I am a freelance photographer, contracting with real estate company. The question is whether I have the copyright of those property photos taken by me? Coz I want to put them on my webpage.

All Answers To Questions

Read your contract. I think most will cover their b** and not allow you to make money off photos They paid You to take.

If you took them as a contractor, meaning no taxes withheld, that you controlled the job (time you took the photos, provided your own equipment and made the decisions about how to shoot the images) you own the copyright and can post to your blog/page. That being said, most commercial clients will demand you transfer the copyright by signing the contract and not allow you to use the photos or will do so in a limited way- specifying promotion use only. If you signed a work agreement, READ it - this is probably in the fine print. If you have no contract, then you technically own the copyright, but why risk alienating the client? Ask for permission. If you were paid wages for the time worked (regular paycheck) and were told when, where and how to shoot the images, then it was work for hire and you do not own the copyright and have no rights to the photo. Ask the realtor who hired you if she/he minds if you use them for promotional work if you have nothing in writing. They may or may not care. Get the permission in writing. In the future get the status of the work (contract or work for hire) into writing before you shoot and have the realtor agree to your using them as promotional pieces on your website. Saves on arguments later.

Typically NO. When you are hired or contracted by a COMMERCIAL entity to produce photographs, it is the person / company who did the hiring who owns the copyright. Sad but true. I emphasize the word commercial, because this does not hold true in say a wedding or portrait photography situation. There, the photographer maintains copyright. Now, I am NO copyright lawyer so don't take all this as gospel. I am just basing this on previous experience and what I have read in professional photography magazines. Whenever you are dealing with ANY copyright issue, it is always wise to seek the knowledge of a good copyright attorney in your area. Here is an excellent book to have on your shelf pertaining to the law and photography: "The Law (In Plain English) for Photographers" by attorney Leonard D. Duboff. steve

mole

Read your contract, which you should have sorted out at the beginning of the assignment/contract.

Yes, generally speaking, the photos belong to you, and you hold the copyrights. And as long as the photos were taken from or on public property, the property owner has nothing to say about it (although that's independent of copyright). However, if you have a contract with the real-estate company that specifically identifies your photos as work for hire, then the copyrights belong to the real-estate company. Likewise, if you were actually an employee of the company, hired specifically to take pictures, the photos would belong to the company. But in the absence of a written contract explicitly identifying work for hire (it has to be written down, it is never implied), or an employee/employer relationship that makes photography part of your job (not freelance or subcontractor), the copyrights are yours.