Legal Question in Intellectual Property in New York

Related to publishing and exhibiting photographs ofpeople

Hi... I'm a photojournalist and fine art photographer.

I'd like to publish and sell a fine art postcard booklet that will feature some pictures of recognizable people photographed in public places, on the streets, buses, trains (not in the privacy of their home). I'm planning to sell the postcard booklet in stores and want to make sure there isn't a model release issue (no releases here, as this is journalistic work). Also hope to have an exhibit and sell larger prints. Less concerned about prints being an issue (art, First Ammendment rights, public edification, etc....), but not sure how the postcard booklet will be viewed. It's commercial and I am using the pictures of the people, but this is about art and the people are not selling any product. Guessing there might be a difference between inside the booklet (the various postcards) and an image of a person (also non released) that graces the cover. Maybe that's more commercial - covers are often viewed that way, as they sell the product. Even a newsmagazine might secure a release if the cover image is more illustrative and not an actual news event being portrayed.

Thanks for any thoughts you can share.


Asked on 1/27/04, 12:58 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Kaiser Wahab Wahab & Medenica LLC

Re: Related to publishing and exhibiting photographs ofpeople

Hello there,

Celebrity photography is a thorny issue especially in non journalistic settings. You need to understand the "right of publicity", which governs an individual's right to control his or her own image. The touchstone of that body of law is "commercial use" of an image. Generally speaking, it is a violation of the photographed individuals' right of publicity to use a photograph for an inherently commercial purpose such as a product decoration. Beleow is a link to an article on my firm's website that I think will shed some light on the issue. If you need further assitance, please feel free to contact us. Good luck.

http://www.wrlawfirm.com/Articles/Right%20of%20Publicity.html

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Answered on 1/28/04, 6:03 pm


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