Copyright Revisited

Well, Facebook is going to close the account I’ve been using for quite some time because I won’t upload ID to them, however, I’ve had a second FB account since around 2015 that has been unused for months. I went ahead and transferred friends and groups to the 2015 account. Lets hope this is enough to satisfy FB because I don’t have a 3rd account. If FB decides to close down the 2015 account then I’m off FB for good. As I changed things over, a copyright issue came up.

I made a girl mad because I told her she can’t put my art on her blog without written permission and a small user fee. She said she gave proper credit. I said, the art says All Rights Reserved. She thought I was upset with her and said it’s not like we’re talking about Monet. I ignored her snark. She told me it was exposure. She used that word exposure as if somehow that word makes everything better. My eye is twitching right now. lol

Question. Would you be okay if a random company took your FB photo or a photo of your kid you put on your FB page and put it in their ads without telling you? You let them know that you’re in business and that using your image for free is against your long stated policies. They say they can use it because they found it on the internet. They insist they have a right to it. How do you feel? They aren’t going to budge, they’re going to take your face and plaster it wherever, whenever and demand that they have a right to it, after all, you’re not Angelina Jolie. ……. Then they say, well, it’s good exposure. You never asked them to expose you. They insist they mean no harm and insist it’s not a big deal and you’re over reacting…. See my point? The photo belongs to you, it’s a reflection of you and you have every single right to state how a photo of you is to be used on the net.

What does “All Rights Reserved” mean? It means the owner has the right to determine use of their images and/or content. 

I created the art work. I scanned it. I resized, cut it into smaller images to show detail. I upload in an entry here on my website. I do the same with Flickr, Redbubble and Etsy. These all need keywords and descriptions.  I add work to groups and get exposure on my terms. Even without a disability, this is time consuming. Going on FB is to network. I can’t just post and run. I have to visit around, check out other artwork, be in places where people are looking to buy art. I need to respond to comments and likes. This is a job that requires more than exposure dictated by someone else.

At the bottom of this entry are provided social media networks to share work.  Facebook, Reddit, Pinterest and Google+ are commonly acceptable sharing areas but when in doubt, ask the artist.

I wasn’t trying to anger this young lady but I did. Making people mad doesn’t help sell art but neither does remaining silent about “All Rights Reserved” only to eat Monet snark.

Please see How I Price My Art and the full  Copyright Statement.

I’m Sundrip.