How to Copyright a Digital Image

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By Richard Burke
eHow Contributing Writer

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There are many misunderstandings and miscommunications concerning copyright in the United States. The simple fact is that the creator of the work is the owner of all copyright interests in the work. This is a matter of law under US Code Title 17. There is no requirement for registration of a copyright with the U.S. government, as there is with a trademark or patent. That said, there are a lot of websites that offer copyright registration for a fee including the U.S. Government's site. People frequently ask me if they should sign up with these sites and pay their fees. There is no simple answer to that question. According to the US code, registration meets the prima fascia case for establishing ownership; however, there are other ways to prove ownership should there be a legal contest. I am not a lawyer or an expert in copyright, but can offer some basic concepts for how to protect your content on the Internet. Read on to gain some insight and do some research on your own to get the answer to the registration question. Copyright law is complex and confusing--this article covers the basics only--but for most of us it may at least provide some clarity.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Digital Images
Internet Access

Step 1

Resolution

Understand that copyright has nothing to do with the law, but a lot to do with photography and practicality. Most websites, like eHow, limit the image size you can upload. Many sites limit the resolution to 1024 x 768 pixels. These photos will look excellent on your computer screen, but really have no other application. Anything you put on the web can be stolen, since essentially the image is being copied to your computer for viewing. These images, however, have far too little resolution to be used for print, coffee mugs or T-shirts. Never upload images larger then one megapixel, unless you are doing so to a secure stock photo site or art distribution site where they display a low-resolution image, but ship the high resolution after purchase. Consult the chart in Resources below to understand image size and resolution requirements.
Step 2

Add a Watermark

Put a watermark or copyright notification on all of your images. If the copyright of an image becomes part of a legal proceeding, you may have to prove ownership in a court of law. The upload date with the copyright statement may prove valuable if you are ever engaged in such a contest.
Step 3

Metadata

Use the metadata information capability on your camera. Most modern digital cameras allow you to add metadata to the image. Some allow you to do this in the camera and others in postproduction software. The metadata becomes part of the digital file, and in most cases can include the author, copyright notice, date and location. This original file with the embedded metadata would also be powerful evidence proving ownership in a court of law.
Step 4

Registration

Register your copyright with a variety of online services. They are quite honest in telling you registration is not required and they do charge fees for their services. If you are lucky enough, however, to have taken a photograph of a celebrity or national event, you may want to register the photograph to assure that you meet the prima fascia case for establishing ownership. Some photographs are worth millions, and it may pay to use a registration service for this sort of image.