By none other than RITZ CAMERA.....this was in their most recent newsletter - not a single mention of copyrights, just go right ahead and copy ALL of your photos:

Greetings Fellow Photographers!

Do you have shoeboxes and albums full of photos you took before the invention of the digital camera? These photos keep our fondest memories alive. But did you know that you can turn these photos into digital images to store and protect in your online account, share with friends and family, and use on creative photo gifts, just as you do with your digital photos today? Well, I'm here to help and show you how!



There are two ways to digitize your film prints:

Scan it.
Many of your local photo stores can scan your photos for you and give you digital versions that you can upload to your account. Some will even upload the digital versions to your account for you. But if you are scanning the photos yourself, be sure to get all dust, dirt, and fingerprints off the photo and scanner glass. Scan the photo at 300 DPI (Dots Per Inch). It is also helpful to scan it once and make any adjustments you need, than scan it again. Save the scanned image as a .jpg for uploading convenience.

Photograph it.
Yes, I am suggesting that you take a picture of a picture! Put the digital camera on a tripod aiming straight down. Place the original photo on a black board or surface underneath the camera. The photo has to be flat. You can use clean, clear glass on top of the photo to flatten it, but watch for reflections; try also placing your camera behind a black surface with a hole for the lens to avoid reflections. The best type of light to do this is outside in bright, open shade. If you end up with a blue shift, you can always correct it later in any photo management software (or you can adjust using the White Balance tips from last time). Zoom in as much as possible, but do not use a wide angle as it may cause distortion. Take as many shots as you need, adjusting as you go, until you get the perfect one!

Whichever method you choose, digitizing your old photos allows you to back them up in case they get lost or damaged. Once you have them saved as digital images to your online photo account, you can then use them on photo gifts, share them with your friends and family, print as many copies as you want, and even digitally enhance the photo to improve its appearance. You can keep the shoeboxes and albums tucked away in your closet, but now you have the security of knowing that if anything happens, your photos and memories are safe in your online account.



Photo Project Ideas
This time around, I thought it would be fun to ask you to submit stories about any photo projects you have worked on using your online photo account that turned out even better than you originally imagined. For example, maybe you digitized some old family photos and gave your parents a photo book of their past for their anniversary. Or, maybe you created a unique and special photo gift for a friend or relative using any of my previous photo tips or your own creative idea. Whatever the case is, email me your story (with photos if possible) to digipixels@lifepics.com and I will share some of your great ideas with the rest of the class. Until next time, enjoy the rest of your summer, and don't forget your camera!



This message was sent by LifePics, Inc.
2008 LifePics, Inc. All rights reserved.
5777 Central Avenue, Suite 120
Boulder, CO 80301

and tomorrow we'll teach you how to turn these old photo's into CASH!!!!

 Did you get LifePic Permission to reproduce this?

The MPIX Guys will delete this real soon. You have to link it. I made the mistake a couple of weeks ago.

Cheri 

 I was only kidding...will they?

I think that they will!!!

Interesting article though.  I wonder if you took in an image if they would allow you to copy it at their store without a copyright release

Aren't they assuming that these are YOUR images.  Most people don't have boxes and boxes of pictures taken by another photographer.

splauche:

Aren't they assuming that these are YOUR images.  Most people don't have boxes and boxes of pictures taken by another photographer.

That was my read on it

They can delete it if they want to, fine by me.  I can't link it because it was on a paper newsletter, not online.

I'm sure that they were talking about snapshots, but they certainly didn't specify that.  Maybe they felt by starting it out by saying "Fellow Photographers" that everyone in their audience would know better...?

yeah, IM sure they are assuming that they are YOUR photos, I doubt RITZ would promote copying other peoples work.....

Re-read what you quoted ...

LDPT:

Do you have shoeboxes and albums full of photos you took before the invention of the digital camera?

