CleisDesign

ARE YOU FEELING LUCKY?

This came out last week...Getty's is now using Flickr as a new means of finding fresh images. So when you post those shots of Grandma's eightieth birthday, the Grand Canyon or cousin Seth's bar mitzvah--you could be contacted to use your photos to populate it's many clients stock libraries.

WARNING: Getty's has to pick you, so more than likely if a rep contacts you, be sure you know what to ask for in rates and read the fine print about the rights of the client and how they will use your photos. Royalty free is great for a client, but if you want to keep a rights managed license (a fee is payed to you for each time-or number of times, the image is utilized in a visual medium or project) you may not want to give up your photos. You'd be wise to check with an intellectual property lawyer to make sure you know what you should be getting for your work.

I'm sure there's a fee that's already in the minds of Yahoo(Yahoo owns Flickr) and Getty but it doesn't hurt to see what negotiating room you have.

On one last note--it looks like someone else has already tried to sell photos from Flickr on istockphoto--ILLEGAL PHOTOS. What a nightmare.