walmart photo nazi's

[LoungeLizard]

You should be thankful.

Merry Christmas.

[mccls1030]

Well, a good point has been made - why use WalMart at all? True about labs getting to know you. Better yet, why not buy a nice printer and print the pix yourself? Saves an awful lot of hassle. And with that new baby, you're going to be taking multitudes of pictures. Which by the way, I thought your photo of the baby was precious!

[Rson]

Thank you!!!

I use Mpix almost exclusively. I needed Wally World just for a quickie.

[studiocygnet]

Originally Posted by Cope

That's because
1. You use film
2. You sue MF lenses

I don't understand. Why would Wayne sue a medium format lens? What did it ever do to him to deserve getting lawyers involved? Who is representing the poor lens in this matter?

[SaundraU]

I'm glad to see someone taking this seriously and wish you'd said Thank you instead of getting upset - they truly are trying to do the right thing and protect the pros. I carry my business card, have the EXIF data edited with my info and all my prints come with a copywrite disclaimer printed automatically in the middle.

Personally your photo is very good quality and would have thought it was a pro photo. Take it as a compliment.

[hbwise]

Originally Posted by carrbowl

I think this is like credit fraud...if you have ever been the victim you appreciate them checking your id and making sure you are you.

If you want to make your head explode try this. Ask the young lady, or gentleman, checking your ID if you had your beard when your ID picture was taken. The result will be the dear-in-the-headlights look, every time! The ONLY time you have a chance of someone actually checking to see if you are the person in the picture is if the checker is over 40. Most are simply checking to see if the names match because they will get into trouble if they don't ask. Go ahead and ask. It is ALL CYA for the store owners. Being in business I understand the need to protect yourself. My only point is they are NOT trying to protect you.

On a happier note, Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night! Just to infringe on a little copy right in the spirit of the season.

[gardener]

We print a lot of grandbrat pics at the Walgreen's up the road from us and on the whole, this particular store generally does a bang up job on them. Had the OP's problem (can't print these because of copywrite) early on and the manager suggested we open a commercial account to ease the problem. Now we send them in under (last name) Galleries and haven't had but one "can't print these because they're from a pro" problem since.
The account is free with no tax number or other ID needed and you also get a 15% discount. Like someone else mentioned, I sure ain't no pro nor will I ever be but this one little ol account sure has helped get my photos printed faster and with no issues.

I will say though, that of the many Walgreens I've tried here and there, this is the only one where I get consistently good results. YMMV...

[Michelle Allmon]

I appreciate it as well. Why would you take them to Walmart anyway?

[TxLerman]

This thread has raised an important issue and the responses have fallen into two camps: (1) Professional Photograhers and (2) non-Professional Photographers. My feelings are that labs must respect and protect Professional Photographer's copyrights. However, Walmart's policy is very poorly designed when Walmart's policy is very subjectively worded to include the following:

" or any photograph that appears to have been taken by a professional photographer or studio, even if it is not marked with any sort of copyright, unless we are presented with a signed Copyright Release" ...

With this language, the non-professional photographers are at the mercy of the shlump working the counter to decide what is professional or not. How would I, a non-professional photographer, demonstrate that I gave myself permission to use my own photograph for my own use? What letterhead would I use? My empolyer would not let me use its letterhead for non-business purposes. Besides, my employer is a consulting firm and I doubt the shlump at Walmart would believe it anyway. Any other letterhead would be a fabrication.

The heart of the problem is Walmart's poorly designed policy that allows the individual Walmart shlump to decide. What is the criteria? How it looks? Hell we all know from TPF how people's opinions of photographs vary widely.

So, what is the answer? One possibility is for Walmart to create a real policy with less subjectivity that does not leave it up to the Shlump to decide. There is no consistency across Walmart Shlump's on deciding what looks professional.

Any other suggestions?

Oh yea, I have had this problem with Walmart and I find it frustrating, not flattering since I only use them when I am in a pinch. And before anyone asks: SHLUMP = Stupid Hungover Lazy Unmotivated Management Person.

< Venting is now completed! Returning to normal operations >

[Shimmers]

Scary thing is that I have this one client whom I release reproduction rights to because she has a husband in Iraq .... and I give her releases but so far not one person has asked her for anything. Using studio lights, backdrops, etc... makes you wonder.

[Gabby498]

In a world where you can get four mil for being so unbelievably stupid as to hold a Styrofoam cup of hot coffee between your thighs in a moving vehicle, I’m with Walmart on this one. Those that think this is over to top would be raising ole billy cane while they looked for the phone number of the Texas Hammer if they learned that Walmart had printed one of their photos without a release. We might as well learn to live in the world we have created because clairvoyant is never going to be in the job description.

As far as a business card, most of us have the capability to print out, as needed, a very simple but usable card on our ink jet printers from most word processors. Or just ask the clerk for the release form.

[Rson]

I ended up having to sign a release form. i did raise the a few questions that left her pondering. I saw her today and wished her a Merry Christmas (after I got my 30 day release).

1: Who are you to determine if I really am good enough to take a picture?
2: Since I am the photographer, is it really necessary for me to release myself? If this is the case, I hear by release myself. :)
3: She wanted my CF card to verify....is it that hard to copy an image to the card? What is proved? I ended up logging on to my flickr account and showing her off my geek-phone.
4: When I mentioned EXIF data she looked at me like I was speaking Yiddish. oy vey!

[Hogleg 44]

I suppose that if by some WEIRD chance the image was still on the card, and in the camera, you could show her the image on the camera screen. I wonder if that would satisfy the requirement that it was yours???

[Rson]

Originally Posted by Hogleg 44

I suppose that if by some WEIRD chance the image was still on the card, and in the camera, you could show her the image on the camera screen. I wonder if that would satisfy the requirement that it was yours???

you are right because we all know that it is impossible to put an image on a card!!!

[Michelle Allmon]

Sure it's easy to do, but would most people do it? No.

Also, I think it would satisfy any question about whether they did their job to the best of their abilities. Who's gonna sue Walmart if the client goes that far? That's on the client.