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Can I Use That Photo?
Copyright, Model Releases and all that explained (sort of)
I have been asked by several erotica authors about the copyright implications of using photographs on social media and to illustrate their work. I am a photographer, not a copyright legal expert but this is my understanding of the law in the UK.
Sharing an image directly from a web page by hitting the Tweet or Like button is not usually considered a breach of copyright (although you might get into trouble if you added a defamatory or libellous text). Downloading that image and then uploading that image to your Twitter stream, Facebook page or website without permission is.
Generally, whether you get into trouble depends on the image and the use you make of it. Most creators would probably be flattered if you simply ‘liked’ it. You may get a polite request for a link or a credit in future as any publicity is good publicity providing the audience knows who the creator is, but it could be worse.
Use that image to promote your latest book, illustrate an article or put it on the cover and someone is likely to come asking for payment. As a photographer I sometimes allow publication of my images for little or no fee but, if someone is making money from my images I expect payment.
I’m not a photographer so how do I find images I can use.
Creative commons licences.
These are fine but beware of two points.
Does the licence include commercial use? There are a lot of different versions some of which prohibit commercial use, others require you to attribute the image even if you are not using it commercially. The different types are listed on the Creative Commons website.
Just because it is on Wikimedia do not assume you can do what you like with it. Check out the licences.
Did the person who uploaded it to the website and assigned a creative commons licence actually own the copyright? This is not always easy to work out but if the site links or an attribution takes you back to the original creator then it is usually OK and you can always contact them and ask.
