Since she took the pictures, she owns the copyright. I trust you didn’t put any signs up stating that taking photos in your shop is not allowed, right?

I would simply ask her if you can use the pics on your site. Since she likes your shop and already made positive comments, she will likely say yes. Especially if you relink them to her site (win-win…)

@jasonreilly thats  kind of  what i thought  jason…and it was on  my property…. and  i  truly dont  care ,..its  a plus  for us…..  

…but thought it was interesting that   the photographer was  so  interested in her  rights  and   didnt  worry about  being in  violation of  mine…it  was    my stuff on  my property…. some of it actually invented  by me…a lot of  people  do  ask me if its ok to take pictures……  .

it made me  think of the opinion i have  read   that what  ever you make is  automatically   under  your  copyright….which i  think is  kind of   crazy…in  my  world  a new idea   gets  copied   soo  fast…

@claudiapoeckl you are not wrong. even is Ann has the right to use the pictures, the copyright belongs to the person who took the pictures

@richardmclaughlin Hello Mac! It’s a bit more complicated then her just owning the copyright… in fact it’s a real mess from my limited understanding! I know I’m operating blind, but on the hypothetical that Ann built a piece of sculpture or other physical art work for sale/commercial purposes – or was acting as the agent of someone who did that, making a copy of that unique work, and copyrighting it yourself, is actually illegal. Sources:

http://lifehacker.com/5912250/know-your-rights-photography-in-public

http://www.copyrightlaws.com/us/legally-using-images/

Those are two good, easy to read sources. It is very complicated however. Ann’s place of business does count as a “public place.” At the same time, any original work that Ann made is copyright protected. That protection gives her the right to determine what reproductions are made of her work.

Direct Quote from Copyright Law:

“Those familiar with fair use know that it is always up to a court of law to determine its applicability in any one situation.  As such if you need reassurance or are in doubt, it is always best to obtain permission.  There are a few circumstances when you do not need permission.  If the image you are using is in the public domain, a U.S. federal government image (though not all government works are in the public domain), or the copyright owner has clearly (and reliably) stated that you may freely use the image without obtaining permission.“

I’m approaching it this way: I go to an artists show at a gallery. The gallery is a public place. The artist has painted a number of beautiful pieces and is putting them on display for a few weeks. I take a few pictures, being in a public place. I then say “Oh hey, I own these pictures.” So I print a bunch of the pictures up into posters and tshirts. I then stand outside of his gallery and sell them for $5.00 a pop. Is this wrong or right? In a sense, this is what the blogger is doing to Ann, though she hasn’t reached the “selling” point.

Ann could think about treating this as a press application (which is what I would do in this situation). And treat the blogger as a reporter talking about a news event. However, reaching out to clarify that the images are to be used for reporting purposes only would probably be smart.

Our copyright laws are a mess, and this is a murky situation with little detail, and Ann has pointed out that her stuff has been used many times without her permission. That’s a problem. She’s putting a lot of work into her crafts, and now people are taking advantage of that.

An even better source:
http://www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/ip_photography.htm#1.2

This gets into the real nitty gritty and shows that Ann’s physical works are as protected by copyright law as the photographers digital works. However, since the photographers digital work is being made using Ann’s work, something only Ann has the right to do, the photographer is infringing and should be asking for permission.

From section 1.5:
“As indicated earlier, photographing a copyright work is considered a way of reproducing the work, and this is an act which the copyright owner has the exclusive right to do. This is why you may need to get prior permission to include a copyright work in your shot.

Some other activities that only the copyright owner has the exclusive right to do (and for which you may need permission) are:

1. Making prints of a work, scanning it into digital form, photocopying it, copying digital works, etc.;”

Now there are exceptions, and as long as the photographer doesn’t try to profit she might be safe under:

In most countries, copyright material may be used for criticism or review. For example, if you are taking photos of cartoons for a book which reviews, critiques or analyses the works. Just like for the exception of news reporting, you will usually be required to identify the copyright work and the name of the artist.”

As long as Ann is properly mentioned and cited, and that citation is included in all copies of the photograph, she is safe. However, if the photographer tries to sell that photo, distribute it for commercial purposes, or take any other action not directly associated with the safe harbor the photographer is in, then the law is broken.

Jason

P.S. This is fun!

 @annfurnivall

Even though @jasonreilly is probably right (at least he sounds like he knows what he’s talking about!) I like @claudiapoeckl‘s approach.

Thank the woman for taking such great photos and let her know that you’d like to use them as well for your own marketing.

If she says no, or wants to charge you for them, you can decide if you want to tell her she may not have permission to show them.

HOWEVER, this is definitely one of those situations where it might be best to keep a potential customer/referrer on your side. I would make sure she’s linking to your website from her blog. That would be a benefit.

@annfurnivall

She might copyright all pictures no matter what (she might not want others to copy the pictures)…..I wouldn’t throw stones until I had all the facts…..like Rich said, she’s a customer, ask her.  Mostly likely she will share with you.   @rich-brooks

@trudyd1474 It’s very possible she just does an automatic stamp/watermark on everything she puts up (smart thinking that). There is no harm as long as she stays in reporter mode, as I pointed out in my second post I think that’s the best bet: treat this as a reporter. Free press is free!

Sadly I’m not as lucky as Ann, I’ve been trying to get book covers out for a publishing company I do work for, and no one seems interested in grabbing them and sending them all over. It’s a shame.

@supereb lol….that  was my  first   inclination too…and  for  curiosity  as much as anything  also…

.but i  resisted   for a lot of  local  reasons  and  in this  case it wasnt  very  major in any way…

@trudy THATS A NICE idea  trudy….  BUT  NOT  FOR ME……i just dont see any  reason for much  effort in this idea…….. a  company in  china  can   change some little  thing from an idea they see  at my store or on my  boards  and have a new item and have it on the market  cheaper  in  a matter of months….etc etc…… it isnt a worry to me….. it happens over and over…those   big  companies  go to all the  shows  with their  cameras…. or  they  can just look on  pinterest or you tube or our website………  i w ouldnt put any effort into  trying to to   protect my stuff….also im  in a huge  trend  and   many people  are making  stuff   like  mine or   almost like mine…  and i  wasnt the  first one in the  trend…..   we design  and   make  furniture and use  ideas  from   3 or  4  different  centuries…..

i guess im on the side of  free  flow of ideas, and if  i  can inspire someone    ok….but not if they worked for me then  turned  competitor….etc….i  figure i  can stay ahead of the  curve…. 

its not like i  have a  recipe  for a  cancer drug that i  need to   patent…. 

I can only day, I envy the way you see copyright laws. In chile the situation is really different, more like.’I like this picture…mine’and thats it, there is not a lot that you can do about it. I had seen some of my pictures taken from me (I have an online store and take pretty nice pictures of my products) and used to sell the same stuff as me. Quite sad.

at the begging I put watermarks all over the place, but the pictures looks so ugly hehe, so I just put my logo in all of them. 

@appsability maybe there is, but no one cares. If you take legal action for something like that the police seriously laugh at you. People don’t even try.copyright infringement and piracy is like everywhere, you can enter a legal store and buy movies and cds illegally (if they’re from asia mostly, people is more scared of selling US movies illegally this days, thank god!) here, you can download all the movies you want, and no one will notice, it’s not like anyone watches our computers…and so on, and so on.