using someone's art!

[EYE-YAD]

hello,

I want to ask you guys if it's ok to draw something (or a character) from someone's cartoon or art and use it for portfolio or a videogame.

I really want to know because im planning to make a flash videogame bassed on "Hellsing"!

Please if someone know more about copyrights stuff!

[CNO]

Originally posted by EYE-YAD
hello,

I want to ask you guys if it's ok to draw something (or a character) from someone's cartoon or art and use it for portfolio or a videogame.

I really want to know because im planning to make a flash videogame bassed on "Hellsing"!

Please if someone know more about copyrights stuff!

If you're just doing it for yourself, there shouldn't really be a problem.

If you're doing it for profit, there is an issue.

If you are including it in a portfolio, you would be better suited creating your own characters - portfolio reviewers tend to take more kindly to original work.

Otherwise, your best bet is to get in touch with the people who own the copyright to Hellsing and ask permission, clearly stating your intentions, and get their blessing.

[argonauta]

there are ways to go around copyrights. With pics, paintings and drawings the thing is to take the original as a reference and use it to create something new that completelly difers from the original, although it still somehow looks like it.

Andy warhol is a great reference for that. he is famous for his "marylin" or his paintings of campbell's soups. And although he got sued for using those images, he won.

Anyway, copyrighting is kinda complicated. So i'd said, why don't u use your own characters? also, for a portfolio, i definatelly wouldn't include pics or drawings that i know i didn't create but i created based on someone elses work.

I'd said, take the characters as reference, but invent your own.

[CDP-Design]

one question im getting into vector art and im using some free stock photo images as a base to trace around then start my vector art. Is this alright? they are royalty free so does this mena that i ahve free roam on how i can use them? and if so does this mena that the end product is all my work and no reference has to be made to the photo? I aint too good with copyrights so i dotn want to put anything on my website whihc is breaking copyright. better to be safe than sorry right.

[CNO]

Depends on what you mean by "free stock photos". Royalty-free is different than free - you have to purchase the rights to use an image, but do not pay royalties on each usage of that image. However, other people can use the same image in different scenarios (unless you purchase that image outright).

Tracing a royalty-free image is tricky - if you are doing it to show off your own style, I'd say it's probably OK, however, if you are trying to sell those works in another format, you might get into some trouble (since your work and the source will not be all that different).

However, take all of this with a greain of salt - I am not a lawyer. Your best bet is always to contact either a lawyer or the source of the image you are using and see what your rights are. Most people will be cool about this if you are producing a derivative work and just not outright staling from them, and were good enough to get in touch (who knows, it might open up some potential collaborations as well)

[argonauta]

there are some communities to excahnge photots. Normaly these are given like free royalte-free photos. The only thing you got to to do to use them is ask permission from the author. Usually they give it two you under these two scenarios:

they say "sure, as long as you put somewhere in your site that the images you are using were photographed by me. That's all"...i find that quite acceptable and logic

The other scenario is: "sure dude, you didn't even had to ask me. use them, no problem"


You can find some links to free stock photos in the graphics & design forum, in one of the stickies (one of the thread at the beginnig, that says tutorial thread or something like that).

[CDP-Design]

yeha im using some free royalty free photos but i was unsure about other photos ive seen on the web i think ill just use me royalty free ones limits the amount of pics but at least i aint breakin the law and if i really want the pic prefer to pay $100 for the pic or $500 for a decent digi cam than $15000 for a law suit ok thx for your info.