What would you tell design students about copyright?

[jlipkin]

I'm teaching a class tomorrow on copyright to second-year Communication students who are concentrating in Design and Interactive Media. I'm going to cover some of the basics - what copyright law is, how digital media is complicating copyright, how to copyright their work and so forth. I want to talk a bit about the different ways they can licence work - stock art, work for hire and so forth. I've read over the basics at ASMP. Can anyone recommend other resources or topics they think I should cover? These are people who going to be both producing and creating photographs.

Thanks

[Ken_Tanaka]

I would recommend referencing Bert Krages' excellent Legal Handbook for Photographers. It goes beyond simple copyright matters but it's a very good, plain language legal reference for photographers.

[jlipkin]

Thanks, Ken. I actually bought it this summer on your recommendation (model release questions). I was wondering what advice you might give to students who are going to be consuming images.

[Ken_Tanaka]

Ah, I see. Well actually the consumption end of the cycle really involves most of the same considerations as the production end. That is, art directors and their employers must make sure that the work they license falls within legal and ethical limits. Recognizing, for example, an image that might represent a risk for a false light defamation suit is just as important for publishers as for photographers...perhaps more so. Attorneys retained on contingency fees go after the deepest pockets first. Photographers are generally not very attractive first targets.