I got an email this morning from Omar, a regular reader of I Speak Film, asking how to copyright a photograph. I’ve never gone through the process, so I did a little research about how it works in the United States.

While it’s not absolutely necessary to go through the process of copyrighting an image, it is a very good idea if you plan to sell your images or distribute them online. It is an added protection for you to make sure you get what monies are due to you should your images be used to earn money for someone else. The cost is a bit high, though. It is now $45 to copyright a collection of images, so be sure it is worth it to you to go through this process.

Basically, if you have a rockin’ stack of images that you think might be worth some cash in the future, or you want to make sure the world knows that it’s your image and not someone else’s, then I say go for it. Otherwise, you will still be protected, but not to the fullest extent of our bureaucracy. Details and links for the forms are below.

I got the following information from About.com and the US Copyright Office.

HOW TO COPYRIGHT A PHOTOGRAPH

1. You do not have to do anything to establish copyright in a photograph - all photos (except possibly some copy work) are automatically copyright.
2. Optionally you can register copyright with some national bodies. Doing so may make it easier to claim breach of copyright and increase the amount you can claim in that country.
3. For the USA, go to the Library of Congress web site and download the forms listed there - they are in Adobe Acrobat format.
4. The fee of $30 $45 can cover any suitable collection of photographs. Read all the instructions and follow them or your form will be returned.
5. Whenever you publish a photograph, particularly on web sites, it is a good idea to use a copyright statement, such as ‘© John Brown 1999′ on or near the work as a reminder.
6. You can also add a ‘digital watermark’ which creates an invisible marker in the picture identifying it as yours, but this may nor be very effective.
7. Fine artists may like to find out more about moral rights which control the usage and attribution of your work in some countries.
8. Copyright generally lasts for 50 years after the death of the photographer

WHAT DOES A COPYRIGHT PROTECT?

This is from the US Copyright office: ” Copyright, a form of intellectual property law, protects original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture. Copyright does not protect facts, ideas, systems, or methods of operation, although it may protect the way these things are expressed.”

Here is a link to the US Copyright office, a list of their frequently asked questions, and the instructions and form (PDF) for registering your work.