She challenged her ticket last year in court and it was thrown out. But Rutledge said her violations were three of about a dozen issued in the past five years, adding she worries the ordinance is not consistently enforced.

“The first time I addressed the board, I told them it would be great even if they would enforce this permit, since there are so many (amateurs) out there with a camera watering down our business,” Rutledge said. “I'm a registered business in the community.”

Forest preserve officials said the ordinance is difficult to enforce, however, and police are more concerned with patrolling for safety concerns throughout the district's 26,000 acres.

“Violations are generally random and it's kind of a rouge situation, so law enforcement officers deal with those on a case-by-case basis,” Weidner said. “Officers will ticket if they are there and they see the violation, or if they get a complaint.”

Ultimately, Rutledge said she wants the district to revise the ordinance so it's affordable for small businesses like hers. She hopes officials will consider a policy similar to the Lake County Forest Preserve District, which charges $100 a day for commercial photography, but only $50 more for an unlimited annual permit, according to the district's website.

Currently in DuPage, the $200 daily fee applies not only to portrait photographers, but to “the full gamut of commercial photography,” said Weidner. That means major movie studios or, for example, a giant pharmaceutical company filming a commercial would pay the same fee as someone like Rutledge.

The permit also does not have a rain provision, so if weather is bad a photographer is out of luck and money.

“What I'm getting this permit for is highly dependent on good weather,” Rutledge said.

Since Rutledge started bringing her concerns to the board last year, officials agreed to review the ordinance earlier this year. But this fall, they could not agree on terms and decided to leave the current rules and fees in place.

Now Weidner said officials are again considering a revised ordinance that is expected to pass in early 2012, but he could not offer details on proposed changes.