| A Note about Picture Usage... written by 'Morgan' |
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Posted on February 13, 2005 by .'.^.-*~_Morgan_~*-.^.'. Everybody loves having a picture to use for their character. A horse that looks like them, perhaps drawn, perhaps a photo. That's not a problem. Joce has done a great service in providing tons of pictures, which many of us use. The real note here, is don't use other people's pictures. I was shocked last week when I was playing on another horse RPG, and to see a new character had joined. The character had a picture. One I took, of my now deceased horse. I was furious. This person had stolen a picture that I'd previously displayed on my website, and was now using it for their character. I didn't mind their character looking like mine, but how hard would it have been for them to color in some lineart or draw something themselves? This sort of thing is becoming much more frequently. I know it's always fun to find a photo that looks like your horse, but remember people took these, often of horses very dear to them. If one were to come here or anywhere to see its use, I doubt they'd be happy. I sure wasn't. A similar case happened a few years back. Some girl made a character profile page for her character. They used a picture of (I think it was) Hollywood Dun It (famous reining horse/sire) His owners found out, weren't very happy. In this case, they had full rights to sue the girl, and nearly did. She got away with a severe warning from them. The same applies to taking someone's drawings or whatever. If you ask them and they agree, that's fine. But taking it because it's there is wrong. I know the laborious process of creating a beautiful picture. I certainly wouldn't want other people using it everywhere. Another note, on the defensive end, is to copyright your pictures appropriately. Any photos, drawings, etc ought to have some watermark or copyright to you. While art thieves can certainly get around it, it's usually not worth their time. Especially if it's a character you drew specifically for someone, put the copyright for that, as well as the art copyright to you. If you really want a picture, can't take a photo yourself or draw something, there are many sites you can get lineart from to color in like your horse. Also, I'm sure you could find someone to draw a picture for you. Xelphor's Player has drawn me at least 6, I've drawn her 2, and a lot of horse forums will have a place for showcasing art where artists will frequently offer to do requests. To sum it up, respect people's artwork, and take care of your own. |