HOW TO COPYRIGHT ONE'S PHOTOGRAPHS?

Question

How can I copyright my photographs. Please answer in detail regarding the norms and forms which I've to follow!
Please be very clear!

Answer 1

Are you Vip?

Answer 2

You're getting some bad advice and misinformation here. First, putting a copyright notice is absolutely unnecessary or we'd be telling painters and sculptors to put copyright notices on their work. I don't do it, because it damages the original work. It's a bit of legal graffiti that's absolutely unnecessary. Your work IS copyrighted simply by being created. You can follow the registration process in place in Canada which may secure you damages in case you were to sue, but merely having the copyright will allow you to pursue injunctive relief when that is possible. Injunctive relief means a court within the abuser's jurisdiction telling the copyright abuser to stop using the image. Unfortunately in this age of the "knows no borders" Internet, much abuse happens beyond your legal reach. I shoot commercially, and almost all of the abuse of my work happens where I'm unlikely to get much relief. I don't lose much sleep over it because there's no point in stressing over a situation you can't change, and besides I don't know anyone who's making a lot of money by abusing my copyright. Secondly, when fhotoace says "The producer of the image owns the copyright for the length of his/her life plus 75 years," think about that. You're dead and for 75 years you still own the photo. Fat lot of good that does you. More correctly, the ownership passes to your heirs or debtees, who may be clueless as to what to do about it. At any rate, you are dead so you don't care. Basically, if I were you, unless you're taking very valuable photos with a very high resale value, I wouldn't lose a lot of sleep about abuse unless you discover some, then consult a copyright attorney who will help you get legal relief if it's possible, which it may not be. If you'd want to be able to sue for damages (and I confess I'm unfamiliar with Canadian law), then educate yourself as to how to register your photos to the satisfaction of the Canadian copyright office. You don't need to do anything to HAVE copyright, and it's extremely unlikely you'll ever sue anyone for damages, so you might want to consider simply ignoring your ignorant friends.

Answer 3

Grrrrr... I can't believe the answers given here so far. I hope you see this.



Yes, copyright exists from the moment you create your work and fix it in tangible form. However, even though it is not required, registering your photo with the US Copyright Office gives you the full protection of the law.



If you register BEFORE your copyright is infringed upon, (or within 90 days of publication), you can sue for statutory damages ($750 to $150,000) and legal fees. If you don't register, you can only claim what your work MIGHT have sold for, which is hard to prove.



To register, go to the website:



http://www.copyright.gov



where you can register online or download an application, and submit your work. It costs $35 online, or $50 to $65 through the mail. On a single application, you can register unpublished work as a collection, as long as it is in the same year as the application. So, you only have to pay the fee once for a big batch of photos.



It takes from two to six months, (we are dealing with the government here), to get your certificate of registration, - unless you choose to expedite it, .... which costs an additional $760.... (see what I mean about dealing with the government).



There is also a Creative Commons license (CC) which lets you share photos without losing copyright while you specify clearly how they are to be used and that you are always credited. A CC license does not give you the same protection as a registered copyright, so only apply for a CC after you have registered. Here is more info on CC:

http://creativecommons.org



Be aware, there are lots of uses that don't necessarily violate copyright. For instance, copyrighted photos can be used without permission or payment "for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research". Many photo contests have rules allowing the sponsor to use entries for promotional and other purposes. You retain copyright, but you might not get paid.



Here is another not always widely known fact: If you shoot a photo for your employer, or under a work for hire contract, your EMPLOYER owns the copyright!



This information is taken from the book "The Law (In Plain English) for Photographers" by attorney Leonard D. Duboff.



Copyright is a LEGAL issue, and thus is open to many and varied interpretations and laws, .... that is why there is such a thing as copyright lawyers. When in doubt about something concerning your copyright, you have to seek expert legal advice.



steve

Answer 4

Once you press your shutter release button on your camera, your image is copyrighted. As soon as a work is created, the copyright for that work is created automatically. There are no forms to fill out or procedures you need to follow.



For a tiny, practically insignificant, little bit of added protection, in case any legal matters ever arise, you can register your already existing copyright with the copyright office and receive a certificate of copyright. But, this is really a waste of time. It has very few practical purposes. And, if a photographer were to do it for each photograph they take, they'd never have time to take any photographs!



If you do want to register a copyright that you already own for one or more of your pictures, though. You can find information on how to do so by visiting the copyright office's website locate here:



http://www.copyright.gov/eco/



***EDIT: Ask Steve P how many times he's ever found himself in a position to sue someone for statutory damages for copyright infringement. Ask him how many photographers he's known that have ever been in a position to sue anyone for statutory damages for copyright infringement. It's a superfluous expense in both time and effort. I've been shooting professionally for close to 20 years. I've had a truly small handful of copyright violation issues regarding my work. NONE of them resulted in any need for any litigation in order to be resolved. I've never personally known a photographer who has ever been in a situation where they regretted not registering their copyrights. And, I've known A LOT of photographers. It comes in handy for perhaps one in a thousand professional photographers, perhaps once in their lives. If you want the added protection, as I said earlier, by all means go for it. But, while you're at it, you might want to pick up some comet impact insurance as well.

Answer 5

Under the federal copyright act of 1976, a photograph is protected by copyright at the moment of creation.

Answer 6

No forms, and the only norm is...."copyright by (your name) and the year"

Answer 7

Copy righting intellectual property of national or of high importance makes more sense. Why do u want to copyright something very personal to you /your family. I don't understand.