“Orphan Works” are a legitimate problem for many galleries, libraries, archives and museums that have acquired various works over the years, as without knowing who created each artwork, it’s hard to know whether copyright is still in effect. However, since the UK has recently passed the Enterprise & Regulatory Reform Act by royal assent, this pushes the issue to the forefront, since it includes a method by which “Orphan Works” can be exploited.

Over on the PhotoMetadata blog, I list six ways you can prevent your images from being considered as “Orphan Works” (a work for which the copyright owner can not be identified or contacted). While written for a photographer audience, these guideline are general enough to be of value for anyone to find of use (including image collection and DAM managers).

In brief they are:

1. Add Metadata In-Camera
2. Add Metadata Post-Capture
3. Watermark your images
4. Carefully Choose Where You Upload Your Images
5. Join the PLUS Registry
6. Register Your Images with the US Copyright Office

For the full details, see the Six Ways to Keep your Digital Images from Becoming “Orphan Works” post on the PhotoMetada blog.