I have been taking pictures for about 3 years. I have been harassed, but lately 2 things have helped me. One is that I usually ask and tell them the pictures are for educational purposes. Two, is when I go to a job location as an inspector, I use that as my reason for taking pictures. I am known as the inspector with the camera, it does help. One time for a fair, if it wasn't for the pictures I took, I would have had a hard time convincing some of how bad the situation was.
The plus side to all of this is when I use the pictures for classes/seminars. They have a big impact - some pictures I use for humor, they work very well.
Pictures are here to stay, so guys will have to get used to it. I generally find most are not unhappy about it, as they do good work!!!
Pierre