Amateur photographer taking pictures of stranger without consent?

It depends which country you are in, but generally in the Western world you can take shots of people in a public place without asking their permission. You do NOT need a model release form if you are using that image for; self-promotion of your work, whether in an online gallery or an actual one, OR editorial purposes (publishing in a newspaper or magazine) You only need a model release if you are using the persons image for commercial purposes - that means to sell a product (eg a pair of jeans). You also need to make sure that you do not imply anything untrue about a person portrayed in your image (for example, photographing a man outside a massage parlour & implying he was a customer when he wasn't) - that would leave you open to being sued for defamation. Do be aware though that certain places which appear to be public are in fact private (shopping malls, train stations, for example) - there the landowner can make whatever rules they like about whether photography is permitted or not.

It is perfectly legal to photograph anyone in any public place, or in any private place that allows cameras without the subject's permission. You also automatically own the copyright on any photograph you make. The only exceptions would be if you went in to a museum and photographed a painting, creating a reproduction. You would obviously not own the copyright of the reproduction. The trick is how you are allowed to sell the image afterwards. The First Amendment in the U.S. protects your right to sell any image of a person you create provided the image is being used for editorial purposes. That would include fine art prints, self promotion items, and news articles in newspapers, magazines, and online. You cannot use a person's likeness to advertise a product or service without their consent.

You should have a model release if you are going to use the images for any self promotion or paid commercial use. If you don't have one, the images of the single subjects you wish to shoot may come back to haunt you later on. A model release is a must in the pro photojournalistic world like copyright serves your final work.You want to be covered against any legal action down the road. Once they sign off...you're in the clear to use the images any way you wish. Good luck!

The use of and need for model release forms does vary from dominion to dominion. Certainly here in the UK it's a little more relaxed than it is for you guys in the USA, but it's still a good idea. There are ways you can mitigate the issue, the most cost effective is to approach your subject after the image has been taken, talk to them, ask for their permission, and offer them a copy of the image. I can only recall one time in recent years that someone has gone up the wall at me, and that was inside a venue that informed it's audiences that as a part of the performance they may be photographed or videoed and that their acceptance of this was required prior to entry for the performance.