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Originally Posted by Rockies5  I disagree and have spoken to professionals in copyright law about this. No, I'm not stealing from websites, but if I find a birthstory with a pretty photograph I will copy it, may alter it and have used it in both printed and web materials. They are non-professional photographs.
I feel secure in this choice.
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If they are not expressly royalty free, then consider them copyrighted. It does not matter if they are professional photos or not. Just because something is on a "public forum" does not mean that it is without copyrights. For example, you can not copy a TV show off of Television, which is a public forum, and use that material for printed and web materials. You could be sued, and you could also be sued by the women whos birth photos you have copied and are using without their permission. When you spoke to this copyright law professional, were you very clear about what you wanted to use the materials for? If you use the photos for private use, like as a screen saver on your own computer for example, then it is probably fine. Just like you can tape a show off of TV and use that for private use. But you can not print or use on the web, photos that you have aquired without permission. And something as sensative as birth photos should be treated with a great deal of respect in this regard. Even though they were put out there on the internet, I doubt very much that the women would be okay with just anybody copying them at all, let alone actually USING them in printed and web materials!
Consider that there are are many creative works on the web these days including writings, photos, artwork, music, and videos. It is not okay to copy any of these things unless you are given permission to do so and you then credit the person who provided you with the work, or unless the work was explicitly listed as royalty free on a website.
