10/29/2021
If you’re a photographer looking to work with a local rescue to help out the animals, I recommend you look anywhere but PAWS Bryson City. Please feel free to read the post, view extra things in the comments, and reach out to ask questions.
2022 UPDATE: Despite an agreement being reached, as of June of 2022 NO CREDIT has been placed on any of my photos and they’ve even gone as far as to use some for profit in a calendar, still without credit. No signed paperwork was ever provided (despite being threatened with “proof” I’d released my right to my own photos in their entirety) and I was given the run around completely. Of course having spent years at PAWS Bryson City as a volunteer, I can not say I am shocked. Only disappointed it took me so long to finally step away from that facility and align myself with rescue professionals that are doing more to keep up to date with positive changes and directives to benefit their shelter, make a difference in their community, and don’t psychologically abuse their employees and volunteers in the process.
I understand ethics laws for municipal shelters or things of that nature, but to suddenly, without communication rip my credit off of my photos (and crop paws and ears off in the process!) is inappropriate and unacceptable. I never received an apology for this behavior, only that it upset me (I've worked in customer service too, I know that phrase means jack all). Further in our communication it was suggested to me that they only wanted photographers to photograph their animals if they retained full rights to the photos and did not allow the photographer to use these photos in portfolios or references. As an amateur photographer, my portfolio is terribly small and to shirk away from free photography of shelter animals simply because you don't want the person putting in the work to benefit from it is a stupid and reckless business model when photos can make all the difference in adoptions. If my photos weren’t nice, they wouldn’t still be using them when they’ve taken countless other photos of the same dogs since then 😂😜
All I asked is that if they weren't watermarked, that they not be grievously cropped and that alternate credit was placed somewhere for the effort that I put in and I could not even have that after over two years as a volunteer who worked harder than some of the employees that came in. Terrible.
(And my photos never flagged on that third party website, since some were on there at the exact same time with larger, more obvious logos/credits lol).
But at least I know the dogs I photographed (and named) well enough to not confuse their names in a big long post about how much I love them and all the work I put in to help them... 😂😜
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UPDATE: An agreement has been met regarding proper credit for taken photos that would not supposedly flag on third party websites with the understanding that professional courtesy and proper communication with more explicit explanations and enforcement of procedures and policies could have prevented this entire situation. And that no photos would be taken moving forward if policies and procedures dictated that removal of signatures/watermarks and supposed loss of intellectual property control were necessary to receiving photographs.
This is a very important lesson about why we communicate and act with consideration. Both parties are willing to move forward and I await seeing alternate credit placed. A watermark or signature is a very important thing to remove from someone’s art, and to do so without reaching out or contacting the artist is inappropriate. And to all artists, remember not to be afraid to stand up for yourself. Not all things are as easily hashed out, but you won’t know if you don’t speak up for yourself.
Since a resolution has occurred, I will remove the side by side of cropped photos on my own volition (I was not asked) because I am a professional. But because a large portion of this post is about time and effort, I have left the side by side of edits performed.
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I know I don’t post here often, but the circumstances of this week have led me to make a post. It’s a long one, but it’s important.
Do you know how much time your photographer spends on you?
I work a full time job, and so often my love for photography gets pushed to the wayside to make time for other things. But one of the ways that I still get to enjoy and better my skills is doing pet portraits and I love to do portraits of shelter animals because it’s a win-win. We all know a photo is worth it’s weight in gold when it comes to helping animals get attention and eventually adopted.
So from time to time I pull out the Nikon and I take myself down to the shelter I’ve volunteered with for YEARS and I take photography shots of some, or all, of the animals. This is not as simple as it sounds; cats and shy dogs are often nervous around the shiny lens and shutter noises and rambunctious dogs and kittens often leap at or try to grab me and my camera. Animals unfamiliar with me may show signs of nervousness and I sometimes have to spend extra time in with them reassuring them or calming down energetic dogs so I can take photos of more than dog-shaped blurs.
I use my handling and training experience to counter condition or maneuver them around and I try my hardest to never ask staff for help because I want to be as minimally invasive into their busy schedules as I possibly can be. The result is hours of work just to shoot, even more when props or backdrops are involved.
And then the hard part comes, sifting through the likely hundreds of photos to pick out the best 4-8 per animal I can narrow it to to look at and edit. Then the edits, adjusting lighting or exposure, pulling animals out of the background or highlighting their beautiful eyes that get lost in the shadows. Sometimes I remove dirt, eye boogies, drool, and other imperfections in the shot. All for the same purpose, not just any photo will do, it means a lot for me to show these animals in the absolutely best light possible.
I have always done so for free, spending one of my volunteer days (for those unfamiliar, that’s one of my two days off) taking shots and working in their edits throughout the week after work so that by the time I return on my volunteer day the next week, they’re ready to go (with a full and reduced size for easier uploads) on a flash drive. Even for a handful of shots, it usually takes 6-10 hours of my time to do these photos. It has always been a labor of passion and I have never requested payment or accolades, I simply place a faint signature/watermark on all provided photos and provide them for use.
So imagine my surprise this week, as my newest batch of photos are being posted, to see that ABSOLUTELY NONE of them contained my signature. (Well one set did when it was first posted but upon my discovery of the others missing it, I went back and saw they too had been edited.) The signature that was included on both the small and large versions provided to the shelter. In fact, they’ve gone as far as to poorly crop these photos (removing toes, ears, etc) to remove my “Kerry Brianna Photography” signature.
Do you know how much time your photographer spends on you?
Do you know how incredibly disrespectful it is to remove their signature or watermark?
Do you know it’s actually illegal? A form of copyright infringement and theft?
If I charged even just minimum wage for my hours, I’d easily be worth $70 ignoring the cost of my camera, any props I bought, and software I use to edit. And that’s if I undervalued myself to the point of minimum wage and completely ignored my photography and training experience.
What benefit do you get by not crediting the artist?
A signature is placed, it does not happen on accident. By the unspoken laws of common decency and professionalism alone, you do not remove an artist’s claim to their own property, especially without a single word breathed. It is the ultimate un-courtesy, a serious act of disrespect to someone who provided you with a service (especially if they did so for free).
And again, it’s theft.
I asked many people what I should do when I first noticed and was furious. I heard everything from “send a cease-and-desist” to “force them to take down all of your photos” and everything in between. And I had to think. I took these photos to help the animals and I felt that having them remove the photos was detrimental and mean-spirited, for a moment I contemplated doing nothing and taking the it on the chin.
But then I remembered who I was, and I also realized that had it been one of my family members or my many friends that all do various forms of art, I would’ve been absolutely furious on their behalf, and so I decided to say something.
A signature is a recognition of time, and of somebody’s effort, and of their intellectual property. It is the absolute bare minimum that someone can do to claim a piece that they’ve put their heart into, to remove it without a single word spoken is not only a crime, but a slap in the face to their hard work. Rather than a “thank you” I got theft.
Do you know how much time your photographer spends on you?
