copyright statement stored in camera

01/18/2022 11:35:07 AM · #1

So I use my own equipment for my job. My issue is: I have my copyright encoded in the metadata in my camera.

Obviously, my boss doesn't want all the photos to say (c) Wendy.

I don't want to change it everytime I shoot for myself and each time I shoot for work.

Do I need to just remove any copyright notice, or is there a way of easily changing it after the fact? I'm assuming that it's not easy, otherwise the copyright is useless to begin with.

What should I do?

kirbic

Canon EOS R5

Canon RF 24-70 f2.8 L IS

01/18/2022 02:07:34 PM · #2

Unless things have changed, the metadata is present in human-readable form, not encoded/encrypted. You still do need a specific-purpose editor modify it after the fact, after all it is not intended to be easily modified.
Were I in your shoes, I would not want to keep switching back and forth between having/not having the notice. I think what I would try is to shoot my originals (RAWs) with the notice, then strip it when exporting to the final file format (JPEG or TIFF).

Canon 12x IS USM (S3 IS built-in Lens) -- 36-432mm (35mm EQ)

01/18/2022 04:01:02 PM · #3

Lightroom doesn�t seem to have an option for exporting without copyright. Though it seems to be an editable field in Lightroom. I�ll have to dig deeper because even when I edit it, it�s not updating when exporting

GeneralE

Canon PowerShot S3 IS

01/18/2022 04:39:32 PM · #4

The "easy" workaround is to leave your camera alone and give your boss a written license and/or transfer of copyright for the specific images -- though I think as "works for hire" your boss would be able to claim the copyright regardless of the metadata.

If you do this frequently design yourself a boilerplate form with spaces to fill in the relevant data (image #s/range, date, etc.) -- should take no more than a minute or two to fill out and sign and you're all legally* covered.

*I'm not a lawyer but my mom did voiceovers on LA LAW ...

Samsung Galaxy S21, S21+, S21 Ultra

01/18/2022 07:19:28 PM · #5

Originally posted by GeneralE:

Nope -- definitely won't work. It's a city owned entity. The have to have the name on the copyright, because they'll be providing photos to the media, etc.

Bear_Music

Sony 24-70mm F4 Vario-Tessar T* FE OSS

01/18/2022 07:37:38 PM · #6

You *should* be able enter IPTC Metadata into camera memory and toggle it on/off as the situation requires. See if this helps:

Sony Alpha 1 IPTC coding

01/18/2022 09:14:52 PM · #7

Originally posted by Bear_Music:

You *should* be able enter IPTC Metadata into camera memory and toggle it on/off as the situation requires. See if this helps:

Sony Alpha 1 IPTC coding

Thanks � that looks promising! I�ll try it tomorrow

bob350

Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 GM

01/18/2022 09:42:05 PM · #8

When I use Photo Mechanic to ingest files from my camera memory card, PM makes it very easy for to apply all sorts of metadata to the imported batch, including copyright information along with other fields addressing how rights are to be handled. PM allows the user to save named snapshots of metadata, so complete sets of information can be recalled and applied to different batches without re-typing.

If I ingest a batch of images made by my daughter with her own camera, I select metadata snapshot that has her information (including copyright). When I go back to ingesting my own images, I change back to a snapshot that applies my own information. Snapshots can be made for subsets of metadata to just change a few fields, handy for entering details of commonly re-used locations without typing all over again. Seems like this would fit the need for different copyright for different shooting by you.

After PM ingests the images and applies metadata (to the sidecar file or to the image itself, depending on file type and preference settings), I go to Lightroom and synchronize the newly populated folder into my LR catalog.

Prior to my using PM, my inertia often kept me from retyping metadata information that changes with each batch of shots, and I would often fail to consistently create new folders with the intended naming convention, and I might skip creating another correctly-named folder on a secondary drive for backup ingest. With PM, folder creation and naming, metadata application,and file renaming, all happen quickly based on my templates and variables. it does not feel like a lot of effort to enter the right information consistently. Image review is quick.

The software does have a cost, but I was incurring a different kind of cost (time, effort, inconsistent data) from not having the automation. Might be more than you need, but they have a 30 day free trial available to help make the decision.