Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Etiquette for Posting Photos

I have a quick question for you all. Is there any established etiquette (or netiquette) about posting photos of other people and other peoples class work on a blog? I know I've seen (and really enjoyed) photos from classes and retreats posted on the net. Have you all asked express permission to post the photos online or just not worried about it?

My response is to say "No Problem - go ahead and post unless someone has asked you NOT to." For instance I can understand if teachers didn't want certain copyrighted classroom material published. Any thoughts on the matter?

26 comments:

Amanda said...

When I took photos at the workshop at my LQS I asked permission of everyone and explained that they would go on my blog. The only person who didn't want her photo taken agreed to move out of the way. I don't know what the position would be when taking pictures of people's work though. Much the same I imagine - ask and explain first.

Donna said...

I use the same rule of thumb for photos of stuff, but for photos with people I don't post them without specific approval since I think its an invasion of privacy, and once on the web it can't be pulled back... Who know maybe person X told person Y they were doing ___ not at a specific class.... I don't know, just my take...

Sarah said...

i agree with the above. better safe than sorry.

as for those triangls - what a tease! i love them!

Brenda said...

ditto. the exception being if the person and/or quilt is in a public place. I'm a journalist for a daily paper, we don't ask permission if the photo is taken of adults in a public place. Of course, here you would have to define public. I'm assuming quilt shows are public, as are art galleries, and photos are allowed unless a sign is posted to that effect. A class or workshop is a different matter.
I have another question about posting photos -- more technical. what size are the files everyone is uploading? I haven't been making my low res or less pixels, but I assume my Blogger space will run out sometime.

Ms. Jan said...

Whenever I post a photo from a quilting class with a renowned instructor, I always ask permission first. I've never been told no, because after all, it is advertising. I don't post pictures of special techniques in progress, but usually just a photo of the teacher during a lecture with perhaps some student work in the background.
Hope this helps--love your solid work!
jan

Becky said...

Ask first, explain and then post. Better safe than sorry later on down the road.

Tonya Ricucci said...

okay, you guys have convinced me. no posting without consent. that means I get to see all sorts of lovely quilts from Gwen's retreat, but can't share them with ya'all. mwah ha ha ha. Think I've got a new blogger though - giving her lots of encouragement. cheers, ton

Kristin L said...

In a workshop that I'm teaching, I ask permission of the students and always credit the maker if i post something. In a workshop with another instructor, I only photograph and post my work. Someplace public like a show or gallery, I obviously don't take photos or post if there's a sign or person telling me not too. But if photos are allowed, I'll post, again, always crediting the name of the maker. I've noticed lately a lot more people on their blogs complaining about their work being posted other places. I'm not always clear if they are referring to credited and linked posts, or other people trying to rip off their stuff. Either way, I've been posting a lot less of other people's work on my blog than say two years ago. Of course, it's also been a wile since I've been to a really good quilt show! ;-)

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Patti said...

I just do it, and never think to ask. If someone discovers a photo I've posted that they want taken down then I do so - no questions asked. I guess it would be better to ask first - some people are really paranoid - but I never remember to.

Unknown said...

I recently had the experience of finding a photo of myself on a major website with huge traffic. The photo was taken by an acqaintance who gave permission for its publication without letting me in on it. That felt a little strange.

Some pictures I post are of friends' work. I always get permission and am careful to make it plain when it isn't my own work.

comicbooklady said...

I do the blogging for our quilting guild and we've put a note on our membership form that all photos taken during meetings and workshops may be posted on our blog and or published in our newsletter and we only use first names and last initial, so as to protect their privacy. I always ask permission of our guest speakers about taking photos and posting them on the blog and all have said yes and have been happy with the results. I always try to link to their websites as well and give credit where credit is due. So far no one has asked me to pull a photo off our guild blog and many are happy to see their stuff on the web.

Mary Johnson said...

I don't necessarily ask permission for each photo I post but I do make it known that I'm taking photos and they may end up on the internet.

I also pull photos from blogs and post them on the HeartStrings blogs but only from other members and I usually ask permission afterwards - so far no one has asked me to take them down.

woolywoman said...

I post photos of work but not faces. I will post a photo of a teacher, as they are a public figure. So, Gwen Marston in front of her quilt, yes. Jane Doe in front of her quilt, no, but I would post a photo of Jane's quilt and credit it as a class members. Of course, I would only do this if I had something nice to say. ( Duh) SO, in my opinion, you need to cough up the photos.

Lynda said...

