Copyright & Image Permissions
Thank you for your interest in my photography.
Please see policy below regarding image copyright, image licensing and permissions for personal and commercial use, AI data training, social media use, and copyright infringement policy for stolen photography.
Please note: Rights to publish, display, transmit or otherwise "use" my images must be granted prior to your use. My images are registered with the United States Copyright Office/Library of Congress, and unauthorized use of my images is strictly prohibited. Official registration documents can be provided upon request to prove image ownership.
I am happy to provide prints and image licensing quotes upon request. Accurate quotes can be achieved by providing more information about your intended use.
Please use the contact me page to learn more.
WHAT IS COPYRIGHT?
A copyright is the exclusive legal right to reproduce, distribute, publicly display, or create derivative works from an original work. A copyright also gives the owner the exclusive right to license those usage rights to others. The current copyright term is the life of the creator plus 70 years. Copyright protection begins the moment a creative work, like a photograph, is created.
WHAT IS IMAGE LICENSING?
Image licensing is granting permission for use of intellectual property by a copyright owner. No copyright ownership rights are transferred. Licensing fees often vary based on the intended use.
WHY MUST YOU OBTAIN PERMISSION TO USE OTHER PEOPLES PHOTOGRAPHS?
In short, obtaining a license to use a photographer's work is required by US Copyright Law, (US Code Title 17) except a very few limited circumstances, and a certain criteria has to be met, for example... the 4 factors of fair use. If you wish to legally publish someone else's photography and not worry about the potential of copyright infringement, you will need to obtain permission first. My photography is copyright protected and a license is required to use any image. Please reach out and I'll be happy to write you a quote for your specifc usage.
COMMERCIAL USE
My images may be licensed for commercial use, depending on your intended use. Prior permission is always required. Some commercial examples may include but not limited to company web pages, product labels, books, merchandise, magazines, most apps, and advertising. Artists using images as reference for painting can also be a commercial use, see derivative artwork for more.
PERSONAL USE
My images are available for purchase in print form as well as canvas gallery wraps and metal prints. If you would like to purchase an image for personal use beyond this, please reach out with an image description of the image you wish to use along with your intended usage and I will be happy to provide you a quote for licensing. See derivative artwork section if you are a hobby artist wanting to use an image as a reference.
SOCIAL MEDIA - COMMERCIAL USE
Use of my photographs in social media (any & all platforms), by commercial entities, including monetized content creator pages, is the same as "Commercial Use." This usage requires a licensing agreement prior to use.
SOCIAL MEDIA - PERSONAL USE
I do not mind people sharing my images on social media using the dedicated "share" button on whichever platform. That is the purpose of such button, as it links back to the original content from the artist. Personal use beyond this context requires permission. Re posting as your own image creates an unauthorized copy and constitutes infringement. See below on copyright infringement.
DERIVATIVE ARTWORKS
Prior permission is required to copy all or parts of my photographs in any derivative artwork. This includes but not limited to professional and hobby artists. Some adaptations may be considered fair use, and other derivative copies will need a formal licensing agreement.
Please ASK BEFORE starting to paint something. If I discover a derivative and permission was not granted, it will be treated as copyright infringement. See "Copyright Infringement Policy" below.
USING IMAGES AS AI TRAINING DATA
I do not allow my images to be used for artificial intelligence. I do not allow my images to be training data for ANY Large Language Model (LLM), ANY generative AI, image generator, or any other artificial intelligence programs or models. Zero tolerance. Note, use of my images in artificial intelligence image generator in this context requires full copyright rights transfer and payment IN FULL for said image rights. Unauthorized use in artificial intelligence is copyright infringement. See www.copyright.gov/ai for more on artificial intelligence and copyright laws.
COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT POLICY
Unfortunately, I have dealt with various very serious copyright infringements and discovering my work stolen over the internet. I have implemented the following policy in attempt to maintain control over my work.
Unauthorized non-commercial uses of my copyrighted images are subject to DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) take down requests on whichever web service or platform hosting images in question, without advanced notice.
Unauthorized commercial copyright infringements will be handled by legal counsel, which may result in legal action to recover actual damages or statutory damages outlined in Title 17, Section 504 of the United Stated Copyright laws. I have a zero tolerance policy on such instances.