I ran into a similar situation a few years ago at Torrey Pines State Park in
California. The Park Ranger noticed all the camera equipment in my car and
told me that the State/Park retains the "copryright" on the trees there (they
only grow in this one tiny coastal area of California) and that photographers
are not allowed to take photographs of them for any type of commercial work,
including art work they would sell without paying a licensing fee.
Mark Nelson
Precision Digital Negatives
In a message dated 3/30/05 8:42:22 AM, Argon3@aol.com writes:
> Public area is public area. Commercial use is commercial use. Both of
> these terms (or concepts) have been defined in the law and several recent cases
> have tested the limits of these concepts.
>
> We have a similar problem brewing with the "Cloud Gate" sculpture here in
> Chicago...the sculpture is in public area but the artist seems convinced that
> he retains all rights to any reproduction of it. There have been several
> instances that I know of where the owners of distinctive buildings have tried to
> have the buildings declared "intellectual property" and fell that they,
> therefore, have the right to restrict or charge fees for any use of images of the
> building including those taken from public areas. Anyone who has done
> commercial work is aware of their responsibility to obtain the proper releases for
> the reproduction of property not their own which is used in a commercial
> application. Where is the line between what is "commercial" and what is "edit
> orial" or "educational" or "art"? Consult "Arrington v. the New York Times" for
> an exhaustive discussion of this distinction.
>
> The creation of any artwork beyond a self-portrait will become impossible if
> this gross stupidity is allowed to continue.
>
> And you might be sued by your parents for the self-portrait when they
> declare your face their intellectual property or a composite arrangement of their
> own features.
>
> best
>
> argon
>
Received on Wed Mar 30 23:08:24 2005
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