Let me tell you about something that happened this week...

A few days ago, I receive a message, telling me that the Exposure Award had used my picture to promote their contest, here: [link]. At first, without seeing the picture, I thought it could just be a picture that looked a bit like mine... And then I saw it.



Looks familiar? Maybe because it's a cropped version of this:



I took the picture about a year ago, and it instantly became a favorite among my friends and family, some of which has used it (to my great delight), as a wallpaper since. I decided then to share it as a wallpaper on deviantART, and won my first Daily Deviation (for an art piece) with it. There are other pictures that I like among my pictures, but this one definitely is special to me: it was the first that felt earned me some recognition.

I contacted the website immediately, of course. For honesty's sake, here is the exchange:

You used one of my image for your own promotion without my permission

Adrien Le Falher
Apr 11 11:41
Hello,
My name is Adrien Le Falher, and I am a young aspiring photographer. I live in Paris, and one of my most popular picture is a picture of the Eiffel Tower, that you can find here: [link]
While looking at your website, I realized that my image was used for the promotion of your contest (as a background picture in your slideshow). This image was not distributed as a stock picture, nor did I ever give the right to use it anywhere. I was not asked if you could use the picture, nor of course was a retribution for my work ever discussed.
This kind of art theft happens very often. As someone who likes to share my work in rather high resolution, I find every other week a new website, a new company, using my work without my permission. This is frustrating enough, but I'm even more so disappointed that it now happens in the context of a photography contest, with a highly respectable jury.
I'm just disappointed. Your contest is actually a great one and it's an amazing chance for photographers all over the world, but I simply can't accept that my rights as a photographer are not respected as it is now. Using my picture, without my permission, for your own commercial gain, is literally theft.
So there are several things that you could do:
-Remove the picture, but you would still owe me for the time it was used as a promotional material on your website.
-Keep the picture on the slideshow, and therefore ask for licensing rights for this picture.
I hope we could quickly find a solution to this matter,
Thank you,
Adrien Le Falher
------------------
Submitted from: [link]

Tiernan M.
Exposure Award
Hi Adrien,

Apologies for the delay in getting back to you. I have now investigated this issue with senior colleagues.
We have now removed the image in question from the slideshow and have replaced it with another purchased stock photo.

Our standard practice is to purchase stock photos. As a site made for artists, we do not use photography without permission. Our webpages either use stock photos or images by our site's members.

Apologies for any inconvenience caused.

Kind Regards,

April 11, 2013 15:17
Adrien Le Falher
Hello again,

I appreciate that you removed the infringing photo, however it doesn't solve the problem: as you said, you removed my photo, that you used for some time on your website, to replace it with a paid photo. However, you used my picture, without my permission (nor noticing or crediting me), all of this, free of charge. There are therefore two problems:
- You still used my image without my permission
- You still used my image for a commercial purpose without paying for it, and you are now paying for its replacement.

The matter, therefore, is still not solved: how do you intend to repair the two prejudices aforementioned?

Thank you,

Adrien Le Falher

April 11, 2013 17:04
Adrien Le Falher
Also, may I ask you where did you find my picture in the first place? I want to be sure it is not offered as stock somewhere...

April 11, 2013 17:11
Tiernan M.
Exposure Award
Hi Adrien,

The designer who selected that photo was instructed to only use paid images from our accounts on iStockPhoto.com and Veer.com. That designer has since been let go by this company.

Sincerely,

April 12, 2013 10:00
Adrien Le Falher
Hello,

Thank you for the info.

Again, this doesn't resolve the issue at hand, as the image was still used without my permission. Here is an offer: for 100$, you get to license the picture for the year of 2013. I will send you a high quality jpg for the price. I believe my offer is reasonable and on par with the price I usually ask, irregardless to the fact my picture was used without my consent.

I hope you will find my offer reaonsable,

Sincerely,

Adrien Le Falher

April 12, 2013 16:08
Tiernan M.
Exposure Award
Hi Adrien,

We have no way of confirming whether the image was yours or not.

In any case, we removed the image from our site following your message and conclude that this was a suitable response.

Sincerely,

I have sold licenses of my picture this year and this price was absolutely on par with what I was paid for for other pictures. I found the offer absolutely reasonable, and was answered with one of the most hypocritical answer I've ever seen.

I've been helping people as I could for several years now getting their stolen art removed and artists being compensated for their work through various means, including the #Anti-Theft-Milice (which, sadly, I don't have enough time to maintain for now...), not to be a pain, but because, as someone who started by studying law before deciding to become a professional artist, I want the world to recognize art is something worthy of payment. It is not ok to steal art, no more than stealing anything else. But what really saddens me here, even more so than the hypocritical response, is the company at fault. The Exposure Award is actually an awesome contest, one of which I would love to participate in would I be good enough to, and the judges are all amazing people:

Julia Paoli from the Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery
Lise Beaudry from the Centre for Contemporary Photography
François Letourneux from the Muxeum of Contemporary Art Montreal
Poppy Shibamoto from Monocle Magazine
Clare Grafik from the Photographer's Gallery
Jane Ace from Phaidon

These are all great names in the world of art: basically all the money I don't spend on photo gear I spend it on books edited by Phaidon, or importing Monocle... I find it amazing to see that such people, editors, magazines, museums (!) are linked to a case of art theft.

Now, granted, this case isn't extremely dramatic and there are worse examples of art thieving, but from a legal point of view it doesn't matter to me: theft is theft, and it should be unacceptable. It is a matter of principle, it is a matter of being an example. If you can't trust these people to value the work of artists, who can you trust?

I am extremely disappointed right now...

Please spread the word about this. I could happen to any of us, and would not be acceptable for any of us.

Thank you.