Founded in 2001,
Creative Commons has created licenses that complement the copyright laws. Over 100 million photos are now under such licenses which a photographer has to consider when publishing his new and older creations today. At Fotopedia we encourage the use of Creative Commons licenses. Here is why we believe it is a good solution for all.
Two important innovations have totally changed the environment of photographers.
First change: more people than ever can afford to express themselves through photography. The cost of quality photographic equipment has dropped considerably with digital cameras during the past decade, leading to the disappearance of the price barrier on equipment. The digital photography revolution enables the creation of far more quality photos than ever before.
In 1900 Georges Eastman, the founder of Kodak, released the first camera intended for a wide public and said something that 100 years later can't be truer:
"Photography is brought within reach of every human being who desires to preserve a record of what he sees. Such a photographic notebook is an enduring record of many things seen only once in a lifetime and enables the fortunate possessor to go back by the light of his own fireside to scenes which would otherwise fade from memory and be lost."Second change: the cost of distribution of photos was rendered to nearly nothing by the internet. Anyone can publish a photo in an online gallery and enable anybody to see it. This represents a fantastic opportunity for photographers to reach to a wider audience at no cost.
A scene you recorded on a photo can be shared, not only by the light of your fireside, but by the light of the screens of millions. All the photos we take are representative of the world and humanity today. They are pieces of life that we can save from fading away from our memories and from the memories of others by sharing them.
Another positive effect of the internet is the stimulation of the creativity of photographers. Seeing what others do and interacting and communicating with them on photoblogs and community websites like Flickr motivates users to produce better, different and more creative works. Remixing photos has become a major creative activity for photographers and also creators that reuse works of others to make new ones. These in turn are distributed at no cost and can be remixed.
The positive impact of these two disruptions on our societies and on the photo industry aren't recognized often enough. How can an industry react negatively if, the machines needed to produce drop in price, and the delivery of the final product becomes free, allowing your customer to invent plenty of new usage? These changes are not reversible. Let's spend our energy building sustainably upon them, and facing the challenge raised.
The challenge raisedThese two major changes come with one main challenge: to emerge from the masses
Online you are one photograph among millions. There are billions of photos out there. A photographer has to find ways to distinguish his work and prove his seriousness. If your photo is worth it, how do you enable people to discover them? Those who can answer this question will thrive and become the next generation of photographers. There are many ways to do this, here is what successful ones have in common:
Put your photos onlineEric Lafforgue is an example of how you can leverage the web to become a successful photographer. He posted photos on Flickr where he was discovered. Since, he has been published in National Geographic, on the BBC, and in many publications. A great success story that couldn't have happened if Eric Lafforgue kept his photos for himself. The number one requirement to succeed as a photographer on the internet today (whatever your criterias of success) is to put your work out there (or at least some of it), let people see it and tell others about it.
Be careful of the context. Your photos need to be found and will only be if they are in the right place with the right information. Documenting your photos is crucial and will already ensure you a better position among the masses of photos on the web.
Enable people to share and reuse themIf your work is good, people will follow you regularly, be your fans. These people like what you do and want to speak about it. You have to give them the means and allow them to do so in an easy and legal way so you reach the most people. This is where Creative Commons licenses become useful.
Using Creative Commons licenses is about allowing people to promote you and your work or as
their website mentions: "Creative Commons licenses give you the ability to give express permission for others to use your copyrighted works—such as the right of others to copy your work, make derivative works or adaptations of your work, to distribute your work and/or make money from your work."
You need to make sure people are aware of the license of your work. Creative Commons expresses it well: "if creators and licensors have to negotiate not only complicated legal rules, but also burdensome technical barriers, many will either ignore the rules or not create. Copyright gives authors certain rights. We want to make it simpler for authors to exercise those rights in ways others can understand."
Google, after
Yahoo, has added Creative Commons filters to its image search. These are important moves that will encourage people not to ignore the rules. The growing awareness of these licenses among consumers of photos helps create a healthy environment to work in for photographers.
Distributing some of your work on the internet and making its license clear to all, and adapted to the digital and internet era, are fundamentals. Whatever your goal as a photographer you have no choice but to be invisible.
Fotopedia is being built with our users to take on the challenge and be a part of the solution. The fundamental basics described above are now available to all.
