Selling images of university campus?

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Ruahrc
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p.1 #1 · Selling images of university campus?

I took an image a few years ago of my college campus. I made one large print and gave it to a departing advisor as a gift.

Recently a friend of mine asked for a print to display in his office now that he is graduated and gainfully employed. Of course he is willing to pay for the photo.

I was thinking to charge more than the cost of production, as a reflection of the work and skill that goes into the final product, as well as to earn a little profit. But I'm also curious if I might be running afoul of some kind of policy regarding sales/profits of images of university property? I'm just a student and took the photo in a hobby capacity with no expectation at the time that I would eventually sell it. I have no release or arrangement with my school to sell photos.

I guess I'm curious if there is any real concern here? Obviously I highly doubt that the university will chase me down over the sale of one photo that they will likely never know about but from a principle standpoint, is there any issue with something like this? Am I obligated to only sell at cost or give it away free because I may not have "rights" to selling pictures of university property?

FWIW it's a picture that was taken on a weekend and has no people in it, so model releases shouldn't be a concern either (although does that even apply to what I consider a "fine art" situation?).

Wondering what the "professional's" perspective is on this.

Norman

Feb 03, 2012 at 03:26 AM

aborr
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p.1 #2 · Selling images of university campus?

In the US, there's a big difference between photographing landmarks on a State (public) school campus versus photographing those at a private one. At a State-run school, like UC in California, you're on public property, and unlikely to have an issue. Private colleges, like Stanford or Harvard, are on private property, and they have been known to protect their IP rights very vigorously.

That said, I don't think that even the most fanatical private college official would care much about a single alumnus hanging a single picture of his college in his office. Just don't plan on printing up a bunch of postcards of the image for sale.

(Just my opinion - I'm not a lawyer, and I'm not offering legal advice.)

Al

Feb 03, 2012 at 07:39 AM

Ruahrc
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p.1 #3 · Selling images of university campus?

Thanks for your insight. This is an image of public school so indeed probably fewer issues regarding IP rights. Sometimes I wonder if trying to make a little money by selling prints is worth the hassle though hehe.

I like your comment about the alumnus wanting to display his alma mater on his office wall. What university wouldn't want that kind of free advertising? Helps put things into perspective.

Norman

Feb 03, 2012 at 07:00 PM

Craig Gillette
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p.1 #4 · Selling images of university campus?

"What university wouldn't want that kind of free advertising?" The kind that sells images to make money. Again, it's unlikely to be an issue but when you move from giving someone a print to selling an image for a profit, you become a business. Does the school have regulations regarding private businesses operating on campus? BTW, both "private" and "public" schools have the same legal authority to regulate activity on campus. External views of buildings are not protected by copyright but could be subject to trademark. None are that I know of when it comes to college buildings but all that establishes is that I don't know of any that are. Stanford does regulate commercial photography on campus. Others might as well and it likely comes down to the perception of interference with the business/mission of the school as to whether the school regulates that kind of activity.

The place to find out if the school "cares" is at the school. I doubt there is an issue but nobody here knows what the real issues might be at that specific place. If it's like most schools, people take pictures all the time. But most aren't likely turning it into a business or for an existing business.

Feb 05, 2012 at 02:52 AM

aborr
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p.1 #5 · Selling images of university campus?

Yes, a lot of public insitutions require permits for commercial photography. They have two major concerns: They don't want images of their facilities or trademarks to be used in commercial advertising in a way that would falsely suggest that the college endorses some product or service. And, they want to make sure that the photographer is covered by insurance, so the college won't be financially liable for any injuries or damage that might result from the shoot.

I know of some public colleges where they even have a published permit fee for "non-commercial" photography. E.g. http://pdx.edu/film-and-video-guidelines My guess is that with that one, they're targeting wedding or portrait photographers who want to use the campus as the setting for their shots. (I don't think they expect to extract a permit fee from every student who posts a Facebook picture of his girlfriend standing in front of the Student Center, or from every visitor who brings his camera on a campus tour.)

In practical terms, I don't think that there's much chance that a college would try to recover damages after the fact for a one-off image of the exterior of a public building where the end use of the photo is non-commercial private display.

Feb 05, 2012 at 07:47 AM

mdude85
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p.1 #6 · Selling images of university campus?

I guess I'm curious if there is any real concern here? Obviously I highly doubt that the university will chase me down over the sale of one photo that they will likely never know about

I'm sure there could be some concern (some universities have strict photography policies against selling for commercial gain some images of certain landmarks or campus vistas). but you kinda hit the nail on the head with the second part. Either you could go through the rigmarole of obtaining permission to sell the photo, or you could just take the risk and sell it. Not giving legal advice, but I would just take the risk.

Feb 06, 2012 at 07:51 PM


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