Dear all, I have a question,
Can a photographer use photos they have taken of buildings on the UK freely for promotion/ advertising or would they need approval of the building owner / architect?
Ta!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Same rules apply as for anything else I think - if you're standing in a pubic place when you take the photo, it's yours to do with as you like.

Depends on what it is. For example, the Eiffel Tower and the Olympic Rings are protected IIRC which means it's okay if they're in the background and aren't contributary to the photo but if they're an integral part, you can't use them commercially.

As far as I know, it is just the lighting of the Eiffel Tower that is copyright protected, so daylight shots of it are fine for commercial purposes, but once the lights go on, you need permission for commercial use.
In the UK, any photo taken on National Trust land requires permission for commercial usage.

Mark

Rules vary from country to country. In Belgium, for example, you need permission from the copyright holder of the building you photograph. The Atomium is really grabby about photo right.

Here, we have what's known as "right of panorama". If you are in a public space, you have the freedom to take photos of buildings, even if they are on private property. Mind you, if you rock up to GCHQ with a mahoosive lens, you may find yourself having a long conversation in a windowless room. Right of panorama is not something every country has, BTW.

If you are on private land (such as English Heritage or National Trust land, for example), then there may be restrictions on photography, especially commercial use. Usually, there will be licensing opportunities, but always check if you think your photos may be used for commercial use.

Great , really useful!
I work for a company making architectural elements and we want to be able to showcase our work, so not needing the building owner and architect signed consent helps a lot


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would say that as a matter of courtesy, it would be nice to mention to those people what you would like to do. Offer a nice glicee (fine art photographic) print of a photo or two by way of a sweetener. If you are taking the photo from private land (and some spaces on land plots look public but are technically private - but you'll know this) you will need permission.

You could consider adding a "permission to photograph in situ" clause in future contracts too, where you say that such photos will be used for marketing purposes.