Copyright

Questions are frequently asked about who owns the photographs / copyright that have been taken. Under current EU law, unless specifically agreed otherwise, copyright in the photographs remains with the photographer - even when the photographer has been paid to take the photographs.

In brief, the main points are:

Copyright allows the photographer the right to control how their images may be used. This right is given by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act of 1988. Further details can be found on the web site of the Editorial Photographers United Kingdom and Ireland, with a direct link to the section on copyright here.

Licensing is a means to allow the photographer to keep the copyright in their work and give their clients the ability to use the images in a number of different ways as required. Effectively, images are 'hired' under agreements that can be as specific or wide ranging as needed or agreed.

This means the intended use of the images must be discussed and agreed as part of the contract for the assignment. Any use outside of this contract must be re-negotiated - in advance - with the photographer to avoid breaking the law and the outcome of the negotiation(s) agreed in writing.

As the digital age makes it so easy to copy images from the screen, to minimise theft, I have been forced to add a copyright symbol to many of the images on this site. While this does not prevent the image being downloaded, it does make the subsequent use of it more difficult.

A derivative work is a work that is based on (derived from) another work; for example a painting based on a photograph, a collage, a musical work based on an existing piece or samples, a screenplay based on a book. If you would like to utilise one or more of my images in this way, then please contact me to discuss and agree before you proceed.