WyoFile showcases potentially illegal photos of Wyoming

Did you get a great picture of a bison in front of the mountains this summer?

What about wildflowers? Do you have some landscapes or sunsets from your trips on public land?

Did you ask the Forest Service, BLM or Park Service for permission to take your photograph first? Believe it or not, Wyoming’s new data trespass laws say if you collect such “resource data” from “open land” without permission, and it could be submitted to someone who works for the government, you’re a lawbreaker.

In celebration of Free Speech Week, WyoFile is asking citizen photographers to submit their once-innocent, now-potentially illegal pictures to WyoFile. Join us in showing Wyoming some examples of photography that, despite the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, Wyoming says is illegal now.

Submit your shot for inclusion in WyoFile’s Beautiful but Illegal? Wyoming Photo Gallery. There are just a few ground rules:

• Photographs must have been taken of “open land” in Wyoming — “land outside the exterior boundaries of any incorporated city, town, subdivision … or development.”
• Photographs must have been taken after March 5, 2015, the effective date when Gov. Mead signed Senate File 12 into law.
• Photographs must depict resource data, which Wyoming law defines as “relating to land or land use, including but not limited to data regarding agriculture, minerals, geology, history, cultural artifacts, archeology, air, water, soil, conservation, habitat, vegetation or animal species.”
• Photographs must have been taken on public land without trespassing on private property. WyoFile does not condone or encourage trespassing on private land.
• Photographs must have been taken without first asking permission from the public agency that manages the land.
• Photographs should have a short caption and the way you want your credit to appear.

If you think your picture meets these criteria but shouldn’t be illegal, here’s how to submit it:

— Post on WyoFile’s Facebook page
— or, email to editor@wyofile.com
— or, include in a tweet to @WyoFile with #freespeechwyo

You can also download WyoFile’s free speech logo to use as your Facebook profile image.

For more information on Wyoming’s new data trespass laws (SF 80, enacted on July 1, 2015, and SF 12, enacted on March, 5, 2015) read these WyoFile stories:

Lawsuit challenges constitutionality of data trespass laws, October 2015
Groups sue Wyoming over “data trespassing” law, Sept. 2015
Critics say Wyoming data trespassing law criminalizes science, May 2015
Data trespassing bill is aimed at public lands grazing battle, May 2015
High-stakes suit pits ranchers against water-sampling greens, by E&E,Nov. 2014

Enjoy the Beautiful but Illegal? Wyoming Photo Gallery:

Lake Marie (courtesy Sean Ryan)

A WyoFile reader submitted this photo and caption that shows the kind of image that plaintiffs say could be made illegal by Wyoming’s data trespass laws: “Avoiding cow shit (and hopefully E. coli) while searching for native Colorado cutthroat in Bridger-Teton National Forest.” (Andrew Bennett)

“Had a great time fishing the Ham’s Fork from the walk-in access area this October.” (Daniel Carolan‎)

“Public bad lands.” (Nikki Donahue‎)

(Nikki Donahue‎)

“Prehistoric stone circle (tipi ring) [on BLM land] evidencing use of public lands in earlier time.” (Lawrence Todd)

“Mid-20th Century inscriptions on rock face in the Big Horn Basin,” on BLM land. (Lawrence Todd)

“A recent trip on public lands in Wyoming.” (Andy Beach)

Taken around mid September, ‘outside’ Devils Tower National Monument area. (Glen Boulier‎)

“Just snapped this from Fox Creek Rd 2 weeks ago.” (Dulce Wassil)

“Public land image of some Absaroka Range Mountains.” (DL Jones)

“Cathedral Group, June 2015.” (Matt Bryan)

Medicine Bow National Forest. (Julia Robison‎)

Documenting late summer thunderstorms and fossil snails at Whitehorse Creek Wilderness Study Area, Northern Red Desert. (Julia Stuble)

Grizzly bear near Pahaska. (Jeannie Hunt)

“The Sands, on BLM land north of Rock Springs. August, 2015. (Frank Prevedel)

Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge. (Mike Reinhart)

Grand Teton National Park. (Mike Reinhart)

“Alpine wildflowers with Wind River Peak in the background.” (Steff Kessler, Lander)

“Alpine wildflowers and Wind River Peak.” (Steff Kessler, Lander)

Taken on public land in Wyoming. (Gypsy Cowboy Photography, Hub Whitt, owner)

Taken on public land in Wyoming. (Gypsy Cowboy Photography, Hub Whitt, owner)

“Fall cattle roundup and move near Big Trails, 25 miles south of Ten Sleep in Washakie County, late September 2015. Taken from right of way of Wyo. Hwy 434.” (Dewey Vanderhoff)

“Electric livestock fence meets swinging iron gate on forest service access road leading to cellphone and agency radio towers on Bald Ridge above Chief Joseph Scenic Highway 30 miles NW of Cody. This is a fairly new catch fence to keep publically grazed livestock from getting down into the Clarks Fork Canyon.” (Dewey Vanderhoff)

“Chugwater sandstone rims and buttes in the Hole In The Wall region of the Middle Fork of the Powder River west of Kaycee Wyo., taken from the public access road leading to the Outlaw Cave campground and Ed O. Taylor wildlife preserve in September.” (Dewey Vanderhoff)

“Snapped on descent into Jackson on September 11, 2015, 6:23 pm.” (L.S.)

