Last I knew there was a ruling that said photographs of works of art needed to show their own originality in order to be protected by copyright. 


>>> [log in to unmask] 08/14/03 08:33AM >>>
> ONLY if the photograph is still copyright. If it is out of copyright i.e.
> Public Domain (which it may well be in a historic collection), it can
> actually be very hard to control the later use of images from your
> collection.
> 
> Even with a usage agreement, once you have provided a copy, 
> they are to a great extent free to make further copies and the agreement is 
> much harder to enforce without the backing of copyright (it's hard enough > with the backing of copyright... I can tell you first hand).
> 

Your licence agreement (or license if you prefer!) should explicitly limit their use of the image to that agreed (and paid for if required). Any other use would then be in breach, even if the image itself is out of copyright. This is a good idea even when you do hold the copyright in the image, as you can set your own terms (as opposed to copyright where the terms are set by statute).

Institutions often lend slides of artworks, particularly paintings. These may be covered by copyright, even when the artwork itself is not. Whether the same would apply to copies of photographs is uncertain, at least in the UK -- I've been to a number of copyright seminars and never had a better answer than, 'Hmmm, that's a good question.'

It might even be of some use to at least get people to make their requests in writing, explicitly stating the purpose they want the image for -- would that be enough to create an implied contract? Obviously a phone agreement is also a contract, but not worth the paper...etc.

Pete
-- 
Peter M Gray
Museums Officer
East Lothian Council



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