Ethics and Legal Considerations for Content Marketing

(Image is a photo by Brxxto on Unsplash)

As a photographer, I run and manage my own personal photography account on Instagram and a photographer feature page as well. My personal photography account is used to display images that I take and my photographer feature page displays images that other photographer have taken across the Greater Toronto Area. When I am taking pictures for my personal use, the most important ethical and legal factor would be asking for permission and consent. You are probably wondering why? Well there are a variety of reasons. Some examples could be that a person may not want their picture taken, it could be a private event, private property, the person might not approve of the picture posted and more. If you receive permission or consent than you are in a position where your pictures are less likely to get reported or taken down. I usually overcome these challenges by shooting in public spaces, talking to individuals and asking if I can take their pictures or ensuring that event hosts know that I am coming to take photos.

However, when it comes to my photographer feature pages, I face a bunch of different challenges. I mainly post pictures that other photographers have taken that fit into the overall theme of my page. The ethical and legal issue that I face involve copyright infringement because I cannot simply post other peoples’ work on a feature page. There are a few solutions to this issue to ensure I am not copyright infringing and my pictures do not get taken down. The first solution is to message each photographer and ask for permission to feature their images, whether in person or a direct message. The second solution is to encourage photographers to use my hashtags or to tag my feature account on their pictures if their posts featured on my page. This provides indirect consent that the photographer is fine with their pictures being used for my account, therefore I would not have to ask them.

I personally follow a bunch of other photography feature pages that have a lot more followers that I do. I have even witnessed a photography page transform into a brand, which now has sponsored content and posts. An example of this on Instagram would be the page called Streets of Toronto. The page features different aspects of Toronto, the people and companies/brands associated with the city. Whenever I see a sponsored post by Streets of Toronto, it usually reflects an event or place that is taking place in the city that is also aligned with their brand. This impacts my perceptions of the brands or events featured on Streets of Toronto because I feel like there are representative of the city. An example would be the Toronto Food Festival which is usually promoted on the page. However, the feature page stays true to its roots by still only posting photographs and not advertorials. The page has infused the elements of photograph and advertising to create their brand. The page also uses pictures that use their #StreetsofToronto hashtag, which prevents copyright infringement.

The one thing that I want you to take away from this article, is to remember give credit where it is due and ask for permission. No one likes to be discredited and everyone wants to know how their work is being displayed.

- A Message From BFX Photography