This is a topic that is often ignored, but which is becoming very important and which, due to a recent change in the law, can have much more unpleasant consequences than before. It is about photos that are used in advertisements. This article is therefore primarily aimed at advertisers.
Without a doubt, an advertisement looks much more attractive if it has some nice photos in it. Unfortunately, in advertisements sometimes photos are used which are not the own ones and have been copied from other websites.
Even if some of them probably suspect that you should not do that... you really shouldn't do that. Unauthorized use of other people's photos can be expensive, because the owner of the image rights can claim damages or license fees.
I will allow myself a short excursion into the legal basis:
Copyright law
The author is defined as the person who creates a work. This includes, for example, pictures, texts or music. This author alone decides who may use his work where, how and when.
Right of use
An author can grant other persons a right of use for his work. This right of use can be linked to conditions. These can be of a financial nature or include local or time restrictions. For example, he can stipulate that his photo can be used free of charge on a private homepage, but that a license fee must be paid for printing it in a magazine.
Right of personality
The right of personality comes into play if a person is recognizable in a photo. This person may then decide whether a photo may be published at all. In the professional sector, a photographer has persons photographed sign an assignment of rights, a so-called model release.
What does this mean for advertisers?
It simply means that you are not allowed to use any photos for your advertisements. Tip: There are photo archives on the Internet where you can get pictures legally for little or no money if you don't want to use your own photos.
For salon operators it also means that for the publication of team photos you should have a written consent of the respective person. Likewise, a usage agreement with the photographer is recommended if you let him create photos of the team.
It is also important to know that it does not help if you change the detail of a copied photo or blur a face. It may not be used in such a modified form without the consent of the creator.
Final Comments
Own photos are still the best way to get as many contact requests as possible. For example, you can also work only with excerpts. Many customers are not looking for supermodels - especially for massages. It is even the case that customers usually recognize copied pictures and then no longer consider an offer as trustworthy and therefore tend not to call.
