Copyright

[crafterscorner]

Hi,
I am new to this forum, so if I have posted this in the wrong place, or if it not a suitable subject, please forgive me.
I have been asked to convert a photograph to a cross stitch chart. Now, I do this all the time for customers without a problem, but this time the customer has told me that he wants to duplicate and sell the charts after he has had it stitched.
Now I know that the copyright to the picture is his as he took it (he is a professional photographer), but I am not sure what the position is regarding the copyright of my chart.
Any ideas as to what I should do?
Also, to complicate matters, he is the husband of my husband's cousin!!

Cheers,
Sue

[DPSoftware]

I am not a legal expert but I think that you would be able to prevent this or to ask for suitable payment as the interpretation of the photo is your work. You would not however be able to sell the chart yourself because you do not have the permission of the original copyright holder of the photo. You should really agree on terms before you start as these things are much better handled by prior agreement than by legal means at a later date.

Either way, there are no problems using the software for this purpose.

[crafterscorner]

Thanks for that. I knew that I couldn't sell it as it was his picture, I just wasn't sure about him selling my chart. As it is turning out, I don't think his picture is actually going to make a good chart, it is a harbour scene with lots of little (very little) boats, taken from far enough away to get in the whole harbour. He wants it in 14 count and to come out about 10x8 inches. The boats are turning into little blobs of odd stitches, not my idea of a good cross stitch. So it looks like a no go after all, thankfully. I won't have the problem of sorting out the copyright!
Thanks again,
Sue

[matholomathe]

Copyright is a set of exclusive rights granted by the law of a jurisdiction to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work. Exceptions and limitations to these rights strive to balance the public interest in the wide distribution of the material produced and to encourage creativity.