Byline assurance

[teelions]

I've been doing event photos for a friend of mine on a volunteer basis. All that

I ask of the use of the photos is that I receive a byline in any publication

whether print or on the web. I have noticed that these pictures do show up on

the web sometimes on newspaper websites when they do a story about my friend's

organization but there is no "photo by" byline with the picture. It's not the

newspaper's job to make the byline as all they know is that the picture was

submitted with the news release. I have recently received a request for a CD of

the pictures that I took at this year's annual fund raiser. I was told that some

of the pictures will be used for their annual report. What do I do about

guaranteeing that I receive credit for my pictures?

 

Terry

[Matt Laur]

<i>What do I do about guaranteeing that I receive credit for my pictures?</i>

<br><br>

There's nothing you can do except pursue it in court, after the fact, if they don't do what you ask. And, the horse is rather out of the barn at that point, anyway. Since it sounds like you're not providing the images under a contract that provides for specific recourse, the only thing you can do is to provide a document (perhaps, physically wrapped around the CD?) that reminds the user of the images that they are only using them by your permission as the copyright holder, and that your permission is contingent upon photo credits (and provide a written example of exactly how they should appear).

<br><br>

You really can't go after them for damages since these are images that you were willing to provide at no cost. Your "customary charges," in this case, are $0, and that's all you can go after... unless you register the images with the US Copyright Office, and then have the option of going after punitive damages in federal court. Which couldn't POSSIBLY be worth the trouble in this case.

<br><br>

I think you're just better off having a direct line of communication with the editor of the annual report or other publication(s) that might use the images, and use a phone call or e-mail with them to reinforce the terms that you lay out in the document that you provide with the CD full of images. If they've got some clear, simple text that they can copy/paste for a photo credit, you've taken the hard part out of it for them, and you're far more likely to get the results you want. I've never had a publication or web site fail to give me credit when I've bothered to make it clear to them that I expect it, and easy for them to do. Whenever a third party channels your work to an editor/publication, you greatly increase the odds of something being forgotten.

[teelions]

Thanks for the information Matt. I'll place a sticker on the cover of the CD and on the CD itself. I'll add a text file into the CD as well with the exact instructions for the byline.

 

Does anyone have a sample document of a agreement that explains copyright?

[Matt Laur]

Avoid stickers on CDs, unless it's a whole-CD-sized one. Otherwise, it unbalances the CD while it's at high speeds in the CD drive. Better to use a permanent marker, or printable CDs.

[Matt Laur]

You are, Terry, a perfect candidate for a copy of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FLaw-Plain-English-Photographers%2Fdp%2F1581152256%3Fie%3DUTF8%26s%3Dbooks%26qid%3D1203086723%26sr%3D8-1&tag=uplandlife-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325" target="_blank"><b>The Law, In Plain English, For Photographers</b></a>, by Leonard Duboff. Not so much because you need to spend a few dollars expressly to solve this one problem, but because it's actually VERY liberating to have - solidly planted in your brain - the sorts of concepts you need when having any conversation or correspondence with other people about how your images will be used. It also covers issues like liability on your part (what if your images are mis-used, or if one of the subjects of your images is portrayed in a libelous context, etc?). Really worth a read, and many sample licenses, contracts, and releases are provided therein.

[jay a. frew]

Hello Terry:

 

I am no expert in this area, and maybe my suggestion is too simplistic, but, why not insert your own byline into the picture with your photo editing software? "Photo by Terry Lyons", or, whatever you like in the bottom left-hand corner of the image.

 

You could discuss this with the "client" in advance. Since you are providing this service for free, they shouldn't balk at the suggestion.

 

Cheers! Jay

[ellis_vener_photography]

"watermarking" your own credit line in your photos is the easiest way to make sure this happens.

[Matt Laur]

Marking the image up yourself makes a lot of assumptions about how it will be reproduced, whether or not the editors feel the need to (or have been granted license to) crop, etc. If the image gets converted to B&W, you never know what's going to happen when your own text is halftoned, etc. It's certainly classier to have a proper photo credit, and any web-based version of the same document (including the PDFs that are often rendered from organization's newsletters and other reports) would then contain your name in a form that will be picked up by Google - rather than just a picture of your name inside another picture. This is a judgement call that can only be made based on what you know about the publication, the editors who will be the lasat ones to touch the image file, and more. Communication, here, is your best bet.

[bruce levy]

Just for the semantics, you're talking about "credit" not byline. Byline is something else completely.

[john_h.1]

Have an attorney review or draft a simple contract that exchanges use of your images for a byline, credit or whatever it is. Have a liquidated damages clause that spells out the remedy in the event of breach for one or more instances. Paying you a million dollars won't fly but setting a payment fee at about the fair market value for the image and usage should.

[lex_jenkins]

Traditionally, credit for a photo can go anywhere in a publication. In a book typically it's at the back with a page reference.

 

Bylines typically go right beside the photo (or article). This is standard practice in periodicals.

 

Photos go unattributed for a few reasons:

 

1. The person sending the photo or attaching it to the material to be published forgets to include the name or the photographer.

 

2. The information is lost or forgotten by the periodical. This is very uncommon with newspapers, which tend to be very conscientious about issues of credit, copyrights, etc.

 

3. A printing error occurs. This wasn't unusual in the good ol' days of pasteups. Bylines were on tiny bits of waxed paper from phototypesetters, usually the last thing to go on and the first thing to pop off when the pasteup boards were flexed. Nowadays, with everything run on a type of computer, it's more likely to occur for other reasons. Space is at a premium. Some periodicals emphasize rigid adherence to style over substance. If something doesn't fit, the person checking things at the last second may make an executive decision to ditch the byline to make space. This is more likely to occur with photos and illustrations than with articles, mostly because of layout considerations.

 

My interpretation? The internet has contributed to a new subcultural norm that is quick to assign blame but slow to give credit. The two are interrelated. Both are linked to relative anonymity and a buffer zone from consequences. Many people have a rather fuzzy idea of personal property on the internet. They see a thing, they want it, they take it. If it's not free, it should be. Set it free. Rip those CDs. Put those copyrighted songs and movies on file sharing and P2P servers. Consequentially, fewer and fewer people recognize the traditional concepts of property and these distorted notions are infiltrating the publishing end. An older generation of print shop foremen might have said, hang on, there's no byline on this photo. Today, the question never even occurs to them, or anyone else up the line for that matter.

[bruce levy]

Wikipedia: The byline on a newspaper or magazine article gives the name, and often the position, of the writer of the article. It's a photo credit we're talking about, IMO.

[lex_jenkins]

Bruce, bylines are applied to writers, photographers, illustrators and others in periodicals. It's a longtime journalistic tradition. Bylines accompany the photo, illustration, article, etc., itself.

 

Check AP and other style guides rather than wikipedia. AP is the usual standard in the U.S. My old copy is around here somewhere and predates the web by more than a decade, but I'd bet practices regarding bylines haven't changed significantly.

 

Credits can be given elsewhere in the publication, typically at the back of the publication. Very, very few publications that are considered periodicals use anything other than bylines. Occasionally annual publications may use either or both.

 

It's not unusual for illustrated books to use bylines right next to the photo or graphic. Style guides for books and non-periodical publications differ from AP style.

[bruce levy]

Thanks Lex. My bad.