I take photos at our local group's meetings and workshops. Everyone there knows I am taking photos to put on the group blog (they can see me point the camera at them and see the flash!) so I just click away. I always ask any visiting speakers oif I may take their photo, and so far have had no refusals. In the UK you have to be VERY careful about taking photos of children, and it's vital to ask permission of the parents and explain what you're going to do with the photos before you do it.

Sew Create It - Jane said...

Hot topic! In terms of taking pictures and publishing them I found this interesting article from 2005 but it is still relevant
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/andrewkantor/2005-12-29-camera-laws_x.htm
Of course this is from a US reporter...the laws do differ from country to country..but probably not by too much.
I would be tempted to say that if you photographed a whole book and published it that you wouldn't be too popular, but a few pictures from a talk should be ok. I've taken pictures at my group and used it on our groups website without asking...and so far no one has complained...perhaps I should be asking first.
At the end of the day the idea behind blogging is to inspire and I can't see anyone having a problem with that.

Clare said...

Rather than creating an absolute hiatus in the blogging world, I'd ask first. Best to be on the safe side.

Isn't Bonnie the expert on this sort of stuff?

Great triangles. When do we get another peek?

julieQ said...

I think a general permission to post would be nice.... I love your color splash!

laura west kong said...

I'm surprised how generous teachers and lecturers are about showing upcoming materials such as projects from books not yet published and quilts not yet debuted at shows. At least most wisely take the time to mention "please don't take and/or post photos of this until after ..."

I believe asking is always the polite thing to do in the case of a non-public venue such as a class or retreat. I've never had anybody say no or even react hesitantly to a request to post photos on my blog.
Finally you have to also consider, if the teachers/presenters get burned too many times, the end result will be less wonderful eye candy that classes and guilds get to enjoy.

jude said...

i figure it is usually ok especially if you credit the person but i always ask as a courtesy and have ever been turned down.

Lucy said...

When I began with blogging I thought nobody could find my blog. Now I'm blogging for years I'm more hesitate to post other work or pictures from others without asking permission

I love your picture of your solids! They give me a lot of inspiration Tonya:-)

YankeeQuilter said...

One of the quilters in my class once said she was tracking my blog and wondered why she hadn't seen photos of her quilt yet! To date I had stayed away from showing any work from classes...shows you what I know!

Love the solids!...do I see some tan in that mix?!

BizarreQuilter said...

Well... I do tell the people the photos are for my blog, and their names aren't with their photos...

Unless I take a photo of them in the shower it's not really private is it? They saw me take the photo. They smiled for the camera! LOL!!

I understand some people being worried, but if you can't tell who it is, that's no problem.

Buffie H said...

Hmmm, I recently posted a short story or 'theory' of a discussion we had at work which was then transformed into a whimisical piece by a colleague. I removed the bit that gave away our workplace and herself, calling her S only, offering some privacy and then forwarded the link to my blog once uploaded to her, so she knew how great i thought it was and I was trying to get her interested in blogging... It basically backfired and she asked that I remove it, given it was her story and not mine to post, even though it was a story about our colourful discussion. I did of course remove it... and have vowelled never to post without permission again. Not everyone is ready for the world to look into their lives. I'm cool with that. Luckily our friendship was not damaged in the process, maybe a little bump is all, which will always be more important than a silly ol blog posting.
If nothing else... ask yourself that question before posting someone elses work.

jovaliquilts said...

Just took a class from Ami Simms and she announced photos were ok ONLY for personal use, NOT for putting on a blog. But every other class I've taken, the instructor has been fine with photos. I've seen online discussions about posting photos from shows, but if they allow photos, I take them and post them (with credit given).

Evelyn aka Starfishy said...

If a quilt is hanging in a show - and the people running the show say you can take photos - then I think it is ok to take photos and post on your blog. If someone in my own group is designing a piece then I wouldn't post a photo on my blog unless they said it was ok. Group projects that we all work on together - I post (raffle quilts, etc.) I never ever post a photo of other people's kids on my blog - if I give a quilt to a kid then I take photos of that kid with the quilt for my own album and a seperate photo of just the quilt for my blog. Not what you are asking about - but when my small son goes to any event sponsored by our community we are always asked to sign a consent form for photographs that may appear in a newsletter (NOT the internet!) - if as a parent you don't want your kids photos taken - you just tell them at the door and they get a button to wear. As a parent I am sometimes a bit amazed at private schools/camps that post oodles of photos on the internet - without parental consent.
Cheers!
Evelyn