As somebody whose social life was changed beyond all recognition (ok so it changed from maybe 3rd gear to OVERDRIVE) by being spotted on DSI, I find it rather vexing that Fabric now has a 'no photo' policy.

What's going on? Somebody on DSI must know somebody at Fabric who can explain this madness, surely?

Answers on a thread....!

yeah - is those nights it is really packed, full of idiots and you spend all night sat down wondering why you bothered!!

They have nice big posters on birthday nights though :)

Personally, and also speaking for many others on the staff here, I do not understand the constant need to photograph every moment. Everyone has a right to privacy. Enjoyment is not amplified by having a photographic record of it, memories work better if they are in your head and are in context. Fabric is a nightclub, people come here to dance and have fun, other peoples enjoyment can be ruined by having flashes going off in their eyes constantly.

Sorry but I agree with this... I don't blame them at all. It's their club, it's their music policy, they deliver excellent music and djs and sound systems and if they don't want cameras in and they say it's so the clubbers and DJs can better their own enjoyment, then rock on. I personally don't want to be posing for photos when i'm rocking away on the dancefloor to richie hawtin in a couple of weeks.

and yes, fabric just celebrated their birthday in October. It was meant to be amazing.

just to clarify, the Arches in Glasgow has a similar policy, both for music and for cameras. They let certain people in to take photos, either for the DJs themselves, the promotion, orfor DSI photographers (about 1 0r 2) who have proven to be good photographers in the past.

If Fabric did something like this, and the people weren't stopping in the middle of the dancefloor to pose for a picture, then i think it would be brilliant and i think Fabric should allow things like this.

but i also think DSI needs to take it up with fabric themselves, instead of just random clubbers.

that's all.

yeah i also can relate to what they are saying. after all they are only protecting the clubs', artists and patrons best interests.

i believe fabric do allow photographers but you have to apply/request on a per night basis and probably have good reason

I agree with Toxic...every club is entitled to create their own environment and how boring would it be if all clubs were the same! Fabric has always been completely focussed on the music...sometimes to the detrimental effect of a selection of clubbers...hence this thread.
Fabric are purists and that is the club they, and clearly a lot of other people, want.
BTW have you also noticed that they do not allow any advertising within the club and also do not allow anyone to sponsor any of the nights....unlike Ministry and for example their Bacardi B Bar.
Maybe the photo policy makes more sense if you put it into this context? Advertising and consumerism are everywhere and Fabric is against that...some may feel that's a good thing..
TvP x

Also quite nice to know you won't be unwittingly captured on camera when you're

a) looking 'worse for wear'; or
b) up to mischief


Not that I ever am, of course...

I agree that it's their club - their rules, but surely if a group of friends want to take pictures of eachother for whatever reason, they should be allowed?
I agree that people shouldn't be allowed to waltz around taking pictures of random people they don't know, but pictures help you remember your night so much better. You must agree with me on that, because that's what this site is all about!
Imagine if no clubs let you take pictures.. This site wouldn't be half as good as it is, and none of you would have any pictures to put up on your profile!

Fair play to them I say. I've never been to Fabric myself but I heard nothing but good things about it so they must be doing something right. The fact that they don't allow photography doesn't seem to be harming their reputation, are any of you not go there because they won't allow you to take pictures of your night out? It would be cool if they allowed 1 or 2 of DSI's top spotters in on occasions as it would not doubt be good publicity but you may well notice a change in the place if you have 20 people running around taking snaps. I'm not saying spotters ruin a night out (obviously cos I'm one myself!) and yes pictures of a night out are brilliant the morning after to help reminisce over but like the old saying goes:

"If it ain't broke don't fix it"

Fabric are getting it right with the way they run things at the moment so let em get on with it I say. There's plenty of other good nights out to be enjoyed where you can snap away freely.

"the Arches in Glasgow has a similar policy"

Oops! I had better take myself off the spotters' list for Saturday then!

althought I think it's a step too far to completely ban cameras I do agree with the press officer when she says:
"I do not understand the constant need to photograph every moment"
With the invention of camera phones and the reduction in price of digital cameras the whole world seems to be far too 'click-happy'. If people still had to develop their films at the end of each night I think they would be a lot more careful about how many times they took a picture and also the quality of pics that were taken. Often after an event a spotter will post 100-200 pics, many of the same thing or rubbish quality. If they had had to take that many rolls of film to Boots and pay for all those prints I think they would have taken less in the first place.

Dont get me wrong, I love photos. Some of the best photos I have are from DSI spotters but this constant need to click away can get very frustating at times.

I'm in total agreement with Toxic, TvP and Thing-2 as well.

I've been to a few events lately where the photo taking was actually getting quite intrusive, and the quality and number of pics for some events is becoming a bit of a joke.

Fabric is what it is, and I have a lot of respect for their stance, on this and a few other issues.

Fair enough that it's their policy, but why has it taken such a lot of requests and work to get someone to actually say this? That's what gets me. Any policy (door or otherwise) should be easily accessible to people that enquire & clearly explained in plain language. Simple business etiquette!

Exactly! No wonder the policy is being abused.

there are actually signs all over the place in fabric stating its prohibited. usually at the entry and cashier

go for the music, guys... if you want to take pics, there are plenty of other opportunities in London.

Agreed Tox!

I'd just like to go back to Fabric's reply for a moment. The thing that pee's me off about it is the level of evasiveness. They don't actually give an official reason why they have a no photos policy, just the opinion of staff members, which isn't the same thing. Kinda makes them seem a bit up themselves. I'd still like to know why they have that policy.

The impression I got was that they didn't want to atmosphere changed (ruined?) by having people going around taking pics all night long and that they just want people in there to concentrate on and appreciate the music.

I also get the feeling that it may be a bit of a ploy to keep people interested. Think about it, when do people most feel the urge or get the most curious about something? When there is little or no info about it apart from gossip and rumours. Okay maybe it's not to that level cos Fabric is pretty famous but the fact that there are little or no pics keeps an air of mystery about the place and potentially makes thos who haven't been want to go even more just so they can see it for themselves.I'm not saying that's the sole reason at all but it may be part of it.

That seems like a good explanation..
Perhaps they don't want everyone to see how bloody packed it is, and decide not to go?