To get a small edit of good pix, or even just one, a photographer takes whole series of images. Anyone stealing the best photo(s), off the web say, wouldn't have the stock of off-shoots that the original photographer would. So it's worth keeping a lot of digital stock for this reason (and a few others I can think of but that's not the question). If you're a known photographer, have a recognisable style, or the work has already been published and properly credited, is stocked with an agent or agency, it's less of a problem?
Photography and Filmmaking
Creative, conceptual and technical; contemporary and historical
An interesting issue came up at the week end, how can you prove copyright with digital photography.
Of course in the past the photographer would hold the negatives as a form of proof, the original source of an image.
As digital can be copied as the same quality of the oiriginal, how do you prove that you own the copyright.?
Thanks for that Flux, it came from a conversation I had a few days.
It is an interesting one though
Thanks Geraldine, I think the point I was making was how do you prove that you have the orginal, as in negative you have the first record of the image, it is harder to prove with digital.
Flux came up with an answer but it still seems harder to prove if problems arise.
Interesting and thanks.
Having negatives still aren't dated so you may have back up but no record of when it was shot. With digital you can burn your shots onto disc and the date will be burnt on to the disc with it. That way you can prove when it was shot, before someone copied you. Personally I don't worry about those finer details, maybe I should!?!
Thaks Bina, that was very helpfull. At the moment I only use analogue, but move in to digital to store send and change the pictuires, I would if I was you keep some record of your originals otherwise(self explaining) you could have problems when you earn money or publish your work.
Good luck with your projects.
I very rarely shoot digital and I catalogue all my negs. Im not pursuing a photographers career anymore but at the agency I work at the photographers in the same way they catalogue their negs, they catalogue their digital on a comp. So it is pretty straight forward, but something that does deter people from moving onto digital.