Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ask permission for it? I was honored when I saw my pic in an ad but suprised as well.

>>ask permission for it? I was honored when I saw my pic in an ad but suprised as well.

I'd just be mad in your position if somneone else used your photo. That is illegal, as I read the laws, and just plain wrong!

KJ

I remember that picture, and it still looks great. I would never use someone's pic w/o permission, or at least give credit (like, if it was off of a site). That is unprofessional...period TC.

Do you have a copyright on it? If you don't then there really is no recourse for you...even if it does stink. Frank
-----
"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

>>Do you have a copyright on it? If you don't then there really is no recourse for you...even if it does stink. Frank

I don't believe so. I'm pretty sure something is automatically protected under the copyright laws unless you specifically make it part of the public domain. My text I just wrote is mine, and it is illegal to use it as your own without my permission. The pictures I just took are mine, and it is a violation for you to claim them as yours.

Face it - you can't get much even if it is illegal, though, except the satisfaction of putting a bad guy through some headaches. I'll probably do my best to press charges against the next guy to use one of my photos - which I hope never happens again - as his own. Even if nothing happens, he'll lose more sleep than me.

KJ

There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to copyright. Did you know for example that copyright only protects your document as "a Complete entity"? Parts may be exerpted and published seperately as long as it is different enough from the orrigional. What you write becomes public domain when it hits print, unless it is actually submitted for copyright or covered by the publisher. Foreign countries can use your words and photos with impunity.
A classic example was the private videos of Pam Anderson and her husband having sex. Even though they were stolen from a private safe in their own home a judge ruled they were public domain and therefore legal to be sold by the party that had taken them. the law can be very strange on copyright issues too.
Frank
-----
"The luxury of not getting involved departed with the last lifeboat Skipper..."

I suppose you need a lawyer to sort out the public domain issues, but I had a similar situation crop up several years ago. I happened to notice some artwork in a magazine ad that was simply copied from an ad that I was running on a regular basis. The artwork was an original produced by a graphic artist friend of mine, and was also on my business cards. Imagine yourself looking at a competitor that decided to use your graphic layout, and simply insert his name and other contact info. Needless to say, I told the guy to cease and desist. I told him that if I ever saw my artwork with his name on it again, he could expect a call from my attorney. That did the trick. It's probably a pretty good idea to tagline your photos that are posted on any public forum. At least if someone is using them to sell or hype their animals, a prospective buyer can inquire about the legitimacy of the claim. I keep records on every snake that I sell, and can always verify someone claiming to have offspring from my stock.

If you can prove that it is your picture ( as if you have the roll of negatives it was shot on). I'd be peeved!!!

>>ask permission for it? I was honored when I saw my pic in an ad but suprised as well.

Tom,

That's just plain unscrupulous. I had a photo of mine once used in an ad that said the animal pictured was the actual animal for sale. I knew that couldn't be the case because (1) I took the picture and (2) the animal was downstairs in my snake room! I emailed the guy and told him nicely to stop using the photo. I also intimated that if I needed to ask again it would be less nice the next time around. He got the picture.

By the way, Tom, great photo! Can I use it? (just kidding)

>>ask permission for it? I was honored when I saw my pic in an ad but suprised as well.
>>
>>

I had something similar happen (only with a care sheet) so I contacted the people involved.
I asked them to give me credit or please remove the information.
They were very apologetic and informed me they just got ahead of themselves when putting their web page together and had just overlooked contacting me.
They immediately went to their page and gave me credit where due.
So, yes they should acknowledge you if using your photo but it may have just been an oversight.
Contact them and ask them to give you credit for the photo. Chances are they will understand and be glad to accomodate.
-----
Remember, my posts are MY opinion only.
Jimmy (draybar)

As a proffesional photographer I can tell you that the copyright laws for photography are quite straight forward

Copyright is a property right. Under the Federal Copyright Act of 1976 (effective January 1, 1978 and amended when the USA joined the Berne Convention in 1989), photographs are protected by copyright from the moment of creation.

For more info you can look at the PPA website - http://www.ppa.com/public/articles/index.cfm?cat=75

or the copyright defense org - http://www.ppa.com/public/articles/index.htm

Hope this helps,

Gregory
www.southwesternphoto.com

Yes they should ask permission to use any photos that they didn't take. The people that used your photo might not realize it is your photo and are making an unintentional mistake. If they are using it in their ad, then they are gaining commercially from your pic. They may not have asked for your permission because you might want something monetarily since they are using it commercially. Getting your permission to use your picture on an educational brochure or specification sheet is allot different than permission on an advertisement. They are using your picture commercially and you should be compensated inaddition to giving them permission. Whether it is copywrighted or legal, I don't know. They are banking even without your permission you have to sue them. Then they can just stop using the picture, but the damage has been done.

One thing for sure, they are being unethical and misrepresenting your pic on their ad. I don't trust anything they sell now since they have demonstrated that they are unethical and have not qualms about misrepresenting something. You should let us know who has done this as a public service so others don't fall prey to their business dealings.

I would send them a letter saying they are using your picture in the ad. Be specific on which picture. Tell them no one has asked for or been granted permission to use your pic in their commercial ad. At least you have taken away their ignorance to knowing its your pic and you didn't give permission. If you decide later, after they make lots of money using your picture, that you deserve a piece of the action, then you have the letter that you sent them for the courts. You might be a nice guy now Thomas, but what if they make a million dollars using your picture. What if they start using everyone else's pictures.

Terry Parks