tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24244132.post2528692132325017833..comments2023-07-10T21:16:56.376+08:00Comments on Dennis Rito | Blog: Things You Need to Know About Rights-Grab Photo ContestsAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02519254898200958374noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24244132.post-73761689667298345472008-07-18T13:43:00.000+08:002008-07-18T13:43:00.000+08:00A forum member in iMag Photo who posted her commen...A forum member in iMag Photo who posted her comments: Your post is quite informative, thanks a million. But a budding photographer's questions might then be: <BR/><BR/>1) Does he have any choice to change the rules of the contests that he joins in? <BR/><BR/>2) If he can't do anything to change the rules of those contests, considering that almost all of those photo contests are the same, would he still have many chances to join any contest at all? <BR/><BR/>3) What can camera clubs do to protect the rights of its members insofar as intellectual property rights over their photos are concerned?<BR/><BR/>4) Finally, if our camera clubs can't do anything to help us in that regard, where else can we seek help?<BR/><BR/>Here's my reply:<BR/><BR/>On their individual capacity as an entrant, photographers doesn't have a choice to CHANGE the rules but its possible to INFLUENCE them by writing an appeal to the organizers in writing. This can be done individually, but doing the appeal as a group has a greater chance that said issue can be resolved as what happened in some of the contests in the past, where through the great clamor of photographers, the organizers changed its rules. Maybe, they too are not aware of our rights. It's just a matter of spreading awareness and educating the public- both photographers and users of images.<BR/><BR/>I beg to disagree, but not all contests are the same. While there are some rights-grab attempts, there are really good ones - you just have to read and understand their mechanics. Its no different from the terms and conditions in your contract. <BR/><BR/>Camera clubs can help its members by discouraging its members from joining these rights-grab contests. It's also good to discuss the details of the mechanics in the yahoogroups or blogs. <BR/><BR/>Also, photographers/ visual artists or creators of original work must educate themselves by reading the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines (Republic Act 8293) which is quite self-explanatory.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02519254898200958374noreply@blogger.com