Profile for matterrr - Legalities of Tracing Photos

matterrr aka Matthew is a boy, has been a member since August 20, 2005, has scored 1315 submissions, giving an average score of 2.13.

Nov 02 '05 by matterrr

6 Comments

Watch this Share:

Legalities of Tracing Photos

Does anyone know any legal information about using photos as reference for vector illustrations or images? i.e. how do they decide whether it's legal or not?

Thanks for any info you have.

bortwein on Nov 02 '05 at 4:04pm

I'd start with avoiding stock photography.

little_hobbit_feet on Nov 02 '05 at 4:14pm

Take your own source photo. Avoid complication altogether!
Also, if you alter something by 30%+, then by copywrite, it's legally a new thing altogether.

Robsoul on Nov 02 '05 at 4:30pm

be original, there's a lack of that on this site

especially when you see shirts like Predicamnnet scored and printed... for me to poop on

abeadles on Nov 02 '05 at 4:33pm

Just don't do it, unless you take it yourself like little hobbit feet says..(that is good idea).
When you buy stock photos, inthe legalities it says to not use for things, and usually they say re-sale on t-shirts.

matterrr on Nov 02 '05 at 5:04pm

I'm only asking because I have a possible submission where I traced the silhouette of an eagle and I didn't know if I can use it or not. I'm going to start taking my own source photos, mainly because when I trace it turns out a helluvalot better than when I draw. Or I could try drawing and scanning. :/ Thanks for the info.

Hollyweird on Nov 02 '05 at 5:38pm

I actually checked into this myself through the Stanford Law Department. Basically, it's a legal grey area. If the image is copyrighted or worse, trademarked, it's not a good idea to use it. But if it's a friend's snapshot that isn't copyrighted, and they have no intention of making any money off the picture, AND you alter the image enough to make it "legally different" from the original, then it's technically safe under the "fair use" clause of copyright law. Of course, if you use someone's face (like I did, see "She Smiled Sweetly..." in the submissions), it's even a better idea to secure likeness rights (like I did).

You must be logged in to leave a comment.