Cape Byron Lighthouse Extortion?
By Sue Clark on Aug 4, 2008 in Opinion 
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Lighthouse Photo Fee Has Brides Angry
It appears some Australian brides are not taking too kindly to being charged $55 to have their special day photographed at the Cape Byron Lighthouse, even if it means exclusive use of the lighthouse for two hours, without another person to interfere. A story at the Goldcoast.com.au site claims that upset brides are breaking their silence over the NSW National Park Service’s longtime policy of charging brides for having their photographs done at the picturesque Cape Byron. This is on top of the $450 they already have paid for renting the site for their wedding.
The photo permit must be applied for in advance, and only one bride is allowed at a time on the site. Brides that show up without a permit are turned away, or they have to pay cash on the spot. Or at the least, have to leave their details so they can be billed later. Anyone failing to comply with the law risks being fined $500.
So What’s The Problem?
Yes, we know brides tend to be tense on their wedding day, but I think calling it extortion is a little too much. And yet, the story reports that there have been screaming matches. One complaining bride, Serena Armstrong, says she only found out about the permit when she was barred from entering the lighthouse reserve entrance. She said she was not warned of the photo permit and her New Zealand photographer had no way of knowing about it prior to the day.
“I had no idea I had to get a permit. I just assumed you could have a photo taken in a public place for free,” she said. “It was a magic day and everything about the wedding was perfect except for the photo issue at the lighthouse. They told me I could only come if I paid up on the spot but I was clearly in a wedding dress and didn’t have any cash on me. We had to leave without our photos and it was very upsetting but I refused to let it spoil my big day.”
Ms. Armstrong and her husband claimed they’d already paid the $450, and were not informed of the extra charge.
In Defense of the Lighthouse Policy
National Parks area manager Sue Walker defends the policy and says the fees are used to maintain the reserve, improve visitor facilities and keep overcrowding down. Ms. Walker stated competition was fierce and brides were known to book in a year in advance to secure their timeslot.
For the money, they get two parking spaces at the light, and exclusive use for two hours. Seems a good deal to me. If you’re paying to have the wedding there, what’s a miniscule amount for the rights to privacy when getting your photos done?
Walker says no one has ever been fined, and most people are alerted to the policy by the local photographers and wedding planners.
“We’ve never had an incident to date and we’ve never had anyone come on the site without a permit,” she said. “Our feedback from brides is that they don’t want other brides crowding near them when they are getting their photos or having their own ceremony.”
So what’s up with Ms. Armstrong-Griffiths? Sounds like she needs to take a chill pill. I see nothing wrong with the policy, and think it would have been great if my local lighthouse had such a one when I got married there. And I imagine a lot of the couples I witnessed getting married as a docentat Pemaquid Point Lighthouse would have gladly paid triple that amount for exclusive usage.
However, A Byron Bay photographer, who did not want to be named, said the system was flawed and he had seen screaming matches between brides, photographers and lighthouse staff. What? Why wreck your day over something as trivial as this? Perhaps if more couples (brides) would remember the reason they chose a lighthouse as their wedding venue, their day would be more like the couple above. Our beacons stand for safety, endurance and bravery, and shouldn’t be witness to spoiled brats.
Photo Credits:
- Cape Byron by MoreThanGolf. Some rights reserved.
- Here She Comes by Locket479. Some rights reserved.
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