Pictures In Public Places With People Can I Sell Without Release
Perhaps this question has been discussed in the forum somewhere-could not find. Would like others input on these questions. I did find some info on the web ( listed below the questions) would still like input on this topic- any real life conclusions?
----------------------------------
1) I am at a public place and/or at a public event. Taking pictures of the area or event. People are in the photos. Can I still sell commercially without a release? You can't possibly ask each person to sign a release.
2) Does it matter if the people are identifiable
3) What if you get a shot with lets say a great architectural building with many people in the photo, its a great shot to sell commercially and person who was in the photo walks up and tells you they don't want to be in the photo or for you to sell it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.pcblawfirm.com/articles/legal-issues-photographing-people/
Conclusions
Some rules of general applicability can be drawn from the foregoing discussion. First, the intrusion upon the seclusion of another does not involve the subsequent use of the photograph or whether the subject of the photograph is identifiable; it involves the circumstances of the taking of the photograph. Regardless of how the photograph will be used and whether the subject is identifiable, the photographer should not take a photograph or attempt to take a photograph under circumstances that would be highly offensive to a reasonable person. Generally this will not happen in a public place because the subject should not have a reasonable expectation of privacy. However, in some circumstances where the subject can expect privacy within a public place, such as in the first aid tent of a public event or in a public restroom, an unreasonable intrusion upon privacy can occur.
Second, if the photograph was taken under circumstances that do not constitute an intrusion upon the seclusion of another, and if the subject is not identifiable, the photograph can be used for any purpose, including endorsement of a commercial product.
Third, even if the photograph was taken under circumstances not constituting intrusion upon seclusion, if the subject of the photograph is identifiable, the photographer must evaluate whether use of the photograph for any purpose would constitute the publication of private facts. Again, if the photograph was taken in a public place, it is unlikely, but possible, that the information conveyed by the photograph could be private facts. Even if the information might otherwise be considered private facts, if the photograph conveys information in which the public has a legitimate interest, and is used to convey that information to the public, the public interest will usually outweigh privacy concerns.
Fourth, do not use a photograph of a person for commercial purposes without obtaining a full release. To do otherwise will, under most circumstances, constitute misappropriation of the subject’s identity or violation of the subject’s right of publicity, depending on the status of the subject as an “ordinary citizen” or a public figure. There are exceptions to this rule where the sale of the photograph itself as art, rather than for use in connection with advertisement or product endorsement, provides the commercial aspect. Under these circumstances the photographer must consider, as the courts did in the ETW and Comedy III cases, whether the photograph exhibits enough artistic creative expression to warrant the First Amendment rights of the photographer outweighing the privacy or publicity rights of the subject. Given the test applied in these cases, in the context of a photograph, the presence of the subject would have to be almost incidental to the overall presentation, or the creative post processing of the photograph would have to be extensive.
