Hello. I am going to refer to a bunch of gear I am selling. May I use your photos in my ad without mention?

[charles hidalgo]

The conversation that seems to almost never happen. If I saw this ad with all that amazing gear in the photos in the amazing room, selling an amazing looking custom amp I would think this guy has some amazing gear! Then he says he has more "well maintained pieces" for sale. I did not get asked if I would like to help sell his amp with my photos of what is a ton of expensive gear in my room with the amp "doing it's thing". I would not have minded if asked, and would have asked for a mention with a link to the photos from my site, or I would have asked them to kindly remove them. Most know this already. In fact media outlets try this all the time, and they obviously know when they are doing and that it is wrong, not to mention illegal. Yes I do copyright my photos on the regular. When you knowingly use multiple photos I took with possibly a very expensive camera rig on my nice kitchen table or audio room to help sell your item without any reference or mention what is that called? I understand why my photos were used. They are decent photos of great gear in a great room (being a bit sarcastic). It's easier in this day and age to right click and take them to use as seen fit. That's why I copyright. It's a pain in the ass but I have done it since 2003 for very important reasons. I lost $25,000 on a single image because I wasn't informed. That happened once.

I can go into how my worldwide drone company goes through this all the time as well.

This is just a friendly example, I thought I’d share from my end. Hug a photographer today.

Dallas Craigslist ad using my photos

 

[geoff]

Unreal.

 

[JoeThePop]

Ugh. Dirtbags

 

[charles hidalgo]

The seller and I have had contact. He has been understanding. I do not believe there was any bad intent here, but at the same time I just wanted it known and he said he will remove my photos. I told him I'm sorry and I hope he understands but the way it was listed was a bit deceiving, and I wanted to clear things up. This is a bittersweet thing as I would love my amp back dearly, and I realize this may have not helped my case. This seller actually bought the amp from my original buyer who is a Haven member. They both live in Texas.

 

[gortnipper]

The seller and I have had contact. He has been understanding. I do not believe there was any bad intent here, but at the same time I just wanted it known and he said he will remove my photos. I told him I'm sorry and I hope he understands but the way it was listed was a bit deceiving, and I wanted to clear things up. This is a bittersweet thing as I would love my amp back dearly, and I realize this may have not helped my case.

Just ask him for a discount on the amp as he used your photos without permission.

 

[charles hidalgo]

I wouldn’t do that but the images are still up so I asked one last time before being forced to legally and formally follow up. I’m not sure most believe when one says they have copyrighted images which we all do. I go the extra step and register them constantly. The judgments then are pretty much a done deal as long as I follow the correct procedures.

 

[asilker]

I wouldn’t do that but the images are still up so I asked one last time before being forced to legally and formally follow up. I’m not sure most believe when one says they have copyrighted images which we all do. I go the extra step and register them constantly. The judgments then are pretty much a done deal as long as I follow the correct procedures.

I don't work with copyrighted material so I don't have this experience firsthand, but oh man Charles this sounds frustrating. Sorry this person is giving you the runaround. I have always appreciated your shots. I have spent time shooting photos as a hobbyist, and the images users upload on audio sites was what piqued my interest.

Or in other words, even though this seller is behaving badly, I'm still appreciative that you share your shots with us

 

[charles hidalgo]

Things are fine. I’ve been here before and I didn’t see this as a major problem and finally we resolved things today. It wasn’t all his fault that the images were still there and he said it was a CL issue. I believe him. Most people are not bad but you never know, and that’s why I have a service to deal with that because many times I find it hard to do. Especially with things like this. If it’s work related the service wouldn’t have even bothered me probably and those are the times I realize they are necessary. I have recouped monies I never knew about thanks to them.

 

[Rudy]

I have always appreciated your shots. I have spent time shooting photos as a hobbyist, and the images users upload on audio sites was what piqued my interest.

I intentionally share only smartphone photos online, as they are of such poor quality that nobody will get use of them. DSLR photos, if I ever upload them, are usually saved at a low enough resolution that they'll look reasonably good yet have compression artifacts and watermarking (either digital or visible). Not that I intend to sell anything at this point, but I've had scans ripped off in the past and never had any attribution so I'm still sore about that.

 

[charles hidalgo]

I intentionally share only smartphone photos online, as they are of such poor quality that nobody will get use of them. DSLR photos, if I ever upload them, are usually saved at a low enough resolution that they'll look reasonably good yet have compression artifacts and watermarking (either digital or visible). Not that I intend to sell anything at this point, but I've had scans ripped off in the past and never had any attribution so I'm still sore about that.

Literally every photo I put out to view is an iPhone photo. In this example as in most one can see it didn’t mean a thing. Watermarks are not my thing and ugly. I was guided by a mentor 30 years ago on how to do things as far as protecting my content no matter if it’s from the Super Bowl, a Rolling Stones concert, or on a forum, and it has worked every single time. The FOX network was the first to screw me. That was an expensive lesson, and the last time.

A little different Example:
As we speak I am and have been since 2018 ripped off blindly by Chinese sellers (mostly but not exclusively) selling three of my drone designs all over the world. Lifting my designs down to the last detail, and even using my photos taken on my kitchen table to sell them, only changing the name because I use a variant of my family’s last name for all my drones. Let that sink in. MY photos of MY actual drones on MY kitchen table, all metadata still intact, and I’ll probably never get back a penny from the drones they sell using my photos to sell them. . Years of testing, design, then actual flight testing, on and on only to be sold for pure profit across the globe and I all I can do so far is watch. That’s lots of hard work. I haven’t built anything public in 4 1/2 years and in that time I’m still ranked #3 in the world, and sat at #1 for years. I just revisited the site today and was in shock. So though it’s day in day out normal stuff for me (possibly you as well) or so I thought it reminds me of the thousands of hours it consumed and the fact I don’t get paid from illegal non USA sellers and they know that. Here in the states I don’t have that problem. Don’t sell yourself short.

