Using Images From The Web. Legal?

16 years ago

There are really a lot of places to get free photos. Government photography for example. You might also try Amazon, typically manufacturers provide high quality photos of products primarily.

Google Images on the Google tool bar has literally millions of photos, most in the public domain but not all. I really feel if they are not they should be water marked. Some just grab and use one or two and remove them if someone complains. Generally it's going to be a spectacular shot that get's most attention or publishing a watermarked photo.

Try this; US Federal Government Public Domain Images - Primarily Photos

Also, you might grab your digital camera and go shoot your own shot which I have done. They're out there, just gotta keep looking.

Good luck.

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Ed Sunderland

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IdeaLady 16 years ago

Originally Posted by ss442

Google Images on the Google tool bar has literally millions of photos, most in the public domain but not all.

This is absolutely incorrect. Most of the images that come up in a Google image search are covered by copyright.

The exception is if you are doing an advanced search and you specify usage rights that would allow you to use the image.
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FrankBowman

16 years ago

Originally Posted by ss442

There are really a lot of places to get free photos. Government photography for example. You might also try Amazon, typically manufacturers provide high quality photos of products primarily.

Google Images on the Google tool bar has literally millions of photos, most in the public domain but not all. I really feel if they are not they should be water marked. Some just grab and use one or two and remove them if someone complains. Generally it's going to be a spectacular shot that get's most attention or publishing a watermarked photo.

Try this; US Federal Government Public Domain Images - Primarily Photos

Also, you might grab your digital camera and go shoot your own shot which I have done. They're out there, just gotta keep looking.

Good luck.

hey great share..thanks a lot

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cbjack

16 years ago

Originally Posted by ss442

There are really a lot of places to get free photos. Government photography for example. You might also try Amazon, typically manufacturers provide high quality photos of products primarily.

Google Images on the Google tool bar has literally millions of photos, most in the public domain but not all. I really feel if they are not they should be water marked. Some just grab and use one or two and remove them if someone complains. Generally it's going to be a spectacular shot that get's most attention or publishing a watermarked photo.

Try this;US Federal Government Public Domain Images - Primarily Photos

Also, you might grab your digital camera and go shoot your own shot which I have done. They're out there, just gotta keep looking.

Good luck.

Thank you for sharing all these ideas with us. ss442, very useful, indeed!

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ButterflyGarden 16 years ago

Legally you cannot use a photo you find on the web with out the photographer's permission.

Stock photography websites contain thousands of existing photographs that can be licensed for specific uses. A customer who uses stock photography instead of hiring a photographer can save time, effort and money. Typically publishers can either purchase exclusive rights to a single image or they can purchase a subscription of sorts. The subscriptions allow publishers to download a limited number of photos over a specified period of time.

Stock photo websites allow webmasters, marketers and publishers to locate pictures for their marketing and promotional materials without the hassle of organizing a photo shoot. With copyright laws businesses must be very careful in using unlicensed photos.

There are also risks to using "free" photographs. Many of the free websites contain collaborative works from multiple photographers and artists. While the websites attempt to monitor the images in their collections in violation of copyright laws, there are no guarantees. If you opt to use photographs or images from a free portal, it is important to keep this in mind.

My favorite stock photo website is Royalty Free Stock Photos

Here is where you can find some other inexpensive stock photo directories:

Royalty Free Photos for Web Design

Another site list can be found here:
Microstock Photos

Goodluck
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IdeaLady

16 years ago

Yes, you always need permission to use any content you did not create.

Sometimes that permission is given without you having to make a specific request. For example, there are images on flickr.com that have a CreativeCommons license. As long as you follow the terms of the license, you may use the images without contacting the photographer and asking permission.

The conditions in CreativeCommons licenses vary. Generally, you are required to credit the photographer. Some do not allow commercial use, so you could not use them on a site where you are making money (or trying to make money). Some do not allow you to modify the images, so you would have to use them as-is. You could change the size of the image, but not crop it or modify it in other ways.

There are other sites that allow free use of images. Some require that you get permission first, others do not. One that has a fairly good collection is sxc.hu. Do a search on this forum and you will find information about others.

You may not simply do a Google image search and grab anything you want. That is illegal and it could get you sued.

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King Shiloh

Banned 16 years ago

Simple answer? It's illegal if you didn't put it there. And if you've got no copyright permission to use it.

Some people use it without troubles but you might use it and someone who probably doesn't like your face might sue your ass.

Stay away from trouble.

If you use this forum's search function, you would see a lot of good suggestions as regards where you can get free stock photos/images.

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Linda Hepworth

16 years ago

freedigitalphotos.net is another free pic site.

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flx89

16 years ago

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

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Gail_Curran

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

This could not be more WRONG. You do this, you are a thief. Plain and simple.

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GuruGazette 16 years ago

Originally Posted by Gail_Curran

This could not be more WRONG. You do this, you are a thief. Plain and simple.

Not to mention s/he could be sued and fined up to $250,000 (two hundred and fifty thousand dollars) for EACH infringement.
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Kierkegaard

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

This is so wrong, you must actually be joking.

