We’ve had a few post in the group come across with this topic and it got us thinking about when it’s okay to use a picture that doesn’t belong to you.
Our group moderator is fantastic at posting ideas and images of things she does to encourage crafters, we all share ideas and on Wednesdays there is a post created so everyone can share what they have worked on that week.
This post is especially fun for crafters who cannot post on their personal page or their business page because the item is a gift or a surprise.
We love when everyone shares their ideas but does that mean that if someone posts a picture in the group anyone can use it?
As a rule of thumb the answer is always NO!!! You cannot take a picture (with or without a watermark) and share it anywhere without the owner’s permission even saying it is not your picture or that you can make something LIKE the image. This is considered false advertising since you didn’t create the item in question.
It is safest to create your own designs and products and take picture of them to share.
have you had this experience? Not sure how to deal with someone taking your pictures and passing them off as your own? Checkout our blog on
How to deal with someone who took your pictures…
*There are some exceptions to this rule. For example, you want to gauge interest with your customers before stocking a product. It is OKAY to ASK for permission from your suppliers to share the image for your customers to place their orders. It is at the suppliers discretion whether they let you use the image or not as it is their property. Read more about that here :
Canadian Copyright Law http://canadiancopyrightlaw.ca/how-are-photographs-protected-by-canadian-copyright-law/
You should always protect yourself when posting pictures by including a watermark on the image or something that cannot be easily removed from the image.
Not sure how to do that?
Check out our next blog post about watermarking your images.