Race, AG, mapping drones, and fixed wing examples

Lesson: If someone stole it they obviously thought enough of it to knowingly do so no matter the intentions. Now and then I just give friendly reminders to stop doing such things.

The last photo is my first design. It swings a 10” prop and was designed to handle and perform as the much used 5” sized. A complete racing class was built around the 10” frame worldwide after I introduced it. I named it the “Hildagard” after my daughter. So these things have meaning. Most of the world doesn’t care about intellectual property so I do what I can to protect myself in the countries that comply. That’s all one can do. The middle photo is a 14” version named the “Hildabeast”, and the other is an obvious hex design named the “HildaHex”. I broke a speed record with the Hildabeast on its maiden flight of 132mph.

 

[Fran604g]

Literally every photo I put out to view is an iPhone photo. In this example as in most one can see it didn’t mean a thing. Watermarks are not my thing and ugly. I was guided by a mentor 30 years ago on how to do things as far as protecting my content no matter if it’s from the Super Bowl, a Rolling Stones concert, or on a forum, and it has worked every single time. The FOX network was the first to screw me. That was an expensive lesson, and the last time.

A little different Example:
As we speak I am and have been since 2018 ripped off blindly by Chinese sellers (mostly but not exclusively) selling three of my drone designs all over the world. Lifting my designs down to the last detail, and even using my photos taken on my kitchen table to sell them, only changing the name because I use a variant of my family’s last name for all my drones. Let that sink in. Photos of my drones on my kitchen table, all metadata still intact, and I’ll probably never get back a penny. Years of testing, design, then actual flight testing, on and on only to be sold for pure profit across the globe and I all I can do so far is watch. That’s lots of hard work. I haven’t built anything public in 4 1/2 years and in that time I’m still ranked #3 in the world. I just revisited the site today and was in shock. So though it’s day in day out normal stuff for me or so I thought it reminds me of the thousands of hours it consumed and the fact I don’t get paid from illegal non USA sellers and they know that. Here in the states I don’t have that problem. Don’t sell yourself short.

Race, AG, mapping drones, and fixed wing examples

Lesson: If someone stole it they obviously thought enough of it to knowingly do so no matter the intentions. Now and then I just give friendly reminders to stop doing such things.

The last photo is my first design. It swings a 10” prop and was designed to handle and perform as the much used 5” sized. A complete racing class was built around the 10” frame worldwide after I introduced it. I named it the “Hildagard” after my daughter. So these things have meaning. Most of the world doesn’t care about intellectual property so I do what I can to protect myself in the countries that comply. That’s all one can do. The middle photo is a 14” version named the “Hildabeast”, and the other is an obvious hex design named the “HildaHex”. I broke a speed record with the Hildabeast on its maiden flight of 132mph.
View attachment 68790View attachment 68791View attachment 68792

"Wow", is about all I can say. Tremendous, Charley!

 

[asilker]

Literally every photo I put out to view is an iPhone photo. In this example as in most one can see it didn’t mean a thing. Watermarks are not my thing and ugly. I was guided by a mentor 30 years ago on how to do things as far as protecting my content no matter if it’s from the Super Bowl, a Rolling Stones concert, or on a forum, and it has worked every single time. The FOX network was the first to screw me. That was an expensive lesson, and the last time.

A little different Example:
As we speak I am and have been since 2018 ripped off blindly by Chinese sellers (mostly but not exclusively) selling three of my drone designs all over the world. Lifting my designs down to the last detail, and even using my photos taken on my kitchen table to sell them, only changing the name because I use a variant of my family’s last name for all my drones. Let that sink in. Photos of my drones on my kitchen table, all metadata still intact, and I’ll probably never get back a penny. Years of testing, design, then actual flight testing, on and on only to be sold for pure profit across the globe and I all I can do so far is watch. That’s lots of hard work. I haven’t built anything public in 4 1/2 years and in that time I’m still ranked #3 in the world, and sat at #1 for years. I just revisited the site today and was in shock. So though it’s day in day out normal stuff for me (possibly you as well) or so I thought it reminds me of the thousands of hours it consumed and the fact I don’t get paid from illegal non USA sellers and they know that. Here in the states I don’t have that problem. Don’t sell yourself short.

Race, AG, mapping drones, and fixed wing examples

Lesson: If someone stole it they obviously thought enough of it to knowingly do so no matter the intentions. Now and then I just give friendly reminders to stop doing such things.

The last photo is my first design. It swings a 10” prop and was designed to handle and perform as the much used 5” sized. A complete racing class was built around the 10” frame worldwide after I introduced it. I named it the “Hildagard” after my daughter. So these things have meaning. Most of the world doesn’t care about intellectual property so I do what I can to protect myself in the countries that comply. That’s all one can do. The middle photo is a 14” version named the “Hildabeast”, and the other is an obvious hex design named the “HildaHex”. I broke a speed record with the Hildabeast on its maiden flight of 132mph.
View attachment 68790View attachment 68791View attachment 68792

Charlie, have you considered taking worse photos of slower drones?