The young man who served me, noticed the photo was on the back of a postcard and according to him, this implies that the image is protected under copyright. He said, “to make a reprint I’d need a letter from the copyright owners, that states I have their permission to make the copy”. As you’ll see from the back of the postcard, there are no clues as to who took the original picture or owned the copyright.
By my estimations the photographer would now be aged anything between 95 and 170 years old, so the chances are he’ll not remember much of the great Nellie Padgett photo shoot.
I appreciate people should be able to protect their work, but I’m not so sure why you have to pay a photographer to take the photos, only to be held to some kind of copyright blackmail no matter how many years after the work was done. It’s wrong.
If I’ve booked and paid for the photographer’s time, service and consumables, as my grandmother did, why should they then have the power over me to say how or what I do with the images.
And why haven’t Asda thought this through and come up with a way of covering themselves. If they’re unsure about any copyright issue, why not have a disclaimer form that shows they’ve asked all the questions they need about the photos. The customer then has to sign the form clearing Asda of any infringement or responsibility. If the customer refuses to sign, then Asda don’t produce the reprint.
So dear reader judge for your self (that’s if you dare look and not fear prosecution) here is my grandma Nellie in all her glory. As copied on my old scanner, that I thought was knackered, but thanks to Asda I’ve repaired it.
If only Asda had used some judgment, common sense and understanding they might still have my business. I’ve now ordered the photo online as I will with all my prints from now on.
By the way, nobody has ever made better butterfly buns. Love David
