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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Facebook and your images
Dave Collyer, Photographer
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Los Angeles | CA | USA | Posted: 5:03 PM on 07.03.10 |
->> I have a dilemma. My clients hire me to shoot their surf trips and my images are starting to appear all over Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and other social sites. Additionally, I have agreements with some of the surf travel agents that support my activities and the same images I trade out with them for website promotion end up on their 'fan pages'.
While the images are small, there is usually some kind of photo credit, and the metadata seems to be in tact, I worry about this to some degree because I also sell these images as stock. Although the clients agree to 'personal use' and 'no commercial use' of the images, they would probably be surprised,and maybe even pissed off, if I mentioned not using their photos on facebook (for most of them it is almost the whole reason they hired me in the first place). Same with the surf travel agents ("What? I am trying to promote US!" they might say).
Is it better to let this go and bask in the glory of social networking and it's potential promotion, or do I discourage or even start tracking and asking for removal of my images?
Thanks for your thoughts and Happy 4th of July!!! |
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Steven E. Frischling, Photographer
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| | | Posted: 5:25 PM on 07.03.10 |
->> Dave
In short, the terms of service for Facebook are NOT in your favour. Facebook does not seem to care if the photos are posted with or without consent and images placed on Facebook may be used 'royalty free' ... regardless of the legal status of the person who posted it.
It is great for wedding and portrait photogs, but it can be a huge problem for commercial shooters.
Through my work consulting some very large corporations in the area of social media, I either advise them to skip Facebook, or if they must use it as part of a total social media solution, to use visual content very sparingly and watermarked.
Some listen, some don't ... the legal departments of all these companies seem to despise Facebook and they see the clear danger in Facebook's TOS. |
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Dave Einsel, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Houston | TX | United States | Posted: 6:00 PM on 07.03.10 |
->> Embrace the horror!
Clearly, your clients are posting the images so you have two options.
Explain to them that they cannot use your work in that manner and probably lose them as a client or...
Help them do the right thing by delivering files you have prepared specifically for their social media needs and bill them for it. You would then be in command of image size, watermarking, embedded metadata, etc.
Of course they could still use other images you supply to them at which point, only you can decide if you wish to continue doing business with them.
It is a tough situation that will not be going away anytime soon. |
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John Korduner, Photographer
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Baton Rouge | LA | United States | Posted: 6:32 PM on 07.03.10 |
->> Now that FB recently retained O’Melveny & Myers to defend its privacy policies, I wouldn't expect the users' position to improve.
However, I struggle to connect any economic loss incurred by somebody's use of a 450x450 photo. But, I must also admit that I'm an attorney who's guilty of using other people's photos on FB, and didn't realize it was an issue until I began frequenting this site. |
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Jamey Price, Photographer, Assistant
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Charlotte | NC | USA | Posted: 7:20 PM on 07.03.10 |
| ->> Yeah. I would say build facebook use into the invoice. Mark it up 10-15% and explain that you would love for them to use your images on facebook with a watermark or photo credit, but that they will be billed accordingly from now on whether or not they use the images on social media or not. |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 12:24 AM on 07.04.10 |
->> "I have agreements with some of the surf travel agents that support my activities and the same images I trade out"
sorry don't wanna be an ass but this kinda sounds like you're working for free. and if I sound like an ass I'll apologize but I've seen two photographers in my area get screwed by people stealing their stuff in the last week. and it's all caused by people working on spec. |
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Dave Collyer, Photographer
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Los Angeles | CA | USA | Posted: 12:57 AM on 07.04.10 |
->> Thanks for the comments so far everyone! I am constantly reminded of why I keep my membership going year after year..
I have started to watermark images for use on facebook and like the idea of a separate charge/price increase for social media use.
I, too, wonder about the value of the 450px image. What is it worth? What is it worth in the future? I hate giving it away or having it stolen.
@Chuck- I don't work for free or on 'spec', as I am compensated directly by the clients that hire me well in advance of the assignment. The trips usually take place on a yacht or a resort and the trade out (web images for their use) is to compensate them for accommodation, transport and food. I think it is a fair deal, although I often battle with several agents that want me to pay them (I refuse). Fortunately my clients back me up. Any suggestions from those in a similar situation are welcome. |
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Jonathan Nimerfroh, Photographer
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Shane Bevel, Photographer
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Tulsa | OK | USA | Posted: 1:31 AM on 07.04.10 |
->> What if you used a service like Animoto, geared towards photographers to create a slideshow and then posted a link to the facebook page of the folks who want it?
Lots of wedding photographers are doing this. Would it get you around the FB TOS? |
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