copyright and my website - what photos can I display

chelle526

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Hi all,

I am new to the forum and I do not know if this has been discussed. I am a freelance photographer about to take my business to the next level. I am currently building a website and I am inquiring about what photos I can include on it. I am a concert photographer and would like to display my work, however I have found some grey area on the legal side of what artist's images I can display. I know that as a photographer I own the copyright to whatever image I capture, however I have read some things about the artist's label copyrighting their likeness, etc. I was not paid for my services - more of a trade for tickets and I have not/will not sell my photos. I know that there are fan sites where people regularly post photos from concerts - would this be any different? any advice????

thanks
 
Why was this issue not discussed with the band prior to taking the photos? If you shot signed or even unsigned bands then in all fairness you should get their permission before posting. Since you are taking your business to the next level then it is super important to act in a professional manner. Contact the bands, promoters, label, or most importantly a lawyer who is familiar with this kind of question.

Love & Bass
 
Doesn't this fall back to photographer's rights? As long as you aren't selling the image as a commercial picture, you have the right to sell any picture you take. (mostly.)
 
Actually, a person can not be "copyrighted", only original works. A person's face maybe "trademarked" meaning it can not be used for commercial purposes without a licence, such as a signed release, in any fashion such as a photograph, painting sketch, etc. The exception being a news photograph like they do to the "poor" Paris girl when she is in public. Copyright protects your photos, writings, paintings, designs, from copy. There are exceptions for certain uses.
If you expect to make a commercial gain from your work, based the notoriety of the subject, get releases from the subject.
JS
 
Actually, a person can not be "copyrighted", only original works. A person's face maybe "trademarked" meaning it can not be used for commercial purposes without a licence, such as a signed release, in any fashion such as a photograph, painting sketch, etc. The exception being a news photograph like they do to the "poor" Paris girl when she is in public. Copyright protects your photos, writings, paintings, designs, from copy. There are exceptions for certain uses.
If you expect to make a commercial gain from your work, based the notoriety of the subject, get releases from the subject.
JS



A person's face can be Trademarked??? Really!

The law in the UK is possibly different (although, I understand that it's pretty much international for obvious reasons).

If the person being photographed is deemed to be the subject of the photograph then some form of model release is required. This is the case whether the subject is famous, or not.

Summat like that, but please don't quote me - I'm no lawyer.
 
Hi all,

I am new to the forum and I do not know if this has been discussed. I am a freelance photographer about to take my business to the next level. I am currently building a website and I am inquiring about what photos I can include on it. I am a concert photographer and would like to display my work, however I have found some grey area on the legal side of what artist's images I can display. I know that as a photographer I own the copyright to whatever image I capture, however I have read some things about the artist's label copyrighting their likeness, etc. I was not paid for my services - more of a trade for tickets and I have not/will not sell my photos. I know that there are fan sites where people regularly post photos from concerts - would this be any different? any advice????

thanks
Don't get your advice from complete strangers that quite possibly know nothing more than you do. Spend a hundred dollars with a lawyer. In most (all?) states, you can call the County Bar Association first. They'll select several lawyers based on your description of the issue. The deal then is that your first visit (and ONLY your first visit) is a fixed charge, regardless of time involved! Ten years ago, the price was $50.
 
Check this article out.

Publishing photos has some different restraints, although they're civil, not criminal. Break one of these "rules" and, while you won't go to jail, you could find yourself on the short end of a lawsuit. (Although, according to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, "the subject's remedy usually will not include the ability to bar the publication of the picture.")
Revealing private facts about someone is a no-no. As the American Law Institute put it, "One who gives publicity to a matter concerning the private life of another is subject to liability to the other for invasion of his privacy, if the matter publicized is of a kind that A) would be highly offensive to a reasonable person, and B) is not of legitimate concern to the public."
Here the private property issue comes a bit more into play. Publishing a recognizable photo of someone at an AA meeting could be a problem, even if that meeting is open to the public. (An elected official, perhaps, but not of Joe Citizen.)
You also can find yourself in civil court if you publish a shot that places a person in a false light. That might be more of an issue with the caption than with the photo; running a shot of the mayor and his daughter labeled "Mayor meets with porn star" could land you in hot water. (Assuming his daughter isn't a porn star.)
Finally, you can't use someone's likeness for a purely commercial purpose — using a photo of someone in an ad, for example. That isn't to say you can't publish a photo in a commercial environment, such as a newspaper or a blog that accepts ads. If the photo is being used in a news or artistic sense as opposed to a commercial one you're OK.
 
Actually, a person can not be "copyrighted", only original works. A person's face maybe "trademarked" meaning it can not be used for commercial purposes without a licence, such as a signed release, in any fashion such as a photograph, painting sketch, etc. The exception being a news photograph like they do to the "poor" Paris girl when she is in public. Copyright protects your photos, writings, paintings, designs, from copy. There are exceptions for certain uses.
If you expect to make a commercial gain from your work, based the notoriety of the subject, get releases from the subject.
JS

Infringement of trademark law involves either "passing off" or confusion.
Passing off is, for example, using a copy of a Nike trademark to suggest that any old shoe was made by Nike. Confusion is using a similar colour and designed container as Coke to contain any old brown drink.

None of these would apply to a photo of a face even if it was "trademarked", so therefore there is NO infringement of trademark law.

skieur
 
you can display the pics...you just can't sell them unless the band said it was o.k. to
 
Probably the best thing to do was already mentioned.

Go see a real lawyer, not ask people that 50% haven't a clue and the other 50% don't live in the same country as you and the laws are different.

Best 50-100 bucks you can spend. Get everything in writing or digitally recorded.
 
Probably the best thing to do was already mentioned.

Go see a real lawyer, not ask people that 50% haven't a clue and the other 50% don't live in the same country as you and the laws are different.

Best 50-100 bucks you can spend. Get everything in writing or digitally recorded.

Except that the quality of info. you receive will depend on the "real lawyer". There is quite a range from top lawyers to total idiots. Do your own research before you go shopping for a lawyer.

skieur
 
Follow up:

My promoter provided me with contact information for the artists that I have shot for him. So far - 2 management companies (with 5 different acts) have given permission to display photos. I consider that an accomplishment!!
 

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