Legal Issues

Editing graphics brings legal aspects along with it. You need to know if what your are doing in the way of creating or editing graphics has no legal implications. When you are getting images for a logo, poster or picture you need to make sure that you have the rights to use that image appropriatley, the rights can be gained from the legal owner of the image. Failure to get the rights and continuing with the use of the image could result in a law suit against you and/or the business. Some things you need to think about are:

• Copyright - copyright is a obtained by buying it legally. it is used to show that you have legal ownership of an item, such as images, ideas, company names etc...
• Obtaining Permission - before you start to produce or legally sell someone elses work you need to obtain copyright permission. Permission is better the sooner you can get it as there is not a guarantee it will be granted so the sooner you know then the sooner you can change your plan. Should you make a product that you can sell, then expect to have to pay for copyright permission. When applying for permission you may want to include the following:

1. Full description of the work you want to use
2. How it will be used
3. Name of the author and the work you wish to use
4. How many units you predict to sell
5. Will it be altered in any way
6. Assurance that the work will be attributed and displayed appropriatley

The main implication that a graphics designer could face is that they could receive a "civil suit". They may receive this if they do not obtain permission from the legal owner of the image that they use.
even though graphics designers can get sued, they also haev the right to sue other people should people use their work without getting permission. A real life example of this:
A rgaphics designer created an identity for business cards for a client. The client took this design, and tweaked it a little, and reprinted the business cards, claiming that the design was comlpetley different and refused to pay the designer. To read the full story go to here