Copyrights And Photographs

Copyrights are a bundle of legal rights belonging to the owner of an original work of authorship. Federal statutes provide that copyright protection subsists in "original works of authorship" that are fixed in any tangible medium of expression. The statute also expressly provides that works of authorship include pictorial works. Original works means that only the original creator has legal rights. Copiers do not have copyrights in what they copy. Works of authorship means there must be originality in the work. While courts typically hold that a minimal amount is required, there must be some creativity in the work.

Copyrightable works include the following categories:

1. literary works;