INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY FOR ARTS

The law protects artists, preventing other people from using their artistic work without consent. Thus, Photography, and other creative industries, couldn’t exist without defined and enforced artistic laws. All people have a legal right to take photos. Similarly, freedom of speech gives them the right to display and publish photographies, as a form of artistic expression. Anyone has the right not to be harassed or restricted in movement and make money from photography.
Although, the subject of the photo may have rights too; it may be limited by government security and people’s privacy (eg  prisons, military bases, courthouses, airport checkpoint, dressing rooms, restrooms, medical facilities, and inside homes). The publication may be also limited by people’s privacy (defamation, libel), copyright of artwork or trademark. Moreover, selling may be limited by people’s privacy, publicity (right to control one’s own image), copyright of artwotk and trademark. Whereas a photographer can generally use a photo in a work of art, he /she may not be able to sell the same photo for commercial purposes (eg endorsement, advertising and purposes of trade). Finally, the right not to be harassed or restricted in movement is limited by the state’s rights to public safety, prevent interference with traffic, pedestrian movement, an investigation, and trespassing on private land, and by national security places (military bases, nuclear plants, and some government facilities).
One can photograph: 1. persons in public view and not doing anything private (on the street, in a park, on the beach, in a shopping mall, etc), 2. children (for normal purposes) without permission from the parents, 3. celebrities in public view (but not for selling or publishing, 4. Law Enforcement Officers (when they are making arrests or at a crime scene), 5. accidents, fires, crimes (in a fair use), 6. businesses (they do not have a right to privacy, but not trade secrets & trademarks), 7. airports, bridges, infrastructure, transportation, 8. houses / residences (from the outside (inside, without permission is considered as invasion of privacy), 9. whatever is access free to public (shopping malls, the lobbies of office buildings, parks, and shops) - but If a place is open to the public, the permission can be revoked), 10. places with entrance fees (eg ballparks, museums, football games), only for personal use, 11. public art (eg murals, statues) not for commercial publishing (copyright owners).
The legal right to stop the photographer, have only law enforcement officers (and officers of the court), and only with a court order or while making an arrest.  If a private security guard ask the photographer to stop taking photos, he / she not has to comply. But if they ask him / her to leave, then he / she has to leave, as the permission to enter has been revoked. However, he / she can take photos while walking out, and he / she can still publish those pictures.
If someone else than the photographer,  took the photo, then the photographer doesn’t own the copyright and he / she can’t sell the image. The photo, also, should not be a result of “work-for-hire”; then,  the person who paid the photographer may claim that the agreement transferred the copyright to him / her.
An image that could offend a reasonable person (abusive, degrading, defamatory, hateful, illegal, obscene, slanderous, threatening, or vulgar), are generally rejected by agencies. 
The © symbol, or any other marking, is not required. It was required before 1989, but adoption of the Berne Convention removed this requirement, as copyright is now automatic. Generally, copying is permitted for personal use, research, teaching, criticism, parody, news reporting and editorial use.
Pictures that feature recognizable artistic things (eg paintings, murals, photos, logos, sculptures, advertisements and cartoon characters) have an underlying copyright. So, the photographer would need a written release from the copyright owner to sell the image for commercial purposes. Editorial and other fair use purposes may be OK, though.  Putting photos on the Internet, too,  may make them publicly available but does not (in the legal sense) put them in the public domain.  The copyright is valid in all countries that adhere to the Berne Convention.

BERNE CONVENTION FOR THE PROTECTION OF LITERARY AND ARTISTIC WORKS




Most microstock agencies are “non-exclusive”,  meaning that they don’t have a lock on artists'  photos. So, they remain free to submit the same shots to other agencies and clients. Since the sign-up is free, they can upload their images to a bunch of microstock sites and learn which ones pay best for them.


The photo storefront is a modern,  simple way to show and sell the photographies. This is an appropriate way for: a)  new photographers, who don’t have the vast stock needed to be accepted by a stock agency, b) part-time photographers who haven’t got the time or resources to set up a custom solution, or c) photographers, who want to stay individual and not employ other people, and d) event and wedding photographers,  who want an easy way to share, show and sell groups of photos. In fact, it is a hosted website (represented by an Internet company) that displays and sells the photos (storing,  displaying them on webpages for the photographers, and providing the e-commerce payment & fulfillment services). The artists can add a seamless link from their own sites to this storefront site for customers to follow. Once set up, they don’t have to do anything other than upload their pictures, pay (usually) a monthly fee, and receive the income.





AN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW PRIMER FOR MULTIMEDIA AND WEB DEVELOPERS

PHOTO STORAGE AND SHARING

WEB PUBLISHING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS

LINKS TO WEB

LINKS FOR PRINTS & GIFTS

PHOTOGRAPHER'S MARKET

SELL & RESELL YOUR PHOTOS