![]() ![]() Using a photo that you like from the internet without getting permission to use it is copyright infringement, even if you credit the source. You will have to choose a photo that allows for the rights that you will need for using the photo on your album cover and associated promotional uses. Some photos do not allow for commercial uses, while others do allow for commercial uses, and still others allow for commercial uses but with higher fees required. If you purchased a stock photo on the internet, you'll need to check the license provisions that come with that photo. You got the work from the internet or another source If the creator does not give you a contract, you should have your lawyer draft a contract so that the terms that are spelled out clearly. If the creator retains copyright ownership, your lawyer may also be able to limit other uses granted by the creator. If not, these rights will need to be added. If the creator has given you a contract to sign, it would be wise to have a good music lawyer make sure the proper rights for uses related to album covers are granted in the language. Whether working with a photographer or artist, you should get the terms of the agreement in writing. An example of this would be the creator giving a magazine permission to use a photograph of your band that the creator photographed. Keep in mind that if the creator retains ownership, (s)he will be able to use or license the work for other purposes besides your album cover. Again, this usually will involve a fee and/or possibly a royalty payment. If there was no transfer of copyright and the artist or photographer retains ownership of the work, you would need to get a license from the creator to use the work for your album cover, as well as for promotional and other uses associated with the album. The assignment of copyright will often include a higher fee and/or a payment of future royalties in exchange for the creator giving up his or her intellectual property rights. If you have hired and paid an artist or photographer to create a visual image for your album cover, that artist or photographer will still own the copyright in the work unless that creator has assigned the copyright ownership to you or your band. You may own a physical copy of the work – a photo print, a painting, a CD – but that does not automatically give you ownership rights in the copyright of the work itself. Paying for something does not equate to ownership of it under copyright law. Usually this scenario plays out in one of two ways: either someone is hired by you or your band to create artwork for your album, or you hire a photographer to take photos of you or your band and then use the photograph(s) on the album. A band owning the work created by a single member or multiple members may be determined on a case-by-case basis, or it might be based on a band agreement. If more than one member of the band created the work, they may be able to sign a simple artwork ownership agreement, but again, it still needs to be determined whether those members will retain ownership of the work or assign ownership to the bands as an entity. A particular band member may retain ownership of the work as an individual and license the rights to the work to the band, or may assign ownership of the work to the band so that the band owns the rights. ![]() If you're part of a band, it gets a little more complicated because you must note which member of the band created the work, and what the agreement is within the band as to how the work will be owned. Barring any unusual circumstances, you should own and have the rights to use artwork you created or photographs you took. In this case, you would likely create a piece of art and or take a photograph that you use on the album cover. In this article, I will cover the most common sources of album artwork and how that artwork is owned. For the sake of convenience, I will refer to both artwork and photographs as the "work" or "works." Musicians seem to have a lot of confusion as to what artwork can and cannot be used on album covers, and also who owns album artwork. ![]()
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