Friday, 24 August 2012

Hello again,

Just to recap from my previous blog.

If I take a picture of the NELSON MANDELA statue, I without doubt have the copyright.

 
 



   
If I put up a picture of a statue at one of the photography or camera clubs, I will be told that it is a picture of someone else’s work and given no award.

If I do something with the picture of the statue, the work becomes mine. 
I don’t need a model release to take the picture.
It is a statue!

Remember I didn’t make the sculpture.

The questions I asked last time  are:-

1)      Having taken a picture of a statue can I publish it?

2)      Can I print a zillion T-shirts and sell them?

Answer 1.

Question:- Having taken a picture of a statue can I publish it?

Answer:- 

I have two pictures of other statues.

The first one is a picture of Max the gorilla ay the Johannesburg Zoo.
 
 

The second picture is of the statue at the Anglo Boer War Memorial.
 

The answer is that I can make “fair use” of the pictures, even the one of the Nelson Mandela statue.

 
Answer 2.

Question:- Can I print a zillion T-shirts and sell them?

Answer:- 

Nobody really cares about the statues of Max the gorilla and the statue at the Anglo Boer War Memorial.

Who would buy the t-shirts? There is no commercial value.

The picture of the Nelson Mandela statue is different.

It is a likeness of Nelson Mandela and I am reasonably sure that I would require his permission to use his likeness/picture for commercial purposes.

Also, I would more than likely have my stock confiscated by the Nelson Mandela Foundation.

I most certainly would not take the chance

Give this blog a share on Twitter and Facebook.

Stay focused,

Cyril Furman

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