Discussion:
What is the name of your state? Pa
Hello,
I recently had some photos of my child taken by a commercial studio. We purchased a number of the photos. I took some of those and scanned and printed them for use in a personal scrapbook. I have seen a number of references that duplication of photos, albums, etc is acceptable for personal use such as this...is this true?
If so, where can I find a legal reference to this? I've examined the copyright law files at a number of .gov sites and can't find a reference. They simply imply any duplication is a violation of federal copyright laws.
thanx in advance
Answer:
have seen a number of references that duplication of photos, albums, etc is acceptable for personal use such as this...is this true? There isn't any law that says such a use is lawful. The closest you would probably find is 17 U.S.C. 107, which defines what is a "fair use" of a copyrighted work -- basically, when it is permissible to infringe on someone else's copyright.
Fair use is not a "right" but is a defense to a charge of infringement. It has 4 factors, although the most important factor is whether the infringing use significantly impacts the commercial market for the work. Since these are pictures of your son, it is unlikely that there is ANY other market for these pictures except for you, so your duplication would probably be very unlikely to be found a fair use, and is therefore most likely unlawful.
Of course, from a practical perspective, it is probably unlikely that you would ever get sued for infringement anyway...