Filming a historical/cultural site

Remember that there are special requirements that apply whenever people
whose images you collected can be identified. Keep in mind that sometimes it
may be possible to identify people also from the context – location, house
numbers, car registration numbers, time of day, etc.

Lawfulness, fairness, transparency: Your collection and
processing of personal data must be lawful, based on one of the options laid
down by EU law.  It must be fair, meaning that it must not cause any harm
to the individuals. It must also be transparent – people must know if their
images have been captured, by whom and why.

Purpose limitation: People have the right to know exactly
for what purpose their data is collected and, once you inform them of the
reason (capturing the architecture, stock images, promotion of a tourist
site), you cannot use their data for a different incompatible purpose (e.g.
profiling visitors and locals) without informing them again and ensuring your
actions are lawful (see above).

Data minimisation: You should collect as little personal
data as possible to achieve your legitimate goals. Focus on the sites rather
than the people.

Storage limitation: You should not keep the footage of
people in a manner that would allow their identification for longer than
necessary for achieving your planned purpose . If you will use the images on a
stock image platform and there are people captured in them, ensure that you
use the appropriate safeguards, e.g. anonymisation techniques.

Accountability: Remember that if you collect personal data
and process it, then you will be accountable if you don’t follow the relevant
data protection laws.

TIPS - Try and inform persons of the drone usage, the
time of its operation, its purpose and intended use, as well as your contact
information. You can do this, for example, through signs at the entrance of
the historical sites on the specific day for tourists or visitors and
through signs or announcements in local media for those living in the area.
Answer questions from anyone who asks what you are doing with your drone. If
people contact you and ask you to delete footage of them, you should do so.

TIPS - Consider if less intrusive technology could
likely be used to capture the images of the site. If you insist on using a
drone’s perspective, consider carefully when and how to capture these
images, so as to minimise any harm to peoples privacy, e.g. by considering
the time of day when to capture the footage.

TIPS – Appreciate the sensitivity of a place of worship
if it is in use. If you want to take footage of it, consider doing this at
times when there are no religious activities going on inside.  On the
other hand, if this is a specific moment you wish to film, make sure you
carefully consider how to inform worshippers, ask for their permission and
minimise the negative impact on their privacy.

TIPS – Collect the minimum amount of personal data
possible. Consider flying at a higher altitude to ensure less focussed data
is collected. This can make the identification of individuals more difficult
and can help minimise the impact of your activities on their privacy.
Remember to always observe the maximum allowed flight
altitude.

TIPS - Do not collect data in the private domain without
the explicit agreement of the individuals concerned, e.g., image of a person
taken in the privacy of their nearby home—even if the photograph (using the
drone) is taken at a high altitude.

TIPS - Consider taking steps such as blurring of the
images of people as soon as possible to minimise the amount of personal data
collected.

TIPS – Be aware who the data controller and the data
processor is in this case, especially if you are carrying out this activity
together with another company (e.g the stock image platform). Remember that
data controllers and data processors are subject to various legal
obligations in the EU.

TIPS - Store any personal data collected in a secure
manner, and ensure that the third party (the stock images platform) also
stores data securely.