Royalty Free Does Not Mean FREE?
Be weary of the Free part of Roalty-Free (RF). Here is something I learned this week and wanted to share. The light definitely went on for me regarding this topic!
What Does Royalty-Free Mean When It Comes to Photo's?
“The "free" in royalty-free does not mean there is no cost for the license, but instead refers to being able to freely use the image without paying additional royalties. A small-business owner, for example, may opt to pay a one-time fee for RF images for his website.”
"Copyright law protects the artistic value of original content including art, writing, music and much more. It does not require the artist to fill out any type of paperwork, and is automatically considered to be an intrinsic right the second it is created (not necessarily published)."
"Though the fair use doctrine, a law which allows for use of images as long as they don't affect the creator’s rights, and there is an allowance for many online publishing companies or writers to use certain images. It can be real murky waters, especially if the photos are taken in a private vs. a public environment."
Unless you are a creator like a photographer, graphic designer or freelancer using your own products, before utilizing or implementing any kind of work such as photo's or video's which you do not own, it is important to understand what your options are.
In a recently published article I reviewed the iStock, Pixabay and Shutterstock services. These sites and other's like them have plenty of guidance on the use of their inventory...my advice is PLEASE READ the fine print. Keep yourself out of trouble!
All three are excellent sources for images, photos, and videos, however all three require a fee of sorts. Some require a monthly subscription while others require a one-time payment for use of their products.
My overwhelming recommendation however, is to stick with their photo library available to us here at WA. I also made this recommendation in my post.
Remember, having to pay a fine can be very costly and embarrassing!
All the best,
TimMoto
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Recent Comments
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Thank you Tim for this valuable information. Hopefully this keeps me out of trouble.
Peace💗
Thanks Tim, good advice, that is what makes the community here so good.
All the best
Darren :)
Great insights and thanks for sharing this very impt issue. I'm a big fan of pixabay and shutterstock, and honestly I only read part of their policies.
*** Super blog post in elucidating what RF means or signifies! ***
Thank you so much for researching and posting,
All the best, cheerio ... :)
You are very welcome Laura. Glad you found value in the post. Have a nice evening. All the best.
Great advice indeed. Better be safe than sorry.
I have a question. What rights do I have of pictures I took that do not infringe copyright laws? Can someone else modify them and take ownership rights?
How does one prove that the pictures I took are my own and I have exclusive rights to use them?
Just curious.
Thanks.
Edwin
I did some research on Google on your questions...if you took the picture and it is your original, you automatically own the copyrights to it and no one can use it without your permission.
Proving the pictures are your own is not something I was comfortable discussing in detail since I am not a copyright expert. One way that come to mind would be to embed your name into the picture, so if it is copied, your name is part of the image.
It is best to follow up on this discussion with a copyright expert.
Thanks for the thoughtful questions, Edwin.
Thanks, it's quite a challenge looking for real "free" photos.
I think I should get myself a camera to take my own photos.
Fred
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It's really good that you clarified this. I think a lot of people see that phrase and think those photos are okay to use. Nope. Not unless you want to pay.
You are absolutely right, FKelso.