AEL_photography

I am currently working on a coffee table book about historic buildings in my town. It will be for sale so I took some pictures inside an old public graveyard. In a few of the photos you can read the name of the person. What do I need to do to make sure everything is legal.
THANKS

BigBear Loc: Northern CT

It is in a public area and already on public record, so there is no problem with publishing pics.

gmichaelbeach Loc: Connecticut

not to be crass but, dead people have no expectation of privacy,...in fact, they have few expectations at all!. Seriously though, I agree with Big Bear here. ...Have fun.

crimesc324 Loc: West Palm Beach, Florida

Nothing. Public area viewable by all. Just like standing on the sidewalk shooting pictures of passing cars or of buildings

Capture48 Loc: Arizona

I'm not sure about headstones, but in general reputable publisher will not publish any photo without a release as it puts them in jeopardy. Even photos that don't normally need a release will not be published without one. So I imagine they will want a release from a direct relative.

If the publisher is not asking for a release, then they will have you sign one that states you are taking on all that liability. If you are signing a contract, don't do it without a lawyer looking at it first, unless it's your contract you wrote.

cthahn

Get permission from the person that is buried there.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

This one is best :XD: :XD: :XD:

One Jughead Loc: Greene County, OH

Go to findagrave.com or billiongraves.com and you will see lots of grave markers in all kinds of shapes, sizes, etc.
They do include inscriptions and are used for genealogical records and research. They are published as well.

Hope this helps to answer your question.

Bruce

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Exactly! Publishers are very cautious because they know how easy it is for someone to file a lawsuit. Although it may not be a legal requirement, having a signed release gives some reassurance to the publisher. Who's going to sign the release is another question.

The only sensible thing to do in this situation is to find a lawyer who knows this area of law - and pay him money.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

You state that it's an "old public graveyard"... but I have to question that. If it is, truly, public property... no problem.

But most cemetaries I'm aware of are privately owned... not public. Even those, if shooting from the public domain such as a sidewalk or roadway that runs alongside the graveyard, there should be no problem. If private, you might be able to get permission to go onto the property and photograph, would be wise to do so. You might then need permission from any living relatives of headstones that you photograph, that aren't normally visible from the public right of way.

But so long as you are shooting from public right of way, no problem.

I found this out years ago when I was managing an advertising department at a newspaper, including a photo department. We had two highly competitive funeral homes in town, both of whom advertised quite a bit with us.

One wanted to put together an ad using a photo taken by one of my photographers, of their competitor's crematorium, in an ad with a headline something like "Don't send your dear departed to a junkyard". The competitor's crematorium was located right in the middle of an automotive junkyard, complete with rusting old heaps all around it and in a "bad" part of town!

I checked with our attorneys and was told we could run the photo. It was taken from public right of way (a nearby roadway) and in plain sight. So "Bring on the lawsuits, we can use the work!"

In the end, we ran the ad... several times. And never got sued.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

There's a very funny English film about competing funeral homes, Undertaking Betty. A must-see.

gmichaelbeach Loc: Connecticut

might take a little digging around...:)