Photography From a Legal Perspective – Paul LaBarge

Have you ever wondered what you are allowed to do with the photographs you take? Do you hope to sell your images? Do you want to publish them in any form – including social media sites like Facebook?

There are a number of legal issues photographers should be aware of and the answers aren’t always black and white (sorry, pun was definitely intended).

For the legal perspective to those questions I chatted with Paul LaBarge, a founding partner of the law firm LaBarge Weinstein.

Paul and I discussed many of the issues photographers should be aware of. For example, when do you need consent from the people you photograph, what are your rights to protect your work and why it is extremely important to have a contract when you are hired for a job.

If you take pictures for your own personal enjoyment and have absolutely no intentions of showing any pictures to anyone, then for the most part you probably don’t have to worry about many legal issues. However, if you want to show them, display them, post them, or even sell them, then there are some things you need to consider.

The law firm LaBarge Weinstein has been an active participant in the high technology sector for over 25 years and they have offices in Ottawa, Vancouver, Toronto and Waterloo.

At work Paul LaBarge’s specialty is tax law; however when it is time to relax and unwind, he enjoys photography. You may also be surprised to learn some of the skills he uses in photography are also equally important when he practices law.

Please note, Paul and I talked in general about the legal issues facing photographers. Many of the laws can be different in different areas and countries. For specific circumstances, please consult a lawyer for your particular situations.

Of course as soon as we wrapped up this interview and the mic was turned off, I realized there were more questions I could have asked. If you have any general questions, please post them on the blog and at a later date we’ll try and get Paul LaBarge to be a guest on Photo Kibitz again.

LaBarge Weinstein website: lwlaw.com

Photographs by Paul LaBarge

© 2013 Paul LaBarge
© 2013 Paul LaBarge
© 2013 Paul LaBarge
© 2013 Paul LaBarge