The owner of the picture automatically has copyright, it doesn't matter whether he watermarks it or not. The same goes for text, it doesn't matter whether the author/owner puts a copyright notice on the page... unless... the owner puts up a notice saying that the work is copyright free.

The images on Wikipedia have the copyright information clearly labelled. A lot of them state that you are free to use them.

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wtatlas

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

This is incorrect. The creator of an photograph is automatically granted copyright of his/her creation. (If a photographer has taken a photo on commission then he/she may have passed the copyright to whoever commissioned the work).

The image does not have to be watermarked or annotated in any way at all in order for it to be protected by copyright. You should NOT just copy and use an image without seeking the copyright holder's permission and if you can't find out who the copyright holder is you should not use the image.

Putting a disclaimer such as "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image" has no legal weight at all and someone who uses images in this way could be open to prosecution for copyright infringement.

There are many images that are in the Public Domain and can be freely used but the onus is on you to make sure they are in the Public Domain.

I write from the point of view of a former professional photographer who is a little tired of the ignorance that abounds on this subject.

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Tina Golden

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

Try that with a Getty image and see how that works...LOL.

Tina

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Devid Farah

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

What?

The safest thing you can do is going to famous websites like Stock Photography: Download Free Stock Photos & Royalty Free Images , Stock Photos & Vector Art : Bigstock™ - Royalty Free Stock Photography , Stock Photography: Search Royalty Free Images & Photos | iStockphoto.com and buy the RIGHTS to use those photos.

The_icon you can find free images but i strongly suggest you to visit those sites and buy the rights of professional,high quality photos to put on your websites.

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Alexa Smith Banned 16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it .

I'm astonished that people can really believe this. It's completely wrong.
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scrofford

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

You are playing with fire...unless you get permission from the owner, you are breaking the law and can have legal action taken against you.

Not to mention, if I saw one of my pictures on your website and you hadn't asked to use it, I would lose a lot of respect for your business and tell everyone I know. Sooner or later your reputation will go down hill if you use content without permission. Then you will have a hard time making money because nobody wants to do business with you.

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Richard Van

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

Sorry to sound like a broken record but I'm absolutley astounded what you've written. I'm so glad so many people have also chimed in on this, that way some poor unsuspecting person doesn't follow you're awful advice.

For your own sake take a look at all your sites and make any adjustments to any photographic content you may have on them, in light of the advice you've recieved since you made your post.

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Michael Oksa

16 years ago

Your best bet is to assume you have NO RIGHTS to use ANY image, unless permission is explicitly and specifically given.

That being said, those who hold copyrights to photographs do more to protect their copyright than just about anyone else. Seriously, you don't want to take chances with images.

All the best,
Michael

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bobsilber 16 years ago

I've represented some big name, honest marketers that have outsourced to designers that have used copyrighted images, without the marketer's knowledge. The marketer is still liable for infringement.

There are some very big companies out there that track images on the Internet very successfully and make a lot of money settling the copyright infringement claims.

.
.
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82ana

16 years ago

If you are serious about your business and are developing it for long term potential.

1: I would highly suggest you buy some high quality images from reputed sites. (I use iStock).

2: If you do not have a lot money to invest, buy stock photos that you can manipulate for versatility yourself. (Mayang's Free Texture Library I used to use them for textures and stock (they are free for non-commercial use))

3: Try sites like stock.xchng - the leading free stock photography site or deviantart for free images (read licenses not all are free) without reselling or commercial rights.

or

4: use your mobile phone to snap up pics and treat them in PS to give them a style that is unique to your content. (add value)

Hope that helps,
S

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the_icon

16 years ago

Thanks for all the replies guys and galls

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howard542

16 years ago

Free ones usually require a link back to the site you got the images from... Paid images usually means you can use the images without being obligated to link back..

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Emilis Strimaitis 16 years ago

You can always use free images (royalty free).

There's a great site that's just like iStockPhoto just it's totally free

stock.xchng - the leading free stock photography site

Or you can head to google image search, press advanced settings and select option that you can use and edit images however you want (even commercially), and run a search on your keyword!

Hope that helps!
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- TZ 16 years ago
  
  Here we go again.
  
  The great moral debate on images.
  
  People steal our images all day, and especially at night from overseas. It bothers my wife when they steal from her recipe site.
  
  I couldn't care less if they "steal" my images.
  
  The only time I make sure not to use someone elses images is if they obviously spent a bunch of money on the image, it's their artwork (then I give them a link), or if they ask you not to use their images.
  
  Usually when I "steal" an image using Bing or Google, I grab the massive ones and use a very small corner or chunk of it and then add my own stuff. It's like "stealing" a chord pattern from a song and changing the words, the melody, phrasing, and tempo.
  
  How anal do we need to be?
  
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JustinAtlan

16 years ago

Nope technically every thing is copyright protected automatically. You need permission .

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VegasGreg

16 years ago

Originally Posted by flx89

every photo it's free to use if it does not have a watermark on it . To be completely sure you will not have problems , just post at the end of your website "If you are the copyright holder of a image shown on MY WEBSITE we will be more than happy to remove the image"

150,000 reasons why you can NOT do that:
http://www.warriorforum.com/main-int...le-images.html

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Using Images From The Web. Legal?

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