Some have always thought of me as weird with this thought process, but I have always been one to welcome new experiences. Both good AND bad. This is what makes us who we are. It is how we deal with the bad things that make us more appreciate the good things. I have always been fascinated by the idea that if we learn from our elder's mistakes then we can grow much faster than them and advance further. Of course everyone touches the hot pot no matter what. We all eventually repeat mistakes, but the more aware and educated we become on them the less likely we will have the same or worse results.
Yesterday we became victims of copyright infringement. This is our first time experiencing this. I am sure it will not be the last either, but the more we know about what is right, wrong, legal and illegal the better we are in attacking this misuse.
Background: A few months ago, Anna and I went to the Polish American Club located nearby. It is a fairly large club with many members of the Polish community who attend various events, concerts, parties, etc. Anna being Polish, gives us an opportunity to meet new people and possibly new clients. One day we obtained permission to photograph at a party they were having. We brought the lights and cameras and figured to have some fun, take some photos and meet some people. As a thank you we listed a few photos for purchase and made a montage for the club's main webpage. By our standards, it wasn't something we saw as portfolio worthy, but something of a small advertisement for us. As you can see in the photo that we put a fairly large photo credit and website on the bottom of the image. It is pretty large, but since it was free to them (aside from free drinks and a good time) we saw it as a fair trade.
Months later, and because of our work with them, we were then interviewed for an article in the Nation's leading Polish American newspaper, The White Eagle. With a combined circulation of 100,000 (5,000 in Florida), We saw that our small investment paid off. The article was two full pages and used many photos. Success!
But when we were informed two days ago, by the Vice President of the club that our image was stolen and used in another article, we were upset and then excited. You see, because we know copyright law and take it very seriously, we saw this as an opportunity to use our education.
The newspaper was writing an article about how the club elected a new president and the plans they had for their future. They had illegally downloaded the image from the website and used it as the main photo on the top of the article. What was worse was they cropped the image to remove the photo credit that was on the photo. They didn't even give us the dignity of putting a photo credit anywhere else. This was wrong in all aspects.
First we made attempts to contact the newspaper with no answers. That is until we sent an invoice for the use of an image. We generated the amount through an estimating program called FotoQuote . Once they got our email and invoice it was less than 5 minutes before we received a call from the senior editor. He was extremely apologetic and asked for a few days to find out how this happened.
Today we got a call from the Journalist who was trying to justify himself by saying he wrote a big article about us previously so why are we attacking them for using this image. The simple answer is this. Does he write one story for a cost and the others for free? Does the printing company charge for every other print run? How about the delivery truck drivers?
To top it all off, he even went so far as to say that we didn't have permission to take pictures in the club or to take pictures of the people in the photo. We were very happy to then provide him with the property release and model releases of every person in the photo.
How's that for covering the bases.
Heed me now, believe me later. The market is flooded with similar circumstances and issues. Many cases are even worse. If photography is your business or not, you still have to be aware of copyright laws and what is yours. My wife an I survive on our photography. We don't have side jobs, this isn't a hobby. Even if it where, the case would still be the same. I mention in a previous blog about the news of AP suing Fairey for using a photo for a poster which ended up being a huge campaign for Obama. If he would have simply licensed the photo for a small cost, then he wouldn't be in this situation.
The big problem we have today is that nobody sees photography as an art. Because everyone has an ability to capture an image they dismiss the value in it. I say to you this, because I can go to an art store and buy a canvas and paints, does that mean what I paint is no less important than any other painter?
My suggestions to you (Don't you dare call me an elder).
1. Read and learn about the Orphan works.
2. Become a member of the UsePLUS
3. Learn about how to register your work on a quarterly basis.
4. Be prepared through knowledge. Join ASMP!!!
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