Wall
Also Donaldo, you are correct in that, in a public place, the general population is fair game for photographs. Posting your submittal this week doesn't violate any laws or ethics, I wouldn't give it a second thought.
Donaldo, I hope you didn't take offense at my comments, I am trying to help. I've tried to answer your question under your submittal. Also, so as not to disclose who the photographer is until the end of the contest week, members prefer you use your photo page to ask for clarification rather than a person's wall, which discloses your name.
regardless, I really like your photo submitted this week, and this isssue is one that perplexes me as well. My general guide is to not show faces or they are not a key part of the image, unless I plan to not share publicly.
HI Donaldo, I agree with Cali on this issue. I ran across some legality info a while back and will see if i can find it again.
If a person is in a "public place" they are fair game unless they tell you not to take their picture. Children are a different story depending on what state you live in and how the law is interpretted. On a sight like this, if you were to take a picture of a child wihout the parent knowing, it could create legal issues for the owner of this site if the parent really wanted to make a case. It's safer just not to deal with promoting photos of children unless you have a good lawyer. If you had a child, imagine what you'd think/fell if you saw a photo of your kid posted online without your permission.
Please weigh in on this topic in the community forums... http://www.greatphotorace.com/community/thread/307/Reputation-Points---We-revisit-how-they-are-calculated-IMHO