SO…. there I was, lying in the bathtub with a nice glass of Riesling near at hand and it comes to me (as things always do when one is having a nice relaxing bubble bath, right?) that I really need to have a series for my readers.  All 32 of you now!  So here is the new Sangria After Dark series.  It will be full of sarcasm, maybe some NSFW material and lots of wine.

Do you have a job and some people seem to have no idea of all the things that you do or how any of it works?

That’s probably everyone right?

SAHM’s seem to have that problem a lot.  You’re just a housewife. You lie around, watch All My Children every day and feed the kids some Benadryl in cheese so they nap well.

They do that right? …..

How else can one watch their stories in peace?  …..

No?……

Clearly they don’t do that AND I would make a horrible SAHM. In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that I am raising little assholes that act like….. their father….

So what’s something no one understands about my job and how it works?

WHO OWNS THE IMAGES THE CLIENT PAID ME TO TAKE

Why do I need a print release?

Why can’t I scan these and then have Walgreens print them?

Why does it say I can’t alter the image?

There’s this REALLY AWESOME filter I’d like to put on my image on Instagram and I like it more than I like your filters. GAHHHHH

Then I realized that none of my clients are photographers and very few are artists in general (and I love the clients I have) so HOW WOULD THEY KNOW?

Copyright is really Property Law

• A photographer owns any photograph, or other work of art, they create the moment they click the shutter on the camera (paint it on a canvas, etc).
• FROM HERE ON OUT WE WILL SAY HOUSE because it’s property, just like my house.
• Even though you are in the house (photograph), I still own the house
• You cannot paint, move walls, or share the house (even online) with other people without my permission
• You may pay me to share my house (photographs) with you but you still do not own the house.
• If you would like to do any of the above, I have to sell or lease partial or full ownership (ie: print release) of my house (photographs).
• It is cheaper to rent the house than to own the house. (although I WILL totally sell it to you if you want!)
• If I want to make more money on the house with you in it, I have to have your permission. If you want to make money on the house, you have to have my permission! (selling the image of you to an advertising agency for example)

Here’s a link to the FULL US Copyright law.

What CAN you do with the images? (Please read your contract, every artist is different.)

• If you received digital images from me, you will receive permission to print them at any consumer printer of your choice up to 11X14 in size (anything larger has to come through me & that’s a whole different post). You may also share them online with family and friends provided they are not altered in anyway and you tag PRA in them.
• If you received wall art or albums you may decorate your home, or your loved one’s home with them!
• If you see your image on my social media TAG, SHARE, COMMENT, SAVE!  Please do not alter the images in any way (like cropping out my logo) or attempt to print them.  Online images are very small and would look distorted if printed.

So remember, in most instances, photographs belong to the individual who took the image and not to the person(s) in the image.

What’s the one thing that people don’t realize about your job?  Tell me down in the comments!

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About the Author: Criss is a full time mother, public servant and artist. She has 2 kids, four rescue dogs, a rescue fiance, a rescue horse that she can’t ride and 49 and counting chickens.  She has a passion and love for preserving history and storytelling.  Follow her antics on Facebook & Instagram!