There are some true scumbags out there..

yvonneyvonne Registered Users Posts: 193 Major grins
edited February 20, 2005 in Mind Your Own Business
Have a look at the website of one john falk at www.jfalkphoto.com

Now compare and contrast with incredibly talented UK wedding photographer

www.jeffascough.com

Notice the similarity in design.

Now go to the portfolio pages... hmmm.

But where it gets really astounding is that when you go to "dates" and select 2006 - he's actually forgotten to take Jeff's name off the footer.

Unbelievable!!!:huh
www.ybphotographic.com
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Comments

  • gubbsgubbs Registered Users Posts: 3,166 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Yvonne that's disgusting!!! Do you know Jeff? Has any action been taken to stop the scumbag?? There must be plenty of legal ammo to use!
    gubbs
    gubbs.smugmug.com

  • yvonneyvonne Registered Users Posts: 193 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    gubbs wrote:
    Yvonne that's disgusting!!! Do you know Jeff? Has any action been taken to stop the scumbag?? There must be plenty of legal ammo to use!
    Not personally, but to chat to on a pro forum. He's currently considering his best course of action, given that the guy is in the US. He's already tried to call him (it's about 3am there) but his wife answered and claimed he wasn't there. I suspect his email inbox is currently brimming with hatemail from Jeff's friends.
    www.ybphotographic.com
  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    He needs some help from a good old fasion debt collector...actually i know one whos not busy & has a ticket to CA deal.gifgerg.gif


    I cant believe some people would do that & not expect some legal trouble.
  • yvonneyvonne Registered Users Posts: 193 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    I reckon he probably thought because they're in different country's no one would ever notice... he's such a plank though, that he didn't actually sever the links to Jeff's site... so everytime he got a hit, it showed up in jeff's hits stats.. that's how he found out!
    www.ybphotographic.com
  • wxwaxwxwax Registered Users Posts: 15,471 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Wow, what a dishonest little reptile. I wonder how much business he's drummed up using someone else's portfolio? Unfortunately, the way the wedding business works, I somehow doubt that being caught will affect his ability to recruit clients.
    Sid.
    Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam
    http://www.mcneel.com/users/jb/foghorn/ill_shut_up.au
  • yvonneyvonne Registered Users Posts: 193 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    wxwax wrote:
    Wow, what a dishonest little reptile. I wonder how much business he's drummed up using someone else's portfolio? Unfortunately, the way the wedding business works, I somehow doubt that being caught will affect his ability to recruit clients.
    Oh it will.. Jeff is going to take it to the local press and expose him for the fraud that the is. Even though he is UK based, he's also well recognised stateside with articles written about him in the Washington Post. This one will run for a bit, I reckon..

    What amazes me, is what excuse does J Falk offer his brides when his shots turn out to look NOTHING like Jeff's work?? Ooops, sorry, was having an off day??
    www.ybphotographic.com
  • BodwickBodwick Registered Users Posts: 396 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    wxwax wrote:
    Wow, what a dishonest little reptile. I wonder how much business he's drummed up using someone else's portfolio? Unfortunately, the way the wedding business works, I somehow doubt that being caught will affect his ability to recruit clients.

    Total scum......

    I'm tempted to PM IcyDeath & ask him to book this fool for a shoot at an AdvRider wedding..... :grim


    The use of other people's web templates is one thing and has gone on for years but to keep the content and claim it as your own is so out-of-order as to be beyond contempt.....


    Bod....
    "The important thing is to just take the picture with the lens you have when the picture happens."
    Jerry Lodriguss - Sports Photographer

    Reporters sans frontières
  • yvonneyvonne Registered Users Posts: 193 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Looks like he's cut the link now. Given that it is 4am there right now, me thinks he's had a bit of wakeup call!

    Of course he's too late... screenshots of the offending pages have been preserved.
    www.ybphotographic.com
  • BodwickBodwick Registered Users Posts: 396 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    yvonne wrote:
    Looks like he's cut the link now. Given that it is 4am there right now, me thinks he's had a bit of wakeup call!

    Of course he's too late... screenshots of the offending pages have been preserved.

    Yahoo has a cache of all the pages which will take time to replace...

    Give John a ring and let him know what you think...Or send him an e-mail..

    I might book him for a "Far and Away Event" The Congo is nice this time of year.......

