London's National Gallery Is Latest To Ban Selfie Sticks

We've seen some instances of galleries banning the use of selfie sticks, and now the National Gallery in London has decided to join them, making the decision to ban camera monopods due to a variety of reasons, not the least being that you might accidentally jab someone (or something) with it. The gallery already banned the use of tripods, and though it was originally lax when it came to the use of "selfie sticks", it has decided to include them in the tripod ban.

The reason the selfie sticks — which allow users to extend their smartphones farther away from their body for more angles from which to shoot — were banned are two-fold. One one hand, the use of selfie sticks poses a risk to the items in the museum, which it is aiming to protect from damage (which could, for example, happen if a selfie stick scratches or bumps into a display).

The other reason is because those using the sticks aren't always courteous when it comes to other museum visitors. It can be hard to enjoy the artwork when people are jutting their phone as close as possible to it using extension poles for better pictures. This has led to complaints, and not only at the National Gallery.

The British Museum hasn't yet banned the use of selfie sticks, but is considering their usage, according to the BBC. Many visitors to the National Gallery, meanwhile, have been receptive to the change, citing annoyance at monopod usage. It's likely we'll be seeing other places following with similar bans.

SOURCE: BBC