How do you copywrite an image? Is it as simple as sticking the words, "Copywrite 2004 Joe Blow Photography," on an image, or are there some legal things you have to do?

That is the copyright, year, and your name/company.

However, to confirm, I found good information here:
http://www.expertlaw.com/library/pubarticles/Intellectual_Property/copyright_law.html

[edited to delete copied text - upon noticing the copyright notice at the bottom of the guy's website, I'm deleting his copyrighted text but retaining the link to the info!]


Megan

There are all sorts of unwieldy forms and things to officially register, but doing what I typed in my previous post is generally enough. If your image has that mark on it and someone copies it, you have the right to get a lawyer and pursue infringement.

Another nifty way that is a step above writing the copyright but not going through copyright bureaucracy is to place a copy in an envelope and mail it to yourself. Don't open it.... the seal and the postmark dates it to further prove your copyright. To take it one step further, go to the post office and have them hand cancel the date on the lip of the envelope if they will.

Megan

There are all sorts of unwieldy forms and things to officially register, but doing what I typed in my previous post is generally enough. If your image has that mark on it and someone copies it, you have the right to get a lawyer and pursue infringement.


Actually, it is not enough. Well, yes, you have the right, by law, but you can't sue for legal costs without being registered, and a copyright case can run several years of legal wrangling for damages which may be in the realm os several hundred to several thousand dollars, compared to a potential legal bill of 100,000 dollars or more due to how difficult it is to prosecute on a copyright violation.

NO lawyer will touch your case, no matter how iron-clad, without the images being officially registered with the copyright office, no one would make any money off of it, and when's the last time you met a lawyer that worked out of the goodness of their heart??

Regustering is actually really easy, when I get home I'll try to pass on what I have learned from people that do it on a monthly basis.

While I agree with Sebastian on this to a degree, let me add this about a non-registered copyright.

I was a cartoonist for 5 years. I have somewhere in the realm of 500 copyrighted, published works. The non-registered copyright serves as a great deterrent to those who want to steal your work. When a "poacher" sees the copyright symbol on a work, he/she can't tell whether the work is registered or non-registered. It works well. Many times, the poacher will avoid stealing the work simply because the symbol appears on the work.

I had a T-shirt guy approach me about putting one of my cartoons on a shirt. When we negotiated the deal, I wanted a little more than he thought he should pay, and in the heat of the moment he said, "I could just steal the art and you'd get nothing." I responded, "See that symbol and this tear sheet? I'll sue your ass and get part of everything you have." - We struck a nice deal after that. The copyright was NON-REGISTERED.

In all cases, it's BETTER to have a registered copyright, but in the face of having nothing - a non-registered mark has its value.

Let me back up a little bit.... Forgive me for knowing absolutely nothing about this.. There's a copywrite office somwhere that you have to register with?

Let me back up a little bit.... Forgive me for knowing absolutely nothing about this.. There's a copywrite office somwhere that you have to register with?

Here's the link:

http://www.copyright.gov/

Megan

Let me back up a little bit.... Forgive me for knowing absolutely nothing about this.. There's a copywrite office somwhere that you have to register with?

Bmadau,

Go here:

http://www.copyright.gov/

And risking being nitpicky, it's copyRIGHT, not copyWRITE, copywriting is something COMPLETELY different than what's being discussed here.

It's kind of *just like* the link I posted a few minutes ago.

:p

mg

It's kind of *just like* the link I posted a few minutes ago.

:p

mg

Similar, but different... :D

And risking being nitpicky, it's copyRIGHT, not copyWRITE, copywriting is something COMPLETELY different than what's being discussed here.

Thanks, Sebastian - I've been wanting to do that from the beginning of this thread, but didn't want to look like an a$$hole. :D

Thanks for the information and informing me of the error of my ways.. So, if I understand this correctly, you need to individually copyright each photo that you want copyrighted? Also, I am correct to assume that you can include as many "works" in one envelope as you want with the $30 fee at a time?

Thanks for the information and informing me of the error of my ways.. So, if I understand this correctly, you need to individually copyright each photo that you want copyrighted? Also, I am correct to assume that you can include as many "works" in one envelope as you want with the $30 fee at a time?

No, you can copyright an entire month's work, for example, as one body of work, for the 30 dollar fee. Let's say you send them a DVD with thumbnails of all your image shot over half a year, that would count as one body of work.

Also, you can not mix published and unpublished work.

Thanks.. I never thought it could be so simple!

I was a cartoonist for 5 years. I have somewhere in the realm of 500 copyrighted, published works.

What work have you done as a cartoonist? Any stuff on the web?

A few of the old timers here know I'm a cartoon freak, plus I've had an online comic strip in the works for several years now (I know, Loren, pretty soon Niki G. will be too old to model, heh heh). I think by this fall I'll finally be ready to launch my site....

Also, you say "was". Why did you stop?

In college I worked as both the Political Cartoonist (my personal favorite) and Comic Strip cartoonist for about 5 years at the state's 6th largest daily newspaper. Drawing 2 cartoons a day 5 days a week is incredibly time-consuming and exhausting. I got to do some political work during a lot of fun times - the LA Riots, the first Gulf War, Clinton's first presidential election, Tonya Harding's attack on Nancy Kerrigan - all that stuff. It was a blast. I drew a comic strip called Enos & Jobe - it wasn't the best thing around, but it wasn't the worst either.

So, why did I stop?

For one, I was burnt out. I was getting to the point that I absolutely hated to stare at a blank sheet of paper and a set of pens. And then, there was this thing called reality. In the United States two cartoonist spots open up a year, and only one becomes syndicated. Those odds aren't very good, and I had to feed myself. :D

I still draw, and I still love politics. If you get your site up Steve, I'd love to do some guest political work for ya - I'd even submit it for approval. ;)

Yeah, I completely understand. The LAST thing I'd want to be is a cartoonist on a daily deadline, especially a political cartoonist, where you have to show both good artistic and satiric skills. The BLOCK must be killer when it hits... :(

It was only the onset of self-published online strips (no freakin' deadlines!) and the technology of Photoshop and Illustrator that even made me consider doing this. My drawing skills are marginal at best, but I'm real good at layout and am hoping the magic of digital editing software will allow me to fake the rest... :D

My strengths are my ideas and my ability to present funny characters and situations. I hesitate to mention my name in the same sentence as the great Matt Groening, but in a sense that's very much the way I think (I know...scary!).

My strip will take place in South Beach and there is no limit to the absurdities of people, places, and things waiting to be parodied... ;)

BTW, I may just take you up on your offer... :cool:

Believe it or not, I've noticed your wit here in the forums...it's the material that counts (jokes, situations, etc.) - that's the hard part. The drawing is secondary. I'vebeen known to spend 8 hours working toward a good idea, and then draw it out in 10 minutes. Slow news days suck.

When doing political cartoons, I lived on CNN - I woke up and turned it on. When I went to sleep, it was on my TV.

I look forward to seeing your strip when you get it out there.