    John Falk Photography
    Wedding and Portraiture
    Based in Simi Valley, California
    Covering all of Ventura and Los Angeles Countys
    Far and Away Events also available
    em: john@jfalkphoto.com
    ph: 805.469.8863
    "The important thing is to just take the picture with the lens you have when the picture happens."
    Jerry Lodriguss - Sports Photographer

    Reporters sans frontières
  • gubbsgubbs Registered Users Posts: 3,166 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    "icydeath" sounds like a pleasant chap rolleyes1.gif

    Makes you wonder how often this stuff happens. If this idiot had cut the links it would probably never have been noticed. How do you stop people fron doing this??
    gubbs
    gubbs.smugmug.com

  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited February 18, 2005
    Falk's page isn't even loading up for me right now (red x's). Maybe he's gotten the message?
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]

  • yvonneyvonne Registered Users Posts: 193 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    DoctorIt wrote:
    Falk's page isn't even loading up for me right now (red x's). Maybe he's gotten the message?
    Oh he did.

    He came on to DP Challenge to say he's sorry, that he doesn't know much about website design and was just getting a bit of help (by ripping off someone else's site), and that he didn't know the photos had loaded too (what, so he didn't see the fact that all "his" pictures were in fact not his?), and that there was no ill intention.

    I happen to think that's absolute b*lll*x. He's been in the business a long time, he knows about copyright, and to represent yourself with someone else's photos is NOT an accident. Of course this is just my opinion....mwink.gif

    edit:

    Incidentally, if you click this link, it's still there.. he's only taken down the front page:
    http://www.jfalkphoto.com/portfolio.htm
    www.ybphotographic.com
  • ginger_55ginger_55 Registered Users Posts: 8,416 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    The guy he is ripping off really does good work! Maybe he can turn this around and use it as advertising, not that he probably needed it.

    Best wedding photos I have seen.

    ginger
    After all is said and done, it is the sweet tea.
  • AngeloAngelo Super Moderators Posts: 8,937 moderator
    edited February 18, 2005
    Yvonne - good job exposing this sleaze.
    yvonne wrote:
    Have a look at the website of one john falk at www.jfalkphoto.com


    Unbelievable!!!eek7.gif
    www.angelo.smugmug.com

    Moderator of: Location, Location, Location , Mind Your Own Business & Other Cool Shots
  • fishfish Registered Users Posts: 2,950 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    wow...interesting story. Thanks for posting, yvonne.
    "Consulting the rules of composition before taking a photograph, is like consulting the laws of gravity before going for a walk." - Edward Weston
    "The Edge... there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over."-Hunter S.Thompson
  • SeymoreSeymore Banned Posts: 1,539 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    yvonne wrote:
    Oh he did.

    He came on to DP Challenge to say he's sorry, that he doesn't know much about website design and was just getting a bit of help (by ripping off someone else's site), and that he didn't know the photos had loaded too (what, so he didn't see the fact that all "his" pictures were in fact not his?), and that there was no ill intention.

    I happen to think that's absolute b*lll*x. He's been in the business a long time, he knows about copyright, and to represent yourself with someone else's photos is NOT an accident. Of course this is just my opinion....mwink.gif

    edit:

    Incidentally, if you click this link, it's still there.. he's only taken down the front page:
    http://www.jfalkphoto.com/portfolio.htm
    I had an actual conversation with the photog in question, and can tell you that he was quite unaware of the problem until his wife called him at 3am. Turns out that he is on a shoot in South Beach Fl, he took about 10min away from the shoot and here's what he had to say to me... (not word for word, but I think you'll understand)

    John Falk (JF) had "a kid" he knows, creating a WEB site for him and they were looking at some sites to get a feel for what JF was looking for. Jeff Ascough's site was a choice of JF because of the simplistic layout. It is obvious that "the kid" used the whole site and just began changing things as needed to reflect the different person. The plans were to use the site as a template for the JF site.


    JF stated to me that he is a 30 year photog, and knows NOTHING about building a WEB site.

    The site has been taken down for the legal reasons we all know, and even though JF was busy when I spoke with him, he gave me permission to relay this story to you. Please note that I DO NOT know this person, but can only suspect that his words are honest and intensions were misconstrued at the origin. I also suspect his "kid" (WEB master), will get a bit of a lecture about the legalities of his mistake.

