What is the law in regard to the copyright of photographs?

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 24 Nov 2003 14:29 PST

For what part of the world are you seeking an answer?

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 24 Nov 2003 17:31 PST

Does your comment mean that you are interested in the law for New Zealand?

I'll assume you mean the United States, and if not when you clarify
justaskscott can give you an Answer.  You should note, however, that
US law will likely mirror most major countries due to the Berne
Convention.

In general, whoever takes a photograph owns the copyright to it (the "author"). 
A copyright springs into existence at the moment the author creates
the work, i.e., takes the photo, and lasts for the life of the author
plus 70 years.  Do not be confused by the separate process of
copyright registration--you may register the copyright in a work if
you are the author, but registration has nothing to do with the
creating and validity of a copyright.

This all assumes the photograph merits copyright protection at all. 
There is a good case at
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=9th&navby=case&no=9817072
that discusses this issue in some detail.  The preceding about
"creating copyright" notwithstanding, a photograph, just like anything
else, must be sufficiently creative to merit copyright protection. 
See http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ40.html#works.

Assuming that (1) you are the author; (2) the photo is sufficiently
creative; and (3) you have registered the copyright, you have a right
that you may enforce in court for copyright infringement if you
choose.

If you are asking because you want to use someone else?s photo, you
should assume that the author still has a valid copyright in the work
and ask the author?s permission before you reproduce it.

It is not easy to get permission for the use of casual photographs in
,say, an autobiography, or when the actual photographer is no longer
known. Or is dead. Photos taken for a stge producton - whether amateur
or professional - are often hadned over to a person who has been in
that photograph,and the exchange, at leat in a place like New Zealand,
is a friendly gesture. Is the photo of me, for instance, not allowed
to be used by me util I get the photographer's permission? Can I as an
author simply say, 'photographer unknown'?Some photographers wer
taken, almost informally, some years ago - amounting to forty
years.And what happens if the photographer hands over the negatives as
well? THAT is an interesting quesiton.
Papawai-ga