The first thing this quote says is "photos YOU took" as in your personal images. There is nothing wrong with this little lesson. Granted there could be some info about not trying this on photos that are copyrighted by someone else, but at least they were trying to aim this at folks with their private stash of photos.  

ahhh, but think of all of those old school pics or all of the extras from WM or Sears or Penny's that you couldn't get rid of, so they got stashed in that box too....

I'm just adding to the facetiousness.....don't mind me!

marley123:

 I doubt RITZ would promote copying other peoples work.....

Why not?

Kodak did when they started making the "Create a Print" machines for consumers to do it yourself copy photos.

I switched to shooting Fuji film exclusively when they did that. 

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good point!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I get the email newsletter from Denver digital Imaging,  formerly known as the Slideprinter.  I got the EXACT same article.  

 It clearly says YOUR photos.  Not hard to understand. 
 

 Yes, but most people think "YOURS" is the print they bought from a photographer. 

Wow, I'm really surprised how many people really think this message is totally ok, especially when I see so many people complain about their customers copying their (the Photographer's) photos.  I'm glad at least a few people agree with me that this sends the wrong message. 

But then again, photography businesses and Photographers themselves these days have figured out that there is more money to be made if they cater to the soccer moms and scrapbookers than if they cater to the Professional Photographers.  So it doesn't really surprise me that they sent this out.

I also remember AOL posting a story not too long ago telling people how to scan their photos.  That one created quite an uproar and AOL eventually retracted it. 

 I'm surprised, it doesn't exactly take a rocket scientist to figure out how to scan something. The scanner's manual will tell you the exact same thing.

 I totally understand the consumer's point of view on this one. If I am sorting through my photos and find a picture that I think my grandma will enjoy, I have absolutely no qualms about scanning it in and emailing it to her. 

In my head there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.  Although I also sell my digital files, I just feel like the photo belongs to the subject first and foremost. After they have paid for it of course.
 

summers.enemy:

I just feel like the photo belongs to the subject first and foremost. After they have paid for it of course.

<<<<<<<<<<<< Walking away quietly

Oh don't worry, I know no one will agree with me. And they don't have to, that's just the way I feel and always have felt.  

Hi there, my name is Chris, and I work at LifePics, the author of this newsletter (we are the online imaging solutions provider for Ritz and many other retail photo sites). I caught wind of this thread and wanted to write and thank you all for the excellent feedback. Most of you figured out that yes, the article encouraged people to scan their own images, and not other peoples' copyrighted images. But the issue of copyright infringement is a relevant issue in this newsletter and in hindsight, we probably should have pointed that out in the newsletter.

It is also worth noting that the people in charge of writing these newsletters are pro photographers that work at LifePics. We on the newsletter team have all seen this thread and all agree that this newsletter reads as though we are talking about peoples' personal photos that they took, but the copyright issue probably should have been mentioned.

Thanks again for your feedback and please feel free to write me with any other questions or concerns.

FYI, LifePics offers online solutions for pro photographers. If anyone is interested please let me know. Thanks for reading!

Chris

Nice touch.

Thanks.

My mom's box of "old photos" is a mixture.  And I have been in the Ritz-Wolfe camera stores and observed folks sitting and doing scans of the photographs they took and the professional ones, too.  I would think, okay to scan and archive, but not to print. This company has reprinted my stuff with my logo and © right on the front the image directly uploaded to them (And it was definitely a professionally collage). So I don't know how much they enforce copyright respect. An employee told me they can lose their jobs if caught printing something that is obviously copyrighted or could be.  On the other hand they take in work for "copy and restoration" everytime I've been there to "fix" remove people, etc.  In my opinion they are not looking out for the artists' rights, but their potential income.  They probably know most portrait photographers could not afford to enforce a copyright violation and even if they did, the "value" of potential sales is hard to prove,

 I'm with COF that it should have been mentioned to only copy your prints taken by YOU in the article.  But I did notice that Life covered themselves by saying the boxes of photographs YOU took.