    Hope this explains the "mistake" as relayed to me...
  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited February 18, 2005
    Seymore wrote:

    John Falk (JF) had "a kid" he knows, creating a WEB site for him and they were looking at some sites to get a feel for what JF was looking for. Jeff Ascough's site was a choice of JF because of the simplistic layout. It is obvious that "the kid" used the whole site and just began changing things as needed to reflect the different person. The plans were to use the site as a template for the JF site.


    JF stated to me that he is a 30 year photog, and knows NOTHING about building a WEB site.
    This makes a lot sense. Give the guy a chance, eh? Imitation is the highest form of flattery, no?
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]

  • NikolaiNikolai Registered Users Posts: 19,035 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Proves extra time
    Seymore wrote:
    I had an actual conversation with the photog in question, ...
    You get what you paid for. Just come think of it: save a few bucks on "a kid" and get - presumably - 30 yrs of repuation potentially ruined overnight..

    Hey, David (TO), do you happen to know the guy? I mean, Simi and TO, we're practically neighbours, but I only lived here for 3+ years, and having my a$$ at work all the time didn't get me a chance to look around for photogs..
    "May the f/stop be with you!"
  • DavidTODavidTO Registered Users, Retired Mod Posts: 19,160 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Nikolai wrote:
    You get what you paid for. Just come think of it: save a few bucks on "a kid" and get - presumably - 30 yrs of repuation potentially ruined overnight..

    Hey, David (TO), do you happen to know the guy? I mean, Simi and TO, we're practically neighbours, but I only lived here for 3+ years, and having my a$$ at work all the time didn't get me a chance to look around for photogs..

    Nope, don't know him.

    But he lives close, that's for sure.

    I've been in TO for 16.

    Man, I'm getting old.
    Moderator Emeritus
    Dgrin FAQ | Me | Workshops
  • SeymoreSeymore Banned Posts: 1,539 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    DoctorIt wrote:
    This makes a lot sense. Give the guy a chance, eh? Imitation is the highest form of flattery, no?
    True... True... But I'm FAVin' that URL. I want to see what happens in 30 days. The guy has a domain name, so I suspect there will be a site there... sooner or later.

    TO EVERYONE:
    BTW, he "sounded" sincere to me. But, I also got to hear his voice. OH, and DON'T everyone call him... you'll probably piss him off. Put yourself in his shoes for the phone calls. OH, and can get your numbers also... connections... connections... connections... :D


    Nikolai wrote:
    You get what you paid for. Just come think of it: save a few bucks on "a kid" and get - presumably - 30 yrs of repuation potentially ruined overnight..

    Hey, David (TO), do you happen to know the guy? I mean, Simi and TO, we're practically neighbours, but I only lived here for 3+ years, and having my a$$ at work all the time didn't get me a chance to look around for photogs..
    Yea Nik... you are close. I actually lived in Simi back in 90-92'. But, I'd let this settle down for a few months before I went to find the guy.

    I hope he learns and the "kid" get a life long lesson from this. You can really only screwup once. The 2nd time may mean jail.
  • AngeloAngelo Super Moderators Posts: 8,937 moderator
    edited February 18, 2005
    well this "kid" needs a lesson or two. he should've been building the new site and posting working views on an FTP site for the photog to see and approve, before publishing to the www. silly boy!

    are we all guilty of mob reaction? tsk tsk tsk
    www.angelo.smugmug.com

    Moderator of: Location, Location, Location , Mind Your Own Business & Other Cool Shots
  • yvonneyvonne Registered Users Posts: 193 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Seymore wrote:

    John Falk (JF) had "a kid" he knows, creating a WEB site for him and they were looking at some sites to get a feel for what JF was looking for. Jeff Ascough's site was a choice of JF because of the simplistic layout. It is obvious that "the kid" used the whole site and just began changing things as needed to reflect the different person. The plans were to use the site as a template for the JF site.



    JF stated to me that he is a 30 year photog, and knows NOTHING about building a WEB site.
    Ok, I'm sorry, but I think this is complete b*ll. He's had all morning to come up with a story. Even IF he got some kid to build the site for him, the fact is that it IS his site, he IS responsible for what's on there, it WAS and still IS available to the viewing public. The only reason Jeff Ascough ever realised it was happening was because of the number of hits the site was generating. That means people were looking at the site. It was in the public domain.

    Having searched for a site to copy, they found one and went straight ahead.

    Well I'm sorry, even if he didn't phsycially download the site himself, he's certainly responsible.

