BLOG: When Winona Ryder is filming in Toronto’s Union Station – I’m shooting. IT’S NEWS.

Sometimes it can be a battle to get a good shot.

Winona Ryder was just filming her new movie When Love Is Not Enough: The Lois Wilson Story in Toronto’s historic Union station. I actually only stumbled upon the set because I was traveling through the train station on the way to another assignment.

I knew the movie was filming in town, and when I saw Winona and the period costumes in the train station I figured it would make for some nice news pictures.

Now, to say that movie production people generally hate paparazzi type photography around their sets would be an understatement (unless maybe, your Gossip Girl.) When it became clear they would just try and block any of my attempts to get a clean shot of Winona – I decided to shoot video instead, figuring it would probably turn out more interesting.

Yup, that’s me in the video stating my case to a police officer of why I am shooting – even while they are asking me not to.

You may wonder, why didn’t I immediately leave? Why after repeated requests by the movie crew to not take shots, did I still?

Simply put. It’s news people.

It’s news I believe the public is entitled to know about, and I feel I’m not invading any ones privacy or doing anything wrong as a news photographer. Should people really be able to pick and choose what news is fit to be reported or not? (The reason I am not being kicked out of the train station, or being demanded to leave by the police officers present is because THEY ALSO KNOW legally, I am well within my rights to take pictures and report this news.)

I would be the first one to admit there is a breed of celebrity photographers that do cross a line into invading an individuals right to privacy – and yes, I think even celebrities have privacy rights too. I personally cringe when I see shots of celebrity moms picking up their kids from school. I feel that stuff should be off limits and I have consciously made the decision to never shoot “news” like that.

But the filming of a period-piece movie with a Hollywood star in a public train station? Puh-lease… I’m blasting.

Of course, after I clearly saw they would devote significant manpower and energy to prevent me from getting photos. I left. Really, the last thing I want to do is disrupt a movie production. But I can’t see how it’s such a big deal to get some clean shots of Winona on set? I actually think the movie production peeps are looking at the situation all wrong. They should be enabling the celebrity photographers that want to shoot their movie – which can only lead to further stories in the press (not like Winona can’t use a little buzz in the celebrity press, eh?)

For more thoughts on the difficulties of shooting Winona, AND ACTUAL PICTURES OF HER ON SET visit celebrity photographer John Kennedy’s PopGoesTheNews.com who certainly fared better than me on the day (but also, not without a battle.)