A Sydney, Australia lawyer, told me very recently that it is an offence to photograph someone without their permission,
If that were the case the news media would be without photos and video a great deal of the time!!!
Have you seen all those photos outside of court with people trying to hide their face?
In a public place, where there is no expectation of privacy it is not illegal. In a public place where there is an expectation of privacy e.g. public toilet, change rooms at public pool, it can be illegal. In a private place it is generally illegal but even this has limits. So a rock star wedding outdoors on a private estate, media hire a helicopter to shoot photos, is technically illegal but they get very good lawyers to argue "public interest" and say there was no attempt to cover up the function etc.
If this stuff was absolute then you would not need courts to decide. That does not mean that there are not some strong precedents and laws in place.
PS I am talking Australian rules here.
Right, you didn't use the word "crime", but "illegal", still means against the law, and contrary to a contract is not the same as being a violation of the law.
For goodness sake, I meant illegal in the literal sense, without legal authority. Go and see Cirque de Soleil and try taking a photo on their private property and argue the difference with them.