Recommend Private or Public?

[bforrester]

Hi All,

My wife and I recently began 'testing the waters' as we started charging for our photos. We've had friends and co-workers strongly encourage us to shoot as a part time business, and so this summer we decided to give it a shot. It's been a great experience, and business has been growing faster than we can keep up. Essentially, we're shooting youth sports, events, and portrait work.

Regarding the youth sports (mainly soccer at the moment):

To be safe, we've setup private online galleries for our clients, but as I look at other sites that shoot youth sports, it seems all of them post the galleries publicly. Where does this fall in the 'legal department'? Almost all of our interaction is with the coach, not the parents. Do I need to get per parent permission? If so, what about when the other team has children in the shot? The coaches usually send notices to the parents that they can view the photos on our site and pass along the password. I thought since we were shooting minors, in general, we would need permission from any parent to post their child. Am I wrong on this. If we're shooting a sporting event, does that fall into some area that exempts me from getting permission?

Ultimately, I'd like to post some of our work publicly, and have gotten a few permissions, but this really has me wondering what the 'norm' is, and what my legal obligations are for these kind of shoots.


Any feedback is much appreciated.

Thanks
-Brandon

[rossbilly]

If you are going to be in business, then you really should find a local IP (Intellectual Property) attorney, and work with them on what is / isn't legal in your area.

That said, most anything shot from public property is fair game...

[bforrester]

Many thanks rossbilly! We'll check with an attorney.

[jfrancho]

Ultimately, I'd like to post some of our work publicly, and have gotten a few permissions, but this really has me wondering what the 'norm' is, and what my legal obligations are for these kind of shoots.

Your purpose behind displaying these images will dictate what action you need to take, regarding releases, etc. A lawyer will help you determine the best route to allow you to conduct business in a legal manner. An IP attorney will probably know what you need to do, but generally they deal matters of stolen/misused property and any business lawyer should be able to help you, so it may not be necessary to locate a specialist. As far as anything in public being "fair game," remember that this applies to taking the picture. Generally, if the person's face is recognizable in the image, and its use is outside the scope of what is considered editorial or educational (advertising would fit here), permission in the form of a signed release document will be required.

I'm no lawyer, so you'll need to talk to a real one to get the definitive answer.