Deleting Original Work

I'm sorry to see this. I hope you are wrong, but I certainly respect your reasons.

I'm not saying that I've had anything stolen or copied, but I just don't want to take any chances. I'd like to be seen as a serious professional artist/photographer someday... maybe soon.

Since I paint from my photos, I really want to keep the images for my own use. I've allowed a friend to paint from a number of my images, but that was a personal choice. And I prefer to get some credit for the original photography.

I can understand why you removed your pictures. I'm going to miss seeing your paintings.

I can understand how you feel...have seen several peoples statements about how they feel about using others work and that they don't think it is wrong to copy and use others work...

I have never sold any of my photos but that doesn't mean I want someone else to gain from my efforts...I love sharing the beauty I see around me but taking what doesn't belong to you is wrong period...saw one persons site on here and they were posting photos from I think it was Photobucket of others work and said if someone asked she would tell them it was not her work other wise she would not state it was not hers...

That is totally wrong...if you post photos/art that is someone else's then you should state from the beginning that it is their work not yours...some people think if they feel it is not wrong then it isn't wrong...I locked up many people just like that because they stole others positions...taking others photos/art from online is the same as stealing it from their home...

My opinion...

:O)

I'd love to see your website. Good luck in your endeavors.

hi, i have also deleted many pages of my work and will delete the rest soon...i will begin again posting new work and some re-posts that are watermarked...i have been alerted to as well as found on my own some of my best work posted on various sites...as a serious photog who has worked hard to get to the point of selling, i don't like the idea anybody can rob me of my livelihood,or win contests using my work....

Gather's new policy regarding the posting of copyrighted work belonging to others sucks!.....it is already clearly stated in the TOS not to post work which is not your own,and yet they have made it more difficult to report CR violations....

i will continue to only support original content,or content where "limited use" with proper credits are posted supporting articles....

cheers,gayle

I'm sorry to hear that there may be treachery afoot concerning copyrighted material. I have not tried to get any of my poetry published for money (yet) but I can easily understand the worries that someone else may come along and try to steal it. I have thought about going back into my old posts and deleting the ones that don't get read anymore, but I haven't decided yet. Good luck in your work and I'm sure a lot of people will miss your postings.

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I'm with Gayle. I took off a lot of my photos recently and am posting them in smaller sizes too.
It's just too bad we have to do this. I really enjoy viewing so many different art styles in one place.

So sorry to hear this, its sad that we have to worry about posting our work because so many out there will steal it. Its a shame. I never knew how bad it actually was until I came here to gather! what a shame we have to worry about things like this!

I wished I would have been able to view more of your artwork before the decision was made to delete it off this web site. However, I fully understand your reasoning for doing what you did. Years ago, I'd taken several pictures while on a trip to the upper mid-east with my husband. When we returned home, naturally, I wanted to share these pictures with family and a few friends. I never supposed I'd ever hear what my friend said: she loved my pictures so much she was going to copy them saying they were her own. What?!?!?! How can a person copy somebody elses work claiming it's their own when that person wasn't even there to take it in the first place!! It makes me wonder: should I even post the mural I'll soon be working on once its finished? I might; especially if I sign my name to it.

There are a lot of people who think they are complimenting the artist by "copying" and claiming another's work. Twisted thinking.

Donna, your concerns are well founded, and I had posted a short article a few months ago about 'snagging' art images without consent, etc, but I know some people have no intention of mending their ways. Licensing agreements make little if any difference, and watermarks probably help more than anything.

Sharing artwork with the world is good for society but usually only good for the artist in an indirect way--perhaps PR is a positive result. I know my cosmic persona designs art gallery has at least 8,000 links to it yet no one ever mentions it to me when they link--and one must assume that some free snagging is going on! ;p

As a fan of many indie artists, the rule of thumb I followed was: If sharing a small piece of an artist's work (say, a song here, or one in a mix CD) genuinely serves to increase the artist's recognition and fan base (boosting the market for their concert tickets & CDs) that's a good thing. On Gather I know this has sold a couple John Gorka CDs.

The line I don't want to cross is doing anything that substitutes for or detracts from sales benefiting the artist. I have always made a point to list artists' websites on the inside or back cover of mix CDs, so if someone wants more than the one song, they can go straight to the source.

What's made this approach ethically fuzzy is that so many songs are now available for individual sale. I assuaged my conscience for our Christmas mix CD by purchasing each track from amazon.com. One tangible benefit to me: More uniform quality, especially tracks from older albums -- most sounded remastered.

Thoughts?

I have posted other's work but always fully credited. However, I've stopped now because I would feel bad if someone took it from where I posted it and didn't credit it properly.

I agree with you, Thomas, that I always hope to increase the public's knowledge of a particular artist, writer, musician etc. As a writer, it makes me crazy when things start circulating without proper crediting.

Yikes, I just noticed how old this thread is. I am too late.