12-19-2010, 01:36 PM
Posting a photo to the Internet does not put it in the realm of "fair use" or "public domain." Yes, it's harder to enforce copyright laws in the digital era, but the spirit of the law remains the same.
Re-posting an image to a forum with the [img] tag is a bad idea for a number of reasons. It sucks up the owner's Internet bandwidth and it negates the photographer's rights to display and distribute an image as he or she sees fit (and, as I said above, simply posting the image online is not a waiver of those rights). It's always best to post the works of others' with the [url] tag.
Copyright law does not simply exist to protect the photographer from theft and resale. Unauthorized free distribution hurts a photo's commercial viability as much as resale by another party. If an image exists somewhere for free already a publisher or stock agency will be much less likely to purchase that photo and that hurts a photographer.
Fair use really boils down to the original intent of the photograph. While Atlas technically holds the copyright to photos of its models that it commissioned they would be very unlikely to go after someone for posting a photo of their latest model on the forum. That's free advertising after all, and their main business is not photography so the redistribution of the photo would not hurt their bottom line. On the other hand, someone who sells photographs or publications would be upset with the free redistribution of his or her work as that would erode sales.
Photography of other people in a public place is legally protected in America. When you leave your home and go into the public you waive your right to privacy. A release is only required for the commercial use of another person's image. Editorial and personal use do not require it.
Remember, just because you are willing to distribute your photos for free does not mean others should not have the right to make a living doing the same thing. Content costs real money to produce and photographers' have a right to request compensation and protect their rights if necessary.
Re-posting an image to a forum with the [img] tag is a bad idea for a number of reasons. It sucks up the owner's Internet bandwidth and it negates the photographer's rights to display and distribute an image as he or she sees fit (and, as I said above, simply posting the image online is not a waiver of those rights). It's always best to post the works of others' with the [url] tag.
Copyright law does not simply exist to protect the photographer from theft and resale. Unauthorized free distribution hurts a photo's commercial viability as much as resale by another party. If an image exists somewhere for free already a publisher or stock agency will be much less likely to purchase that photo and that hurts a photographer.
Fair use really boils down to the original intent of the photograph. While Atlas technically holds the copyright to photos of its models that it commissioned they would be very unlikely to go after someone for posting a photo of their latest model on the forum. That's free advertising after all, and their main business is not photography so the redistribution of the photo would not hurt their bottom line. On the other hand, someone who sells photographs or publications would be upset with the free redistribution of his or her work as that would erode sales.
Photography of other people in a public place is legally protected in America. When you leave your home and go into the public you waive your right to privacy. A release is only required for the commercial use of another person's image. Editorial and personal use do not require it.
Remember, just because you are willing to distribute your photos for free does not mean others should not have the right to make a living doing the same thing. Content costs real money to produce and photographers' have a right to request compensation and protect their rights if necessary.