The Use Of Images Posted On The Internet

[Phil Lilley]

Ron brought up something before he left the forum I wanted to address, mainly because I wasn't clear on the subject.

A quick search tells me I was wrong in my thinking - that a image posted on a public forum is fair game to be copied and used without the permission of the owner.

Do the search and see what you came up with.

http://www.techsoup.org/learningcenter/internet/page5970.cfm

This is the site I found. I'm sure there are more out there.

I am guilty of using images for articles, grabbed from searching google images. I'm going to go back and see if I can identify those images and reverse my direction.

[eric1978]

I don't see what the big deal is unless someone is trying to pawn it off as their own and make money off of it. People have to know that once they publish something on the internet, all bets are off...it's a free-for-all out here. I would suggest to Ron that he put watermarks on his images if he's that concerned about it.

[Stoneroller]

It's not the internet that is the free-for-all. It's the thinking of some people in society that things that don't belong to them are theirs to take, that's the free-for-all. Horse thieves should be shot, then hung from the neck until dead.

I should add that most everyone innocently reposts pictures they find that they like or think are funny or interesting. That in and of it's self doesn't neccessarily fall into copyright infringement. But there are throngs of people who do steal images, claim they are their own, and even make money off of them. Those are the horse thieves, unfortunately it's really difficult to track the millions out there.

[Feathers and Fins]

Well Phil, you have permission to use any of my pictures and if you need others let me know. I dont care if someone uses mine if they are so desperate to steel one and try and say they caught the fish or killed the game etc, they got more wrong upstairs then 3 legged cat in a sandbox.

[ozark trout fisher]

they got more wrong upstairs then 3 legged cat in a sandbox.

Love the imagery there! LOL

I consider any pictures I post here to be fair game for folks to use pretty much however they want, within reason. For stuff on my own website, I like for people to ask permission. But this is a public forum...

[Al Agnew]

As an artist, I've run into this problem a number of times. The nice thing about internet images is that most of them are such low resolution files that they can't be used as is for a lot of things. I have a whole lot more problems with people taking the prints of my images, or the images on products, and scanning them for use on the net or on products. I have also had problems with people getting the images one place or another and using them for small logos on the net or on product packaging. Luckily, I have a very good copyright attorney and usually end up getting some money out of the copiers one way or another.

True story...years ago, there was an advertiser on another website that I frequented. One day I followed the link to their website, and found that they were using one of my tee shirt designs as their logo. Since they were selling a reel that I really wanted, and it was a Japanese reel not readily available in the US, and I didn't want to turn my attorney loose to come down hard on them, I contacted them by email and told them that they were using my art without permission, but that instead of demanding a fee for its use, I would be willing to give them permission to use it if they would sell me two of those reels for their cost. I thought that was really being kind; I'd save about $100-200 altogether, but they wouldn't be out any money except the potential profits on those two reels.

Well, they got nasty. They asked how I could prove it was my artwork. I sent them the image and the copyright registration...it was exactly the image they were using. They said (really stupidly) that didn't mean anything, I could have gotten that image from anywhere, even off THEIR website! I tried one more time to be reasonable, pointing out that they wouldn't out any money and would get the use of the image for basically nothing, but that if I had to turn it over to my attorney they'd definitely be out a significant amount of money.

They said to go ahead and turn it over to my attorney, that they had lawyers, too.

So I did. Apparently they had not actually discussed the issue with their attorney, because as soon as my attorney files suit against them, their attorney looked at the "evidence" and told them they had to settle. So the result was that I got THREE reels, plus several thousand dollars in damages!

[fishinwrench]

Cool story, Al.

How did you find out what their attorney had said to them?

[Chief Grey Bear]

That is a funny story.

How did the reels turn out?? Like them??? Still use them????

[Chief Grey Bear]

BTW, not that anyone would want to but, feel free to use mine too.

And Al, I really do enjoy your artwork. I have for years wished I had that type of talent. What you do, the fine detail, is just a true, true talent. I can do some pretty decent stick fish but I don't think there is a market for them. Fish sticks, yes. Stick fish, no.

I always enjoyed watching Bob Ross on PBS. I know there are some differing opinions of his work in the art world, but I thought what he did in 30 minutes was pretty amazing. PBS called me one time seeking donations. And during the consversation, while talking programing, I was asked if I watched his program. Well heck yeah I did. They said everybody they spoke to enjoyed his program. He was really something. You would never have believed he was a hardass in the military.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Ross

[Smalliebigs]

" plus several thousand dollars in damages!"

That seems a litlle excessive to me but, that the mindset of people today. Civil lawsuit judgements are the disabilty of the new generation of Americans.