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This week& #39;s tally of requests to use my work without paying for: 17. 17 requests (actually some were demands) to use photos or videos that I& #39;ve spent considerable time and effort to capture / create, without payment. Some by people employed by very large companies.
I don& #39;t ever name and shame for many reasons (primarily I hate social media lynch mobs, but also because shame is not a good driver of lasting and real behaviour change).
It isn& #39;t about the money (although we& #39;ve all got bills to pay), it is about value. If you / your business / your company get value out of the work of someone else, you need to express that value to that person in some way or another. Find a way to exchange value back to them!
I& #39;m actually supportive of this on an individual level too. There are photographers whose work I& #39;ve purchased because the photographer has brightened my day in some way, or because the work speaks to me.
I& #39;ve purchased art work from various artists and it hangs on my wall or is on my shelves. I& #39;ve paid money into gofundme campaigns and other crowd funded artist / photography projects to help other creatives, because I see value in what they do.
The world is a better place because of art and because of creative people and creative collaborations. If you want creatives to keep brightening the world and making it a little bit happier, find a way to support what they do.
I get that I have a conflict of interest here, I& #39;m not at all begging for support, I& #39;ll find my own way through, this isn& #39;t at all about me.
Over the last few weeks I& #39;ve seen so many creatives give up on what they do because they can& #39;t feed their families.
Over the last few weeks I& #39;ve seen so many creatives give up on what they do because they can& #39;t feed their families.
It is heartbreaking to see these amazing people quit. I get that we& #39;re all in the same storm and that things are tight for many of us, but I recommend finding some little way to support those who make your life a little brighter.
Anyway... that is the end of my rant (for now), back to your usual programming. Have a great weekend.
