A question about releases

LiveAwake

Hey all, my question stems from a specific quandary about submitting photos to a photo contest for National Geographic, but is probably applicable to a much larger set of circumstances. Basically, I have pictures of people from my travels in other countries, and I want to know when I can or cannot use/display/publish/submit to contests etc.

In this particular case, the contest rules state the following:

If the photograph contains any material or elements that are not owned by the entrant and/or which are subject to the rights of third parties, and/or if any persons appear in the photograph, the entrant is responsible for obtaining, prior to submission of the photograph, any and all releases and consents necessary to permit the exhibition and use of the photograph in the manner set forth in these Official Rules without additional compensation. If any person appearing in any photograph is under the age of majority in their state/province/territory of residence the signature of a parent or legal guardian is required on each release.
Upon Sponsor's request, each entrant must be prepared to provide (within seven (7) calendar days of receipt of Sponsor's request) a signed release from all persons who appear in the photograph submitted, and/or from the owner of any material that appears in the photograph entry, authorizing Sponsor and its licensees ("Authorized Parties") to reproduce, distribute, display, and create derivative works of the entry in connection with the Contest and promotion of the Contest, in any media now or hereafter known. All releases must be in the form provided by Sponsor. Failure to provide such releases upon request may result in disqualification at any time during the Contest and selection of an alternate winner

Given that I do not have, and have no way of obtaining, releases from any of the people that I took pictures of overseas, is there any legal/acceptable way for me to submit these photos and not get disqualified?

And, more broadly, can I display or otherwise use these photos without legal problems? I asked people verbally if they would mind me taking their picture, but I certainly didn't get them to sign anything . . .

Thanks in advance for your help and advice.

Joe Dukovac

I've done a lot of reading regarding the matter of release forms, and by no means am I an expert in this area. That being said, it's my understanding that you can use a photo of someone who was taken in public and use it for your portfolio, or any "reasonable" use as long as you are no profiting from it.

Now, if the contest rules say you need a release form, then in my opinion, you are stuck abiding by the rules. After all, their contest, their rules. Of course every state has their own spin on what is ok and what is not, so you should probably look into it.

When ever I shoot a model, or a family, I always ask them if I could use their photos for my portfolio (even if I am not going to....you never know), and if they say yes, I ask them if they wouldn't mind signing a release form to keep on file. I've never had an issue doing this. Property waivers are also important, because if you take a shot of a nice Lamborghini say, and you captured the license plate with it, then you can directly tie that back to the owner and they could essentially make a stink about it, same goes for any private property.

There is an interesting blog at http://www.photosandthelaw.com/2009/07/14/what-is-the-deal-with-model-release-forms-when-are-they-needed-and-why/ that you could read. It's written by a media lawyer, and it might be helpful.

I usually keep this rule in mind: If the picture was taken in public, then fair game unless you want to use it commercially (Making a profit from it). Studio shots, I always ask for release forms. ANYTHING shot that is private property, I get a release form if I plan on using it.

I hope this helps a bit. I think though, that for the contest, you might be boned because it is their rules. You could always try and get in touch with someone that is running the contest and ask them. They might be able to give you a better anwser than the ramblings of a mental patient such as I

Joe

LiveAwake

Joe Dukovac wrote:

I've done a lot of reading regarding the matter of release forms, and by no means am I an expert in this area. That being said, it's my understanding that you can use a photo of someone who was taken in public and use it for your portfolio, or any "reasonable" use as long as you are no profiting from it.

Now, if the contest rules say you need a release form, then in my opinion, you are stuck abiding by the rules. After all, their contest, their rules. Of course every state has their own spin on what is ok and what is not, so you should probably look into it.

When ever I shoot a model, or a family, I always ask them if I could use their photos for my portfolio (even if I am not going to....you never know), and if they say yes, I ask them if they wouldn't mind signing a release form to keep on file. I've never had an issue doing this. Property waivers are also important, because if you take a shot of a nice Lamborghini say, and you captured the license plate with it, then you can directly tie that back to the owner and they could essentially make a stink about it, same goes for any private property.

