Nkiru Okoye: Do wedding sites have the right to share your photos? (Y! Superblogger)

Nkiru Okoye Superblogger

We like to share our wedding photos and tell our friends to go check them out on this site or that site, but are wedding sites or even wedding photographers in any breach of posting wedding pictures without the express permission of the couple?

Recently, I got into a conversation with a friend while hanging out with my girls last Easter – somebody had sent her a message telling her that half of her wedding album was on a wedding site’s Facebook page. Now knowing her to be a really private person I knew she would be extremely angry but nothing prepared me for the slew of angry words that followed- “Useless people”, “God will punish them”, “Bastards”, “In fact I’m going to send them a stinker right now, what the hell?”

We all told her to calm down. Most of us were of the opinion that wedding photos provided inspiration for intending brides and that the same way she had visited sites like green wedding shoes and style me pretty to get wedding inspiration that was the same way she was going to inspire others because her wedding was filled with such beautiful ideas. Weddings are also a celebration so it is actually okay to share your joy with others. It just isn’t that big of a deal.

But my friend didn’t see reason and she sent the site a message asking them to pull down her photos or risk litigation. I laughed so hard. Litigation ko? In this Nigeria?  To me she was overreacting especially since I blog about weddings and from time to time have to put up wedding pictures that I find around the web (I usually give credit though or when I can, I ask for permission to use such pictures), but there are many other countless times that I couldn’t be bothered to seek permission because it will be practically impossible to do so.

Being a wedding blogger puts me in a biased position already, therefore I’m so Team ‘there-is-no-problem-with-sharing-wedding-photos-online”. At 2face and Annie’s wedding also, pictures weren’t allowed to be taken by guests although a few still got out.

Photographers put up pictures to advertise their work, in fact at a recent wedding exhibition I attended, a certain photographer displayed photos of Annie and 2face’s traditional marriage and they were indeed beautiful to look at, but I couldn’t help but wonder if the photographer had the permission of the couple to display their photos publicly.

Wedding sites sometimes get permission from these photographers or help advertise the photographer’s work which is indeed pictures of clients, but more often than not the permission of the couple is never sought and being Nigeria it just doesn’t matter. We like to share our wedding photos and tell our friends to go check them out on this site or that site, but are wedding sites or even wedding photographers in any breach of posting wedding pictures without the express permission of the couple?

Coming from a biased place, it’s only wise that I let you air your opinions. Do share your thoughts.

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Nkiru “MizVuitton’” Okoye is a legal practitioner and a freelance writer. A lover of weddings and a die-hard romantic, she blogs passionately about weddings at www.cakesbymizvuitton.blogspot.com.

 

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.

Comments (5)

  1. Totally agree with all you said Maureen. thanks for taking out the time to read and comment

    1. I really do not see the big deal in pictures being shared. If you were inspired by a shared picture, which you definitely were, then you shouldn’t be offended if someone shares yours in hopes it might inspire someone. And if its such a big deal for those who wish for their privacy to be respected then the site that shares it should take it off. Hmmn! This article get as it be o! I am ardent reader of the cakesbymizvuitton blog, this articles looks like an editing gone wrong. The blogger doesn’t write like this. This article is different.

  2. hi, i do agree with on the inspiration part. but have you ever thought of it in the direction of breaking the law. Invasion of privacy and most of emotional torture for the owners of these pictures you use. It may not be fair if the tides were turned. The fact that you think its not worth your time doesn’t make it right to use materials without consent. To be honest with you, i am now putting together the reason why Nigeria is where we are. that someone is doing something wrong with being held accountable for it doesn’t make it right in any way. We do our bit and every other person joins. Have you thought of doing the right thing at all times and bearing same expectation from other what a great nation we would be in? This is how the system crumbles. Not doing the right thing because Mr A is doing same and getting away with it. I am not sure about the legal implications in Nigeria but i am dead sure about ethical implications from you people. There is also the moral implication. One step at a time makes a great journey. Start yours today and expect same from others.

  3. I run an event management page also for my business “A TOUCH of CARE”on facebook, I truly stand with the writer cos if u were inspired by someone’s else idea den u can also be an inspiration,though I get permissions for some of the weddings I use on my blog but most times I don’t bother.is unfair to us who run those blogs how are we going to grow if we don’t use inspirations but if someone tewlls me to take her pics down I would do just that and stick to all foreign materials.

    1. @amanda it’s just so hard for us *sic* but I really do understand both sides. There are people that are really guarded about their privacy and they have good reason but then we still need the pics for wedding inspiration. It’s a very dicey situation I tell you .. Le sigh!

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