Taking pictures of art, or an artist requires skill to get the best from it. First of all, let’s make sure you have one thing clear before you take any picture of art, or even an artist. This is a group of people that really specialize in making money with their skill or art, so, copyright infringement is going to be a big thing you have to look out for. Just as a professional photographer would like to earn money from their work, the artist does not want you to take a photo and then, you, make money from it. It is important that you check with the artist before you even take a picture. Let’s take a look at several pictures, classified as either artistic, or art.
The photo above is interesting because it is important in this situation that you include a person for reference to the size. Look at this again, and see that without the person, you might have thought that this was some new dream home for Barbie. New designs in small homes are becoming a big, big thing, and artists are getting creative in making this look right.
Photo by Yura Timoshenko on Unsplash —— Why can you get away with taking a photo of this art piece? First of all it is in a gallery. But the photographer took a picture of it to show that this painting is part of an exhibit, and not solely taking a picture of this painting. And even if you tried to make a photo from the painting, you could never get a good copy. It’s not a straight on shot, and it’s got some reflections. It won’t work. But, to see it as part of other paintings, makes it something you can take a picture of.
Photo by Lanny Cottrell – Photo of an artist at Yellowstone making a painting of Mammoth Falls, Yellowstone National Park. I wanted to get a picture of this artist painting this picture of Mammoth Falls, and before I took the photo, I asked him if I could take his picture from behind his shoulder. He was obliged and let me take his photo. Some people will willingly allow you to take their photo, while others do not want this. So, don’t be shy…. ASK.
Photo by Jung Ho Park on Unsplash ======== This is an artists sculpture. It was made for a city’s decoration. So, it can be photographed without any problem. It is part of public view.
Photo by Joël Vogt on Unsplash ======= And this one is a photo that you can usually take a picture of, because, the artist knows that it might get published somewhere, and the free publicity is worth it. Some artists don’t even want you to take photos of them. I have been to many concerts that has a sign out front that says: NO PHOTOGRAPHY PLEASE. Do not take pictures if you see this sign. But, I have been to some concerts and there is a sign at the entrance that says: PHOTOS ARE ENCOURAGED. I was just watching an old Michael Jackson YouTube video, and he starts out the concert by telling everyone to not take any videos of this concert. Can you imagine that you, as the artist, had hired someone to take the videos of you, and you are paying him big money. And then you find that someone else posted videos of the concert, and it is on YouTube already. Oh, that is just not good.
Photo by Frank Eiffert on Unsplash ======= This is perfectly ok to take this photo of this famous statue. The artist has been dead for many years, and no copyright was ever developed.
Photo by Frank Eiffert on Unsplash=== This amazing art work at the top of some cathedral or church, has been fine to take pictures of this for a long time. They realize that it is now a tourist stop, and as such have no problem taking photos.
Conclusion:
When taking photos of art, beware of copyrights. And don’t try to sneak a photo either, because some day, you will get caught. Enjoy the art, but, be aware of what type of art you can take pictures of. The old art that is hundreds of years old, you are probably going to be fine taking pictures of that, but, anything that looks current, do not take pictures. If there is any photo, art piece that has a signature on it, do not take a picture.
