Paparazzi: Claiming Your Right to Photos and Videos
As professional paparazzi, you have a unique set of challenges when it comes to protecting your work and asserting your legal rights. Whether you are taking photos or videos on assignment as an independent photojournalist for a news outlet, or capturing candid images of celebrities out in public, copyright law is an important tool for ensuring that your work is not infringed upon by others.
To successfully sue someone who has infringed on your copyright, you need to be able to prove that you are the rightful owner of the photos or videos in question. You will also need to prove that the infringing party used your work in a way that was not permitted by copyright law or a license between you and the infringing party.
Proving the Photograph is Yours
To succeed in a lawsuit for copyright violation, you need to prove the image is yours. If the copyright is not yours, or you do not hold a license or assignment of rights in that image, you have no right to sue on the alleged infringement.
In most cases, this means that you must be able to prove that you created the image in question.
There are a number of ways to do this, including using copyright registration and watermarking your work or using digital rights management (DRM) software. Creating a record establishing that you took a photograph at a specific date and time, can help you prove ownership in the event of a copyright dispute.
Use of Copyright Registration to Prove Ownership of the Copyrighted Image
One of the key ways to prove ownership of photographs is through copyright registration. This involves submitting a copy of your photograph to the U.S. Copyright Office, which will then examine your work and assign it a unique identifying number called a “copyright registration certificate.”
This certificate can be used in court as evidence that you own the image in question, and are therefore entitled to enforce your rights under copyright law. In order to be effective, the copyright registration certificate must be registered within a reasonable amount of time from when you created the photograph in question.
Note that if you want to sue for statutory damages, you need to have registered your image with the U.S. Copyright Office within 3 months of first publishing it or registered, whether published or unpublished, prior to the infringement to secure statutory damages.
For this reason, many paparazzi choose to register their images promptly after taking them, so that they have both proof of the creation of the image as well as the ability to secure statutory damages in the event of a copyright violation lawsuit.
Using Watermarking and Digital Rights Management Software
Another way to prove ownership of your photographs is through watermarking or using digital rights management software. Both of these techniques help you secure the copyright to a photograph, and prevent others from copying or sharing it without your consent.
Watermarking involves embedding information within an image that identifies you as its creator, such as your name, website address, or copyright notice. This information won’t prevent infringement, but it will help you prove that the image is yours if someone does infringe on your copyright.
Similarly, digital rights management software can be used to prevent unauthorized sharing or copying of your photographs, by tracking how they are being used and embedded with unique identifiers that identify the creator of each photo.
Removal of Your Watermark Demonstrates a Willful Violation of Your Copyright
In some cases, violators may remove your watermark before using your photograph. In this situation, you can use evidence of the removal of the watermark to demonstrate a willful violation of your copyright.
For example, if an individual or company uploads a photo to their website that contains your watermark and then later removes it before publishing it elsewhere, you can use this as evidence of intentional infringement. This may entitle you to additional damages in your action.
Proving Infringement of Your Copyright
Once you have established that you own the copyright to a particular image, you will need to prove that someone else has infringed on your rights by using it without permission. The violator would need to defend your claim, demonstrating their use was authorized (such as having a license or permission).
Seeking Damages for the Copyright Violation of Your Photograph
If you are able to successfully prove that another party has infringed on your copyright, you can seek damages for the violation. These damages may include both actual and statutory damages, depending on the circumstances of your case.
For example, if you can demonstrate a willful infringement of your copyright through removal of a watermark or use of digital rights management software, you may be entitled to enhanced damages.
If you have timely registered your copyright, you may be entitled to statutory damages, ranging from $750 to $30,000 for each infringed work, depending on the nature and scope of the violation.
You may also seek “actual damages” for the infringement of your copyright. This includes any lost revenue due to the copyright violation, profits earned by the infringer, as well as any additional expenses you may have incurred as a result of this infringement. However, actual damages can be difficult to prove, and for this reason, photographers are encouraged to timely register their copyrights in order to secure statutory damages.
Whether you are pursuing damages through statutory or actual damages, it is important to seek legal counsel from an experienced copyright attorney who can help you navigate the complexities of copyright law and ensure that your rights are fully protected.
Contact Sanders Law Group if You Need Assistance with Your Copyrights
Overall, if you are a paparazzi photographer looking to protect your copyright, it is important to register your images promptly after taking them, so that you have the ability to pursue legal action in the event of infringement. At Sanders Law Group, our attorneys have extensive experience helping photographers protect their rights and pursue legal action against copyright violators. We can help you navigate the complexities of copyright law to ensure that your work is fully protected. Contact us today at 888-348-3090 or complete the form on this page to schedule a consultation with one of our attorneys.
