Comments on: Ask an Art Buyer: Are Treatments Copyrightable?

By: Hasnain Dattu

Hasnain Dattu — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:10:04 +0000

Just had a visual treatment taken right out from under me and used with another photographer.

Actually it most likely happened this way. Portfolio was originally called in for a campaign. Pretty big one at that. We (the photographers in contention) were asked to come up with a new visual treatment for shooting on white. I came up with a fashion orientated light that was rich and bold. I was not considered. Job went to a shooter who had a more mainstream approach..

A year later the same contract was up and this time I was not in the running, but the look I presented the year before is what they are executing right now.

Copyright infringement, I don’t think so. People and time and needs change. The people now involved probably were not aware of my original submission.

Its part of the game.

By: Jim Goldstein

Jim Goldstein — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 17:34:30 +0000

Thanks for the great write up and compiling the feedback of Leslie and Jooli. This was my understanding as well. A lot of discussion has surfaced in the photographic community as of late with Sony lifting a concept from another photographer Phillip Toledano’s & PS3 . Always a timely subject.

By: Heather

Heather — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 17:26:46 +0000

Great comment Ken but to clarify, a treatment usually doesn’t cover technique but rather a specific interpretation of a broader brief. I think your point is still valid but I wouldn’t expect to see lighting tips in a treatment.

By: Ken Rubino

Ken Rubino — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 01:33:50 +0000

and therein lies one of the problems associated w/ ‘discussing photographic styles’…. let the image do the talking ! quite honestly, it’s not anybody’s business but mine as to how the final image comes about ! If I’m doing something that a potential client likes then it’s an agent’s or AB’s job to sell it…….without giving away techniques or style/lighting tips……or did I misinterpret the original comments? And ‘Yes Virginia,’ there are unethical people in EVERY business ! Ken

By: Sylvia Verkley

Sylvia Verkley — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 16:10:23 +0000

Two years ago we were invited by an agency to collaborate on developing a proposal for a client. The task: shoot a series of life-style set ups so that they could begin to build their own image ‘library’. We submitted a proposal, including quite a substantial approach to creative execution. The agency in turn presented our proposal to their out of town client.

The end client then showed their fav. photographer (who lived in their town) our whole proposal including estimate. The photographer couldn’t resist pointing out that if the client went with us they were getting seriously “ripped off”. Naturally, he got the job.

We’re not sure of the final results, however, the agency including its President were mortified. They asked us to submit an invoice for our creative ideas and time spent compiling our proposal, and they saw to it that it was paid. No lack of integrity there.

Since that day, I put a tiny, but clear © (option G) beside our name and the date on all of our proposals, as a deterrent. It sends a message that we’ll be paying attention.

However, if you’re about to present something that you think is really out there and you want to make sure to protect it, draft up a non-disclosure agreement and get a signature on it before you present it. As Jooli points out, not always comfortable to have these discussions, but it gets easier after you’ve been burned once or twice.