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Finding Photos for Your Business Promos |
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| Do you own the photos that you’re using for your website, brochure, or advertising piece? Are you sure? Many people don’t realize that photographs, like written material, are copyrighted automatically in Canada when they are created. The copyright belongs to whoever created them. That means that you can’t just find a photograph you like somewhere on the internet, and copy it for your use. If you do, and the owner finds out, your “free” photo could turn out to be very costly indeed! If you already know this, you may have looked at art and photos, and been taken aback at the cost. Purchasing the rights to a photo can be very expensive. Sometimes, you never actually own the photo at all – you just have to pay the owner a “royalty” each and every time you use the photo. But wait – there’s hope! The world is full of amateur photographers who take amazing photos – and then make them available for free or for a tiny price on the internet. If you’re interested, search “royalty-free photos”, and see how many sites pop up! Like all internet shopping, though, research the site and read the terms of use carefully. If you can’t find any terms of use for the photos, don’t take a chance. Not all sites are legit, and you don’t want to unwittingly violate copyright because someone else has stolen a picture and offered it for download. Legitimate sites will describe when, how, and how often you can use the photos, and whether there are conditions of use that you must fulfil. For example, some sites will allow you to download and use any of their photos free of charge, but you must include a link or reference to the owner of the photo. Other sites will charge you a small fee, which then entitles you to use the photos under certain conditions, or a certain number of times. BigFoto is an example of a site that allows free downloads, with a link or reference – go to http://www.bigfoto.com/. Other sites, like Morguefile (http://www.morguefile.com/archive/), allow you to download and use the photos at no charge, but you do not have any ownership or rights to the photo other than for the use described in the license agreement. And no, Morguefile isn’t a gruesome reference – it refers to a newspaper “morgue”, where archives are kept. My personal favourite is iStockPhoto (http://www.istockphoto.com) – they’re “Canadian, eh?” And better still, they’re here in Calgary! Their terms are a little more restrictive than some of the others, and you do have to pay a little for the photos. You buy credits at about $1.50 each, and then you can spend the credits on photos (1 credit for a small one, 3 credits for medium, etc.) But I like knowing that I’m supporting a local business, and I like feeling confident that I truly do own the rights to use their images. Best of all, they’re well organized and they’ve got a good search engine. So go out and play – just remember to read the fine print. Oh, and be prepared to spend some enjoyable time – there are some superb photos out there! By: Diane Henders, Bright Ideas Personalized Learning Inc. For more information or computer training services, please call Bright Ideas Personalized Learning at (403) 269-2347. |
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