Photo Piracy

[Doni]

OMG! They changed it! yay!
I sent the 3rd email to the "Administrative Contact" shown on the 'whois aquacon.com' information and got a very fast reply and apology!
Whew~~ I was not looking forward to padding another lawyer's pockets.

I have learned alot. Thanks everyone. I am going to register the copyrights to my photos soon (which apparently helps in ligtigation).... I just need to decide how I want to 'group' them since I have SO many...

 

[BlueCorn]

I just need to decide how I want to 'group' them since I have SO many...

By year is sufficient. Also, the submission process is different for images that have or haven't been published or posted on the net.

 

[Doni]

I was reading the definition of 'published' and it indicates that posting on forums or websites does not constitute 'published'. That only if you 'offer for sale' the photo is it then published.
Is this interpretation correct?

 

[BlueCorn]

I was reading the definition of 'published' and it indicates that posting on forums or websites does not constitute 'published'. That only if you 'offer for sale' the photo is it then published.
Is this interpretation correct?

I have a friend who is also a photographer and happens to be a retired contract lawyer. His recommendation is to treat any online usage of the image a "published." It's a little extra work but worth it in the long run.

Cheers

 

[readmeli]

readmeli thinks our good buddies at aquacon MAY have gotten in deep doo-doo lately for their evil ways and are re-thinking their approach. ;-)

 

[XSharkboyX]

Close.

You cannot file a suit for damages unless the image is registered.

You still own the copyright but you can only demand standard usage rates for the image, as it's used. You can't just make up a figure. That usage figure is based on industry averages and has to do with the size of the image, how it's used and the market reach.

Actually you can.

A few years ago good friend of mine was photographing architecture for a contractor. The contractor wanted 1000 copies of his photo. My buddy gave him the price for the 1000 8x10 prints. The contractor refused to pay the money, took the original and copied them himself.

My buddy filed suit. Long story short, he won. The contractor had to pay for the 1000 prints at the price my buddy demanded. The image was never registered. If it would have been registered, it would have been a 6 figure suit...

 

[BlueCorn]

Actually you can.

A few years ago good friend of mine was photographing architecture for a contractor. The contractor wanted 1000 copies of his photo. My buddy gave him the price for the 1000 8x10 prints. The contractor refused to pay the money, took the original and copied them himself.

My buddy filed suit. Long story short, he won. The contractor had to pay for the 1000 prints at the price my buddy demanded. The image was never registered. If it would have been registered, it would have been a 6 figure suit...

You misunderstood my post.

Yes, you can file suit to recover licensing fees, but not for punitive damages unless the image was registered. If the licensing cost, that you request in your filing isn't inline with industry standard pricing, it'll get tossed out.

 

[XSharkboyX]

You misunderstood my post.

Yes, you can file suit to recover licensing fees, but not for punitive damages unless the image was registered. If the licensing cost, that you request in your filing isn't inline with industry standard pricing, it'll get tossed out.

Oh ok, gotcha. Thanks for clarification.

 

[Doni]

LOL @ READMELI

Thanks Beerguy. Very helpful information!

 

[Doni]

D90 - Image Comments

D90 - Image Comments

In addition to registering them I also learned from someone here at work that I can set my Nikon D90 to automatically post "Image Comments" up to 36 characters to every photo.
Something like "copyright 2011 name number".
The embedded comments and a watermark might deter most honest folks?

 

[BlueCorn]

In addition to registering them I also learned from someone here at work that I can set my Nikon D90 to automatically post "Image Comments" up to 36 characters to every photo.
Something like "copyright 2011 name number" should help aslo.
The embedded comments and a watermark might deter most honest folks?

Yes, most DSLRs will allow that.

It is worth doing and can be helpful. There is a piece of legislation that keeps getting bounced around regarding "orphaned works." Basically what it means is that if a potential image user makes a reasonable effort to find the image owner and can't, they can use the image for no charge. Thankfully it's not law yet, but having contact information in your metadata is a good thing.

 

[Doni]

Yikes. That will open the flood gates to constant piracy with a 'legal excuse' to back them up.