Copyrighting Photos

[brenhaf]

Hi, I am new here and was wondering how to go about copyrighting my photos. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Brenda

[mikeb380]

Hi, Brenda
There are many ways of copyrighting, the easiest is to print all photos or burn on cd or dvd, place in envelope seal and date the envelope, then save in a safe place i.e. safe deposit..

Next, you can ( if you use photoshop) go to file/information and type info there which will be part of the photo. Include the copyright info there.
You can place the copyright info on the face of the photo,i.e.:
©copytright month, day, year Joan doe
another option is to place the same info on the reverse side of the photo.
If you are posting on a web site, many people "watermark" their photos with copyright info. That way if anyone downloads your info will bew across the photo.

The copyright law reads that copyright isn't needed as date of first publication is all needed.

The other option is to send to copyright office. Best way is to burn all the photos either on cd or dvd and send to copyright office with a form. There is a slight charge for this way of doing it, I think under $25.00you can get the form on line, just do a search on copyright or U.S. copyright office.

I just place the copyright info in the photo info and then copyright each print, sometimes on mat or on photo or on back, depending on which mood I,m in.

Hope this helps you somewhat
Michael

[mjs1973]

What exactly do you mean by "copyrighting your photos"? Do you mean you want to register them with the copyright office, or are you simply looking for a way to mark your photos with a copyright symbol, or your name? This second option is basically a watermark lie Mike already mentioned. If you go the this thread, there is a very simple tutorial for adding a watermark to your photo.

Logos

[PhotoGirl]

this is a great thread, as I've often wondered about this myself-thanks for all the info!

[brenhaf]

Thanks for all the info. I know how to add the watermark in Photoshop, I just wasn't sure if I had to file them with the copyright office. That was the part I wasn't sure about, but if all I have to do is enbed the information in the file, that would be awesome. I am interested to know what most photographers do. Again, thanks ya'll for all the help and have a great Sunday!

Brenda

[mjs1973]

One thing to consider...

If your images are stolen, and used without your permission, and they are NOT registered with the copyright office, I don't think you are allowed to seek damages for your stolen work. I think you can only be awarded the amount you would have been paid if you had sold the images for that purpose. I hope I didn't make that too confusing.

Basically if Nike used one of your photos in an add, you would only be able to sue them for the amount you would have sold them that photo for in the first place. You couldn't sue them for millions of $$ based on how much $ your photo generated for them, unless the photo was registered with the copyright office.

At leasts that's the way I understand it to be, but I'm not a lawyer so you should double check.

[brenhaf]

Thanks Mike, that makes very good sense!

Brenda