Ordering prints from my website...sorta urgent

[sugar_babygirli]

Ack! I didn't think anyone would want to order prints from my personal portfolio on my website (it's brand new by the way), but I have a request for a couple of photos on there.

How do I go about doing this? I don't have any type of shopping cart or anything like that set up, but that's the least of my problems.

1 problem: I am concerned about giving people prints of my photos for the reason that they would scan them in their computer and maybe post them online and then they'll be all over the net without my watermark and people possibly claiming the photo as theirs (Oh yes, I have had this happen about 2 or 3 times already) I haven't actually sent them in to the copyright office to register them, but many photographers have send that's not even necessary and I'm covered under basic law. How does this work if I end up seeing them on the net or being abused?

2 problem: I'm a little leary of mailing a stranger something and it has my personal address on it :confused:

3 problem: I don't have a clue what to charge anyway!

Uh....there's a ton of other problems I can think of too :lol:

Should I just tell the person that they aren't for sale at this point? It'd be great to make some extra cash, but at what expense? Please feel free to share your experiences and ideas! Thank you so much!

[liza]

If you're going to sell your photos, there will always be the likelihood that they'll be copied. Make sure you charge them dearly for 4x6 prints to compensate for the loss. :)
It sounds as if you need to go through Smugmug, Printroom, Shutterfly, or one of the other commercial sites to sell your images. The customer pays them, and they print the photos and deliver them. Of course, they charge a percentage, but they handle all the money, the tax forms, and the credit cards.

[Bosscat]

Have a rubber stamp with your copyright info made up, so that you can stamp the back of any print. This way, nobody can scan a 4x6 to make an enlargement, unless they do it at home, which nobody can really stop.

Plus you can have contact info, should they forget who they got the photo from in the 1st place.

[SonyaL]

First of all sell the pics for a good price you only take money orders get a P.O. box at the post office if you dont want to use your personal address they are really cheap.
Price high if they want them make them pay.

Don't get into taking personal checks that can get into issues for you if they bounce its better not to take them at all.


Sonya

[PhotosGuy]

I haven't actually sent them in to the copyright office to register them, but many photographers have send that's not even necessary and I'm covered under basic law. How does this work if I end up seeing them on the net or being abused?
How to sell my photos?
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=36657
Online Photo Printing for Selling Images
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=138432
Does an AP or other news agency photog need to be full-time?
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=141483
Stock Photo License pricing
http://photographersindex.com/price-adv-calc.htm
Australia: Alliance Online advice
http://www.alliance.org.au/docman/task,cat_view/gid,7/limit,6/limitstart,12/

COPYRIGHT:
You can put all your small jpegs on a CD & copyright them as a group for only $30 in the US. Then you're in for big

$s if someone uses them without permission which gives you a "big stick" if you tell someone to remove them.

Copyrighting Your Images and Deterring Image Theft
http://www.rickbakerimages.com/photography_advice/copyrighting_your_images.html

http://fairuse.stanford.edu/Copyright_and_Fair_Use_Overview/chapter9/index.html

10 Big Myths about copyright explained
http://www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html

A compendium of resources on copyright - Editorial photographers links
http://www.editorialphoto.com/copyright/

2005 Photographers Market
http://www.fetchbook.info/Photographers_Market_2005.html

UK
http://www.patent.gov.uk/copy/definition.htm
Australia
http://www.copyright.com.au/membership.htm
http://www.ag.gov.au/agd/WWW/securitylawHome.nsf/Page/Publications_Intellectual_Property_A_Short_Guide_t o_Copyright#5

[chtgrubbs]

I would put statement on your website that the photos are copyright and that you do not allow any reproductions. When you deliver a print you should also send a statment with the print or invoice about your copyright and repeat that no reproduction is allowed without your permission. If you see your photo on the web or in print, I would send the user a registered letter telling them you own the copyright and that use of your photo is forbidden, and to withdraw the photograph from circulation, and to send you an acknowledgment that they intend to do so. If the photo is still in circulation after a reasonable time, then send them an invoice for the usage fees for the photograph. If this fails, get a lawyer and have him go after them.

[sugar_babygirli]

You all have wonderful advice. Thank you so much!