Formyrotts@xxxxxxx wrote:
Hi all, simple question, how long does a copyright last for a photo?
I now own a photo postcard of my Grandfathers store, taken in 1913 and
would like to have a camera shop blow it up for me, they said they
thought 50 years on photos, but I would like to make sure. Thanks :)
Linda
Depends what country you're in. It'll be out of copyright in the United
States, if that helps.
The copyright term for individual (as opposed to corporate) creators is
pretty generally "life plus 70" these days, but it wasn't in the USA
until, hmmm, 1978 or some such (when we joined the Berne Convention and
went to a "life + 50" copyright regime; it was later increased to +
70). Anything that was out of copyright when the USA switched its
system over remains in the public domain.
(The length of copyright doesn't vary by type of works; photos have the
same term as novels, poems, or whatever.)
(In my personal opinion, life + 70 is grossly excessive; in particular,
lots of work that's still in copyright, you can't find the owner for, so
it's essentially taken out of the marketplace. Only major corporate
properties and "best-sellers" can you routinely find the rights owner
for anywhere near that long after the death of the artist. And the
uncertainty of the "life +" part makes it very hard to tell when
something can be used without finding the rights holder.)
--
David Dyer-Bennet, dd-b@xxxxxxxx; http://dd-b.net/
Snapshots: http://dd-b.net/dd-b/SnapshotAlbum/
Photos: http://dd-b.net/photography/gallery/
Dragaera: http://dragaera.info