“Bonnie and Bart enjoy the view at McCullough Peaks.” (Keith Collins)

“Beautiful but Illegal? Might be according to Wyoming law. Picture taken August 2015 of storms over Flaming Gorge.” (Nancy Marshall)

Labor Day in Wyoming (Ashley Collins)

“Watching the Herd.” (Dava Martin)

“Hidden Beauty in the Desert” (Dava Martin)

Grand Teton National Park, taken Sept. 2015 (Ashley Collins)

Southern extent of Medicine Bow Peak over Mirror Lake. Medicine Bow National Forest. (Jeff Phillips)

Southern extent of Medicine Bow Peak. Medicine Bow National Forest. (Jeff Phillips)

“The beauty of Tie Hack.” (Kallie Roberts)

“Just one of around 4,000 frames taken after law took affect. All on public lands and gotten to by public roads.” (Patrick Newell)

Yearling bighorn sheep. Taken on April 7, 2015 on the North Fork of the Shoshone River. (Rob Koelling)

Shell Falls, Bighorn National Forest. “Taken illegally on 08/16/2015 by Matthew Dillon.”

Canoeing at dusk, Leigh Lake, Grand Teton National Park. (Nancy Debevoise)

Mirror Lake, Big Horn National Forest. Captured 8-15-15, by yours truly. (Courtesy Benjamin Roberts)

Temporary cattle tagging (?) operation inside a Red Desert WSA on BLM Land. (Courtesy Amber Wilson)

Documenting beaver activity on USFS land near Boulder Lake, WY- August 2015. (Courtesy Amber Wilson)

Documenting the effects of climate change:dam building, Christina Lake, USFS land, October 17, 2015. (Courtesy Amber Wilson)

On Happy Jack taken on July 21st 2015. Windmill Sunset Picture, painted sky. (Courtesy Ashley Hartman)

Photo of petroglyphs near Torry Lake, Wy. Taken July 7, 2015 without permission of the U.S. Forest Service. Will I go to prison? (Courtesy Bob Caesar)

String Lake, Grand Teton National Park. (Courtesy Nancy Debevoise)

Sunrise on Leigh Lake, Grand Teton National Park. (Courtesy Nancy Debevoise)

Dusk along Grassy Lake Road, John D. Rockefeller Parkway. (Courtesy Nancy Debevoise)

Off Grassy Lake Road, John D. Rockefeller Parkway area. (Nancy Debevoise, Lander Wyo.)

Kearney Reservoir, Big Horn Mountains. (courtesy Roy Holdeman)

This Wyoming vista was submitted via Twitter, from @fordroes.

Wiggins Fork, Shoshone National Forest. (courtesy Ellen Halperin)

This photo taken on Sept. 28, 2015 shows a fenced-in ‘parking area’ on state-owned land near the Bridger-Teton National Forest boundary. “As you can see the so-called parking area (which itself is .1 mile from a road with adequate parking) is full of musk thistle.” (Susan Marsh)

Near White Mountain, from BLM property facing Rock Springs. “I took it to show the polluted sky caused from burning coal. No fires around either.” (Nadine Girouard of Rock Springs)

“Fremont Canyon, taken on Public Land with my Cell Phone.” (Brandon Fuzz Mcnamara)

“Teepee Ring. Taken on Public Land.” (Brandon Fuss Mcnamara)

“You don’t need a water sample to tell you it’s a bad idea to drink untreated surface waters. Even if there was no free range organic beef, there are still elk, deer, moose, bears, etc which poop in Wyoming watersheds.” (Chuck Bryant)

“June 13, 2015. Enjoying a beautiful sunset while camping in Vedauwoo!” (Shannon Mitchell)

“Illegally taken at Half Moon lake… ?” (Courtesy Scott Aldridge‎)

“West Glacier Lake and Browns Peak, Medicine Bow National Forest” ( Jeff Phillips)

“Sunrise and low laying clouds over Lewis Lake and Sugarloaf Mountain. Medicine Bow National Forest.” (Jeff Phillips)

“Mt. Moran. Public Lands data Collection.” (Rod Morrison)

“Public land.” (Courtesy Rod Morrison)

“Public Land.” (Courtesy Rod Morrison)

“Public Road ( lots of Sheep Shit).” (Courtesy Rod Morrison)

“The worse kind of data collection….” (Courtesy Rod Morrison)

“Climate Change data collection…..of the worst kind….” (Courtesy Rod Morrison)

“Taken from the rest area between Muddy Gap and Jeffery City near Split Rock. Wyoming’s vast wide open spaces are a beacon to people seeking quiet solitude.” (photo by Denise Caskey)

Castle Gardens, WY, October 13, 2015. (Courtesy Diane Smith Feather)

Shield pictographs at Castle Gardens, Oct. 13, 2015. (Courtesy Diane Smith Feather)

Alcova reservoir in July 2015. (Courtesy Richard Blanchard)

Little Mountain. (Amber S., Rock Springs, Wyo.)

Clark’s Fork of the Yellowstone River, in Clark’s Fork Canyon, part of the Shoshone National Forest, July 2015. (courtesy Don Hopey)

“Taken on White Mountain on a public dirt road on August 28, 2015, doing the horse loop tour.” (courtesy Hope Jensen)

“R88W T56N Sec 31NW State Trust Land slash and soil pile photo record. October 9 2015. Taken with the intent to monitor state forestry practices.” (courtesy Rob Davidson)

Petroglyph in Wyoming. (courtesy Amanda McClure)

A marmot keeps tabs on a pesky camera toter en route to the Medicine Wheel in May 2015. (courtesy Nadia White)

Lake Hattie nestled in the foothills just outside Laramie, Wyo. (courtesy Tracey Rosenlund)

A drainage in central Wyoming. (Dustin Bleizeffer/WyoFile)

This photo of cattle on reclaimed land at a coal mine was taken from a public road in June 2015. (Dustin Bleizeffer/WyoFile)

A sage grouse is frozen in the headlights on a road through an oilfield on BLM land. (Angus M. Thuermer Jr./WyoFile)

This photo was taken in the Bighorn National Forest in the summer of 2015. (Dustin Bleizeffer/WyoFile)