    Ignorance really is no excuse.
    www.ybphotographic.com
  • wxwaxwxwax Registered Users Posts: 15,471 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Burn him! Burn him!
    Sid.
    Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum immane mittam
    http://www.mcneel.com/users/jb/foghorn/ill_shut_up.au
  • DoctorItDoctorIt Administrators Posts: 11,951 moderator
    edited February 18, 2005
    yvonne wrote:
    Ok, I'm sorry, but I think this is complete b*ll. He's had all morning to come up with a story. Even IF he got some kid to build the site for him, the fact is that it IS his site, he IS responsible for what's on there, it WAS and still IS available to the viewing public. The only reason Jeff Ascough ever realised it was happening was because of the number of hits the site was generating. That means people were looking at the site. It was in the public domain.

    Having searched for a site to copy, they found one and went straight ahead.

    Well I'm sorry, even if he didn't phsycially download the site himself, he's certainly responsible.

    Ignorance really is no excuse.
    [/indent]
    I realize this is bad, but honestly, you're starting to sound really biased. Like John Falk did you an injustice personally and/or Ascough is your best buddy.

    If Falk really is an old photographer that has someone building a website for him and he shoots on locations, you really think 24 hours of having a website up (especially if in fact it was stupidly made by someone else) is a horrible injustice?

    Everyone makes mistakes. If it wasn't malicious, give the guy a break.
    Erik
    moderator of: The Flea Market [ guidelines ]

  • SeymoreSeymore Banned Posts: 1,539 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    yvonne wrote:
    Ok, I'm sorry, but I think this is complete b*ll. He's had all morning to come up with a story. Even IF he got some kid to build the site for him, the fact is that it IS his site, he IS responsible for what's on there, it WAS and still IS available to the viewing public. The only reason Jeff Ascough ever realised it was happening was because of the number of hits the site was generating. That means people were looking at the site. It was in the public domain.

    Having searched for a site to copy, they found one and went straight ahead.

    Well I'm sorry, even if he didn't phsycially download the site himself, he's certainly responsible.

    Ignorance really is no excuse.
    I agree yvonne... But, shall we give the benefit of a doubt that this will be corrected? (let him prove his responsability) The home page is already down, and time will tell if this person is to be honest about the whole situation. Personally, I'll give the person a chance to correct the issue... Would you like a chance, if in his shoes?
  • SeymoreSeymore Banned Posts: 1,539 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    DoctorIt wrote:
    Everyone makes mistakes. If it wasn't malicious, give the guy a break.
    I concur...
  • gubbsgubbs Registered Users Posts: 3,166 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    wxwax wrote:
    Burn him! Burn him!
    Sid "the ruler of the wasteland" is on his way :yikes
    gubbs
    gubbs.smugmug.com

  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    gubbs wrote:
    Sid "the ruler of the wasteland" is on his way :yikes
    An eye opener of a job mate ...i'll give you the drum. I operated with this mad serbian bloke. I used to get $5 for each video i got back & that was my bread & butter but the most fun was getting the cars back.

    Remember barry the baptist mwink.gif
  • gubbsgubbs Registered Users Posts: 3,166 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    Humungus wrote:
    An eye opener of a job mate ...i'll give you the drum. I operated with this mad serbian bloke. I used to get $5 for each video i got back & that was my bread & butter but the most fun was getting the cars back.

    Remember barry the baptist mwink.gif
    You ever considered an auto biography, I'd buy it!!

    Lock stock nod.gif
    gubbs
    gubbs.smugmug.com

  • BodwickBodwick Registered Users Posts: 396 Major grins
    edited February 18, 2005
    DoctorIt wrote:
    I realize this is bad, but honestly, you're starting to sound really biased. Like John Falk did you an injustice personally and/or Ascough is your best buddy.

    If Falk really is an old photographer that has someone building a website for him and he shoots on locations,

    you really think 24 hours of having a website up (especially if in fact it was stupidly made by someone else) is a horrible injustice?

    Everyone makes mistakes. If it wasn't malicious, give the guy a break.



    Well it's all in Yahoo's cache. If Yahoo managed that in 24Hours then fine but having just got back from the pub I think a little investigation is in order...


    Smell blood......Yep....I do love a good fight once in a while...gerg.gif


    Hey fish......Did you help with the web hosting?rolleyes1.gif



    Bod....friday.gif
    "The important thing is to just take the picture with the lens you have when the picture happens."
    Jerry Lodriguss - Sports Photographer

    Reporters sans frontières
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