Whew! Now that was a LOT of FUN! (The speaking engagement, I mean. This blog post took some time to compile after the fact, but as they say, better late than never)
On Saturday, January 14th, 2012, I spoke at WordCamp Victoria 2012 in Victoria B.C., with my friend Janis LaCouvee. Our topic? Disclosures, Attribution, Copyright (and Moral Rights)
We had excellent feedback after our session, lots of Tweets and Retweets afterwards, and during the presentation there were many questions and a good deal of interaction with the audience, which for me, is always an indicator of success and safety within a large group. We simply ran out of time to engage fully and more deeply into what could have been a very lengthy and stimulating group discussion.
There was a fair amount of expertise and interest in the room. I do hope that this topic is discussed more at conferences.
Our audience included bloggers, web designers and web developers, WordPress experts and enthusiasts, photographers and individuals in a variety of industries, who were interested in the topic for their websites and blogging for business, personal and non-profit.
Brenda Johima is owner of JOHIMA Social Media + Marketing, based in the Comox Valley, on Vancouver Island.
As promised, below are some notes from my part of the session, which was all about copyright and moral rights as it specifically relates to art, photography and images online for bloggers and WordPress enthusiasts.
I’m noting the key points only and as promised, the links to articles and videos that I mentioned in my session, where you can go to find more information. This is a HUGE topic, and this only scratches the surface, of an ever-changing and complex, legal issue. And a heads up, this is an unusually long blog post, as I am trying to share as much as possible from the in-person, live audience session.
Please note that many of my comments below are abbreviated or in point form. If you’d like to know more, and to bring me into your group for the full presentation, you’ll get the works … It’s only possible here, to share a snippet in a long blog post, of a live presentation. I’d love to come and speak with your group … and I have a feeling that if we ask Janis LaCouvee nicely, if she is available she might even join me too 🙂
** I am not a lawyer, and am not providing legal advice or any advice here actually. I’m simply sharing what I have studied on my own and learned over the years about a topic that I am very passionate about, and fascinated with. ** I hope that my information is of help to you. If in doubt with anything you see online, simply don’t take it, and/or consult with a copyright lawyer. **
So here we go :
Copy. RIGHT.
My bias is that artists, photographers and creatives deserve to be paid for their time and at minimum, credited for their work, with a written request for permission for usage.
“If there were no copyright laws, no artist, musician, writer or creative would make a living by creating revenue from their craft.” — Brenda Johima
Copyright and Moral Rights laws really are there to protect many industries. Creative works are how artists survive, feed their families, pay the bills.
Here is what I covered: (in record time, 10 minutes! … plus Q&A)
- Introduction
- How do you copyright your own work? How do you protect your own work?
- Why you can’t just take whatever you want from online. (Example of an expensive mistake) See below.
- Moral Rights. Definition. (Examples)
- Interesting stories. There is no guarantee if you put something online.
- A story about what happened to a creative when image theft happened and copyright was infringed.
See below.
- A story about an iPhone photo by a blogger that gets famous when picked up by NASA. Inspiring and related to copyright. She (Stefanie Gordon) owned the image.
- A story about what happened to a creative when image theft happened and copyright was infringed.
- Resources and Links
It’s not rocket science. (Copyright is Actually Quite Simple if You Care About People)
- If it’s not yours, don’t take it.
- If you want it, as permission. (get it in writing)
- If you use it, put a note on it, crediting the author/content creator
I liken theft of images online to shoplifting. Would you go into a retail store, see something you like on a shelf, and go “I like that, I think I will take it” … Then you take it, walk out the door of the store, claim it as your own, and brag about it. ( do you not think you might be in trouble with the law? )
Why you can’t just take whatever you want from online : Here’s the example of a rather expensive mistake. I have to give this professional copywriting company credit for having the courage to publicly admit their error in order for others to learn from it, however … well … you fill in the blanks. These copywriters ended up paying $4000.00 for what could have been a $10.00 image. Will you think again before you lift an images from online?
The best and safest choice:
- Create Your Own.
- Ask Permission.
- Buy It. Pay For It. Purchase It. Feed an Artist. Pay a Pro.
T.O.S. (Terms of Service)
Every social network and image sharing site has a terms of service page. Read it. Believe it. Ask questions if in doubt.
How do I copyright my work? (presenter notes. hire me for the full explanation 🙂
- You create it you own it. (with exceptions)
- © Symbol
- © = “Option” plus “G” on a MAC
- Copyright plus © Symbol plus year plus artist name plus URL
How do I protect my work? (presenter notes. hire me for the full explanation 🙂
- File names and categorizing your work so it is trackable /searchable online
- TinEye.com (reverse image search)
- Metadata (in Photoshop)
- Watermark or not to watermark?
- Deterrent vs. Protection
Why do people steal photos?
- What do you think? I’m curious. There’s too much to put here in this blog post, plus I want to come and speak with your group 🙂
Moral Rights : What Are They?
- Examples of images were shown with permission of Fine Artist, Madeleine Wood‘s (M.F.A.) art works with manipulation of the images to demonstrate what possibly could be a breach of moral rights. My question to the audience was “What right do you have to take someone else’s work?” Madeleine estimated approximately a minimum of seven years training (52 weeks) x 60 hours per week = 21,840 hours of training to get her to the quality of work and calibre of gallery representations that she is at now.
- Consult a lawyer if you have questions. If in doubt, DON’T alter an artist/photographer’s work.
- Case Examples : Snow v. The Eaton Centre Ltd. : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_v._The_Eaton_Centre_Ltd.
(by Gil Zvulony of Zvulony and Company, Toronto Lawyers)
These lawyers, Gil Zvulony of Zvulony and Company also write about:
- Legal Rights in a Photograph (read this)
- Copyright Law
- Moral Rights
- Rights of the Subject Privacy and Publicity Rights
- The Right to Privacy
- Publicity Rights
- Rights of Models
Toronto Copyright Lawyer Discusses Author Rights and Moral Rights in Canada
(*not in my #wcv12 presentation, but this may be of interest to you as well : Publicity Rights in a Photograph, also by Zvulony and Co.)
http://zvulony.ca/2010/articles/internet-law/legal-rights-in-a-photograph/
“Netiquette Etiquette”
- Give credit where credit is due, for photos, cartoons, images, writing, music, graphics, anything you use or share online which is not yours
- Best: Take your own photos. If not : Credit photographers always by full name and with a link to their site (link to the page that the image is on)
Resources and Links:
- Stolen Photograph (blog post by Chase Jarvis) : A New Look at an Old Problem : The Stolen Scream : A Story abut Noam Galai [VIDEO]
- The Stolen Scream (original video by fstoppers.com )
- Noam Galai (Photographer)
Resources and Links : Associations in Canada:
- CARFAC : Canadian Artists Representation
- CAPIC : The Canadian Association of Professional Image Creators
- GDC : The Society of Graphic Designers of Canada
- PPOC : Professional Photographers of Canada
Canada’s Copyright Act:
- http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-42/index.html
- Professor Michael Geist : Speak Out on Copyright
Two Tips to Take Away :
- Create Your Own : Trust in your own creative abilities … You truly are unlimited in your own creativity and talent.
- Stand Up For Yourself : You deserve acknowledgment and credit for your work.
THE END 🙂
This is a very basic synopsis of a very brief presentation I did on a very huge topic. Please contact me to come and speak to your group about this topic that I am so passionate about. The best way to get the most out of this is in person via group discussion and conversation. It’s a HOT topic, and I foresee that to be true for quite a few more years from here on.
