No Competition

Yesterday as I was walking home from a wonderful lunch meeting with Mondo discussing life, business and photography I deeked into the LCBO on St. Clair West. 

As you should already know, I have my S2 back so I’m taking pictures left, right, and centre, like the photoholic I am.  So, when I saw the ad for the “Amateur Photo Contest” stuck to the counter at the LCBO, I did what any photographer would do,  I whipped out my camera and took a picture.

Of course, since I’d been walking in the rain the white balance was off… and as I adjusted the camera to take a legible photo an LCBO employee comes up to me and and said

“You can’t take photos in here. Are you from head office?”

“No.  I just want the information on this photography contest. Do you have a print copy of this info I can take with me? That’s all I was photographing”

“You can’t take pictures of anything unless you are from head office. I’m going to talk to the manager….” 

<hunh!??!?> I think, I’m just photographic the ad. As she walks away, leaving me and my camera standing by the thing I want to photograph, the other cashier leans over, “they don’t even let us photograph each other in the staff room”.

The first woman returns “No photographs of anything, ever. Unless you are from head office. But I can give you the phone number of head office.”

I couldn’t stop myself from saying:  “So you are having a photography contest, but you won’t let me photograph the ad to promote your photography contest… doesn’t that sound odd to you?”

The response?  “Here’s the phone number of head office.  They should be able to help you.”

No, I really don’t think they will be able to help me. Unless of course they want to hire me.  ARGH!

A couple of side notes (bottom notes?)

• You can get more info on the contest at the LCBO website.  I can’t link directly because it’s embedded in some flash.
• I’ve gotten lots of hits (before this post) about this contest.  It seems the info is hard to find… but people seem to be commenting on it, including Michael Dines’ letter to  & response from the LCBO, and Josh’s comment on Radiant Vista that the LCBO owns the photos lock stock and barrel world wide, in perpetuity.