There is an interesting blog at http://www.photosandthelaw.com/2009/07/14/what-is-the-deal-with-model-release-forms-when-are-they-needed-and-why/ that you could read. It's written by a media lawyer, and it might be helpful.

I usually keep this rule in mind: If the picture was taken in public, then fair game unless you want to use it commercially (Making a profit from it). Studio shots, I always ask for release forms. ANYTHING shot that is private property, I get a release form if I plan on using it.

I hope this helps a bit. I think though, that for the contest, you might be boned because it is their rules. You could always try and get in touch with someone that is running the contest and ask them. They might be able to give you a better anwser than the ramblings of a mental patient such as I

Joe

Hey Joe, thanks for your reply and the useful info. I think you are probably right about the contest, though I seem to remember hearing somewhere that releases/waivers weren't required for pictures taken in other countries. . . . legally, anyway. I guess morally is another question, but since I did ask people verbally, I wouldn't be too worried on that front.

D'Buggs

Joe Dukovac wrote:

a better anwser than the ramblings of a mental patient such as I

Joe

Joe, I'm in room 312 of the east wing... Stop in sometime, we could play a game of crazy eights.

Toshido

Ambientlight.ca has a nice article on Canadian law which I think ALL Canadian photographers should read.

http://ambientlight.ca/laws.php


Basically it seems from this webpage that you can use any legally obtained photograph for just about anything, including selling and making a profit from it.

When releases are needed is when an identifiable person or unique object, etc... is used to promote, either explicitly or implicitly, a product or service.

Where I am a little less clear is about promoting your service as a photographer....

Either way though, if the rules of the competition require model releases you are FUBAR.

Blaker

If the contest requires releases, then you must have releases. According to the rules, all photographers who enter the contest grant perpetual rights for all media to Nat'l Geo to promote the contest. Thus, your photo could be used in ads by Nat'l Geo, and ads require model releases. So they are just covering all their bases by requiring model releases for all recognizeable persons in your photos.

From the Nat'l Geographic rules:
By entering the Contest, all entrants grant an irrevocable perpetual, nonexclusive license to Authorized Parties, to reproduce, distribute, display, and create derivative works of the entries (along with a name credit) in connection with the Contest and promotion of the Contest, in any media now or hereafter known, including, but not limited to: display at a potential exhibition of winners; publication of a book featuring select entries in the Contest; publication in National Geographic magazine or online highlighting entries or winners of the Contest.

bendruckerphoto

LiveAwake wrote:

I seem to remember hearing somewhere that releases/waivers weren't required for pictures taken in other countries. . . . legally, anyway.

Not true at all. Unlikely that you would be sued in a U.S. court for the use, but certainly not impossible. Just because someone is from another country doesn't mean you can abandon copyright and other usage laws.

One example was a woman from Africa who had her picture taken by a photographer. The photographer set up a little model shoot, and asked for volunteers who'd get a small compensation. He sold the photo to Macy's for a huge ad. Without a model release. Meanwhile, the woman married an American man, moved to New York, and, happened to go into Macy's. The one Macy's where this ads was being run. In the one month when it was being run. She and her husband hired a lawyer, sued the photographer, and won a lot of money.

Is this a 1 in a million occurrence? Probably, yes. But why risk a lawsuit by not getting a piece of paper signed? It's just not worth it.

Angelo

LiveAwake wrote:

... Given that I do not have, and have no way of obtaining, releases from any of the people that I took pictures of overseas, is there any legal/acceptable way for me to submit these photos and not get disqualified?...

No!

LiveAwake wrote:

...And, more broadly, can I display or otherwise use these photos...

you can do just about anything EXCEPT allow third party use for commercial purposes.

.

Angelo

Joe Dukovac wrote:

...it's my understanding that you can use a photo of someone who was taken in public and use it for your portfolio, or any "reasonable" use as long as you are no profiting from it.

reasonable use is not defined in law and you certainly may profit from your work in the form of selling art prints, however you may not allow others to use those same images for commercial purposes.

LiveAwake

Thanks everyone for your responses. There's a lot of information to navigate here and I appreciate some simplified tidbits from those of you who have been navigating it for a while.