First time i heard that no photography is allow onboard. I have took some photos Eg: meals, skyline, sunrise and even has asked the stewardess to take a photo of me and my wife before. No problem. Maybe im lucky
That's cos you're taking pictures of things which serve as personal keepsake or memories.
But if you look at the pics that whizzard took, they are of SQ gals. I am sure the steward saw him pointing his cam at the gals or perhaps what he thought to be interior of the airplane. Of course, from a photography point of view, you can give 101 reasons: I'm just testing my cam's focusing ability; I just bought a new 35mm lens and I can't wait to test it out, etc etc.
But should the steward give him the benefit of the doubt, considering that there are perhaps safety regulations (or even modesty of the stewardess) to note also?
Just because the airline allows some photography to happen inside the cabin doesn't mean one will have the free will to do what he or she likes. Imagine, you take out your tripod, place it along the aisle, and expect the steward not to stop you? Are you going to tell him: Photography is allowed so you can't stop me! Of course not! You must use some common sense and discretion.
Anyway, I think it's rude also. Other than security reasons, there is a strong line to be drawn where the personal space of the stewardesses and other passengers is concerned. How would you like if another passenger points his lens at you and then tell you, "So what? Photographer is allowed! I can take a pic of you."
To whizzard:
In life, you can kick a fuss out of everything. You can assert your rights and bitch about every minor incident in life that doesn't go your way. Aren't we Singaporeans so good in that? But why do that?
You need to learn that there are rules to follow in life. Sometimes we hate the rules. Don't we hate certain things in Singapore but we can't change? As photographers, you must respect rules. Talking about that, I hate it when clearly it is said that no photography is allowed and damn, some dim wits will still pop that flash in the dark!
To me, this is a straight forward case. Your actions do not imply you are taking pics just for your own personal keepsake. you should count yourself lucky the steward did not ask you to show him what images you had been taking. If I were you, I'd be damn embarrassed and you'd be hard pressed to come up with a darn good reason why those images contain the stewardess' faces. What would you tell them, Whizzard? It's a personal project? Would they have believed you? You can justify all you want, but the one to lose out will be you.
As many have said here, live and let live. I don't think you have a winning case. And please... if you're adamant on trying to repeat what you're doing, I suggest you take a step back and analyze the whole matter again before you get into trouble or become a hated trouble-maker.
(I don't think the analogy you give about the caviar holds here. Your case is different. I'm not sure what tone the steward used on you, but perhaps he was only being quick to stop an action which he deemed not appropriate -- someone taking pics discreetly at the interior or his fellow female colleagues, and hence might sound a tad stern.)