You are given the task of designing your company's logo. In
the midst of your work, you find an image of a lion via a Google
search and want to incorporate it into the logo. In such a case,
copyright law steps in to protect creators of original work. Just
because a photo is searchable on the Internet, does not mean you
are permitted to freely copy and use the image (that is, without
the risk of legal repercussions), especially if you want to use it
for commercial purposes. While copyright law places
limitations on the use of images pulled from the Internet,
permission may be sought from the copyright holder.
If obtaining permission for use of an image, whether from an
individual or company, expect to pay a fee. Oftentimes, permission
will come in the form of an End User License Agreement (or
"EULA" for short). There are numerous stock photo
websites on the Internet that offer licenses for images.
Companies include Shutterstock, iStock, BigStock, Stocksy, and
