Copyrights and Trademarks

Thank God he copyrighted Nature before we did, otherwise we would not have anything to photograph.

I’ve recently submitted a few of photographs to a juried book. While reading the rules I stumbled on this (copying copyrights and trademarks section in its entirety):

So, what are some of the things that will get your photo rejected?

• Logos and Trademarks– this is a big reason for rejections. It doesn’t have to be a picture of a logo, just the presence of a logo in the image. Some actual examples:
  • Photo of a person wearing a baseball cap with an MLB team logo on it.
  • A small Nike swoosh on a pair of running shoes. It was pretty small, but still easily seen.
  • A Ferrari decal.
  • A logo on a building that was discernable as a logo.
• Copyrighted material – So often makes one say “you’re kidding”.
  • Art work – things like paintings, public art. Most likely we’ll reject it, but if you know that it’s OK you’ll have time to argue your case.
  • Buildings – lots of buildings are copyrighted and the rules are weird.
    • Space Needle – a photo of the Space Needle isn’t OK, but if it’s part of the skyline that’s ok.
    • Eiffel Tower at Night – a photo of the Eifel Tower is OK, but not of it at night when the lights are on it. The light display is copyrighted.
  • Private Property – images of private property are often copyrighted
  • Check http://www.istockphoto.com/tutorial_copyright_list.php
    • If something is not listed on this site, it is not a guarantee that it’s OK.

That’s right – “are you kidding me?”. Thank God he copyrighted Nature before we did, otherwise we would not have anything to photograph.