Publishing photos with other people in them without thier permission

If a person has photos of themselves at special events posed with others, such as celebrities. Do they have the right to publish their own photos without consulting the others in them?

 

I should add that the person is a blogger who covers special events and the photos were taken at these events.

 

I suggest, seek legal advice.

However, there are a few laws that govern photography. Firstly, if the photograph is owned by you, then you can republish to your heart's content. If the photograph was taken in a public place, (local laws and laws governing minors not withstanding), generally you can publish the pictures however you want.

The three rules of thumb about photography are thus;
Location: If you took the picture whilst trespassing, then you are in the wrong. If you had permission to take photographs, then you should be fine.
Subject: There are some rules regarding photography of minors.
Publication: If you photograph someone and then use that image to sell something, like a picture of Tom Cruise next to your product, then you could get into trouble because of endorsements.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photography_and_the_law

 

Yes, the photograph is owned by the person.
Yes the photograph was taken at a public event, in a public area.
No it will not be used in conjunction with any other advertisement, it will be used in an article about the person (not the celebrity)

My immediate impression was that it would be OK to use in an article. Just looking for some opinions to the contrary

 

why would you need permission for it when its yours.

 

Just wondering because it is also of other people.
Do I have permission to publish images of celebrities that are in photos with me?

 

Generally speaking yes, which is why we see pictures of celebs in their underwear all the time.

 

It's not a simple yes or no question. It depends on how the photo is used and may depend on how famous the person is.

There are two distinct legal theories that cover the issue: rights of privacy and rights of publicity.

Rights of privacy are pretty much what you would expect. Someone typically has the expectation that their photo will not be plastered all over the Internet. A famous person, who is seeking publicity, may have surrendered much of his right of privacy.

Rights of publicity are the rights to control the commercialization of an individual's persona (including name, image, signature, etc...) The fact that you may be able to use the photo of you and a celebrity in a blog post about the event, for example, would not give you the right to put the same image on T shirts, coffee mugs or posters.

Both the rights of privacy and rights of publicity are dependent upon state law (usually where the individual lives, or resided at death in the case of a decease individual). Thus, the answer to whether you can use a specific photo may also depend on where the person in the photo lives.

 

I've heard of big companies stealing photos from simple people and using them in their advertisements. They get sued, but most of the time they settle out of court with the family or person.

I wouldn't even give a second glance at something like this. Your going to be fine over this. I do this all the the time with photos. It's your work and rarely will you get a DMCA takedown letter. I've gotten one DMCA takedown letter for a photo and all I did was take it down and re-edit it. They never sent anything back after that.

 

Have used photos of people in political ads...never had a problem......including several with the President of the US.......state Governor....etc....
My photos......at least my photographer.....

 

Depends on what are you going to use it for. If for personal reasons,blogs and other non-commercial stuff I see no problem here. Your in it, they gave you permission to take a photo with them, its your pic. Actually if they want to use this pic they will need to ask for your permission.

Of course IAMNAL so a L can come here and say my answer totally sucks then I can't do anything about it

 

it would be nice if we ask permission to use photos that they may save the photo is part of our memories of what a good person to ask permission for it

 

I have taken a lot of photos in that included other people in public place. It sounds like I should be okay if I blur the identity of non-permission people. Or make sure to obtain a signed release to use the photo/likeness of subjects. This thread has raised my awareness of the "right to privacy" to not be photographed without permission.

 

What right is that not to be photographed in public without permission? I saw nothing like this in this thread and, at least in the US, there is no such prohibition I am aware of.

There may be limitations on how you can use photos of people taken in a public place who did not give permission, but I do not think there is any right not to have your photo taken.