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Misuse of images - advice please

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Spooky | MeltingPot Pictures

By Spooky | MeltingPot Pictures, 1707499588

Hello Hive Mind

Hoping this is an appropriate question for the group, and for some words of wisdom from those of you in the know.

To keep a long story short, it has just been brought to my attention that a theatre company have been using a range of my images on their website, and in their programmes, without my permission.

They have been warned about it once, and subsequently removed images from their website and social media steams. This was a couple of years ago.

However, I’ve just been given some theatre programmes, one of which contains 6 of my images. These are uncredited and have had the watermarks cropped out. On looking at the company website, I can see that my images have been used in programmes for 7 of their productions - all cropped and without credit - as well as other images being used as part of actor biographies. Some of my images also appear on their web galleries, credited to a different photographer.

I’ve been in contact with them but they have denied misuse of images, claiming they are not used on the site and that they do not keep hard copies of programmes couldn’t comment on image misuse. I’ve just had a look on the site and can see that the digital programmes have now been removed. Fortunately I did screen grabs of them last week when I was looking at how many times my pictures had been misused. There are still copies of my images in their web gallery though.

There are no grey areas around this being a mistake, as they have had the full usage details provided twice.

My question is, what should I now do? As a company I have found them quite rude and arrogant in their responses so my gut feeling is to invoice them for the use of images. Trouble is, I don’t know how much per image. They have been used in print and digital format.

Any thoughts you have would be most welcome.

Cheers

Andy McG said, 1707500354

You need a solicitor with some experience in this field.

But you certainly have a case.

Lightingman said, 1707500614

Where did they get the images from?

Huw said, 1707500934

£1,000 per image would seem appropriate.

Keep it under the small claims court limit.

Or go via a solicitor and go for serious amounts of money.

Cropping out your logo is pretty much proof that they knew it was qwrong.

FiL said, 1707501072

The contributions in the following thread by Studio36UK are good:

[5 / 18] Been infringed? The order of things to do (Page 1) / Copyright issues (purpleport.com)

HotFridgePhotos said, 1707501392

Go and see a copyright solicitor and get them to send the people a letter and a request for payment, or you will see them in court.

Gothic Image said, 1707502036

What FiL said!  I also agree with @huw's comment about intent, which should help.

Admin said, 1707502057

This post has been moved from the Photographer Chat group to the Copyright issues group.

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CalmNudes said, 1707502526

Huw said

£1,000 per image would seem appropriate.

Keep it under the small claims court limit.

Or go via a solicitor and go for serious amounts of money.

Cropping out your logo is pretty much proof that they knew it was qwrong.

Get proper legal advice but I would

  • Bill Per image, per usage. Once for the webshite, once for social media, once for hard copy
  • Keep each invoice under the small claims court limit if possible. State that payment is already overdue  , if you can show the date they used the image, charge interest from the date of first use and add this to the invoice. State that legal proceedings will commence within 7 days if the payment is not received.
  • Complete the paper work for the small claims court and send that to them on day 8. I've found that receipt of the court paper work brings payment without actually needing to go through with court action 

Depending on how the user came by the images someone else may have cropped the logo out. 

Thelema said, 1707502776

Solicitor I’m afraid, and hopefully a nice usage rights fee too

Lightingman said, 1707502990

CalmNudes said

Huw said

£1,000 per image would seem appropriate.

Keep it under the small claims court limit.

Or go via a solicitor and go for serious amounts of money.

Cropping out your logo is pretty much proof that they knew it was qwrong.

Get proper legal advice but I would

  • Bill Per image, per usage. Once for the webshite, once for social media, once for hard copy
  • Keep each invoice under the small claims court limit if possible. State that payment is already overdue  , if you can show the date they used the image, charge interest from the date of first use and add this to the invoice. State that legal proceedings will commence within 7 days if the payment is not received.
  • Complete the paper work for the small claims court and send that to them on day 8. I've found that receipt of the court paper work brings payment without actually needing to go through with court action 

Depending on how the user came by the images someone else may have cropped the logo out. 


The information that  interest for ‘late payments’ will be charged for invoices, has to be made known by the vendor, to the customer at the time of the initial contract.

Spooky | MeltingPot Pictures said, 1707503235

Fabulous stuff - thank you to everyone who has commented and offered thoughts - and shared links. All useful and very much appreciated.

CalmNudes said, 1707503410

Lightingman   If the "customer" steals the product and would have known the standard Ts and Cs if they had entered into a contract in the normal fashion that's (arguably) not the vendors problem.  

I'd apply the interest charges anyway, and then be prepared to give ground on the point :-)   

Saracen House Studio said, 1707503562


A couple of questions about this, the answers to which might have some bearing about what, if anything, you can do next....

1)  You mention theatre performances and printed programmes... are these actors' headshots that you have taken which have then been used to promote the stars of the production?  Or are they photographs of the performance itself, which you have taken images of?  

2)  Where did the theatre company obtain these images from and on what basis?

Spooky | MeltingPot Pictures said, 1707503805

Saracen House Studio

1. The images are production photographs - some of which have been cropped to show the actor and accompany their biography.

2. The images have been taken from my website, or my social media, as they have watermarks on them - although these have been partially cropped out.

The company had already been asked not to use my images without seeking permission (and payment)

Cheers

Edited by Spooky | MeltingPot Pictures

Lightingman said, 1707503908

CalmNudes said

Lightingman   If the "customer" steals the product and would have known the standard Ts and Cs if they had entered into a contract in the normal fashion that's (arguably) not the vendors problem.  

I'd apply the interest charges anyway, and then be prepared to give ground on the point :-)   


It wouldn’t be a case of ‘giving ground’ the customer has no requirement to pay it.

”Stealing” is very different to misuse.

I asked, in an earlier comment where the theatre company had obtained the images?

Did they get them directly from the OP ( that  hasn’t been answered yet) in which case that’s one course about any question of usage.

If the theatre company obtained them from a third party then a ( more complicated) course unveils.

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