The Digital Economy Bill – Clause 43

Posted on 02/04/2010 by Paul Debois

www.stop43.org.uk

The Digital Economy Bill is on the verge of being rushed through to the statute books before the general election later this year. It is a wide ranging bill, obviously aimed at regulating the digital economy – which is not necessarily a bad thing.

But it has a big flaw. Clause 43 would allow the use of “Orphan Works” – photographs, illustrations and other artworks whose owners cannot be found.

Originally intended to allow non-profit organizations to make use old archives, many corporate bodies have realized that with clause 43, there is a huge amount of money to be made with ‘unidentified’ work.

From the www.stop43.org.uk website:

Clause 43 says that if someone finds your photograph, wants to use it and decides that they can’t trace you, they can do whatever they like with it after paying an arbitrary fee to a UK Government-appointed “licensing body”. You’ll never know unless you happen to find it being used in this way, in which case you should be able to claim some money.

There’s more. Clause 43 also introduces “Extended Collective Licensing”.

This means that if someone finds your photograph and can trace you, they still don’t have to contact you for permission to use it. They can go to a UK Government-appointed “collecting society” and ask them instead. They’ll pay an arbitrary fee and be able to do whatever they like with the photograph. Your photograph. Again, without asking you first or paying what you would have charged.

www.stop43.org.uk

Many MP’s have started to realize the Bill’s implications. Austin Mitchell has tabled an Early Day Motion, asking for it to be given a proper reading, rather than being rushed through in the last days of this Parliament. Let’s hope common sense prevails.

For more information, please visit: www.stop43.org.uk

Exhibition of Pinhole Impressions photographs, Costa de la Luz series – at Los Balcones del Califa, Vejer de la Frontera, Spain – from 19th February 2010

Posted on 04/02/2010 by Paul Debois

At the same time I was taking the Pinhole Impressions monochrome series (see previous post), I was also photographing the dramatic coastline near Cape Trafalgar, Andalucia, in Southern Spain. This time vivid colour images were produced, using the same pinhole camera.

Around 12 images from this set will be exhibited at Los Balcones del Califa, in the hilltop town of Vejer de la Frontera, Cádiz. The gallery is situated only a few kilometres from the beautiful Cape Trafalgar and the town of Conil, where the photographs were taken. There will also be a limited edition book produced to illustrate the exhibition. This will be available from the 19th February.

Los Balcones is part of La Casa del Califa hotel and the exhibition runs from 19th February 2010, with a private view and will carry through until after Easter. The exhibition is being curated by James Stuart, MD of Grupo Califa.

Location: La Califa, Plaza de España, 16, Vejer de la Frontera, 11150 Cádiz. tel: 956 447 730

Pinhole Impressions 24 - waves breaking on rocks at Cala Puntalejo, Conil, in the south of Spain

Pinhole Impressions 24 - Cala Puntalejo, Conil, in the south of Spain

Pinhole Impressions 42 - Cala Puntalejo, Conil, in the south of Spain

Pinhole Impressions 25 - Cala Puntalejo, Conil, in the south of Spain

Pinhole Impressions 27 - Cala Puntalejo, Conil, in the south of Spain

Pinhole Impressions 26 - sunset at Puerto de Conil, in the south of Spain

Pinhole Impressions 50 - Cala Puntalejo, Conil, in the south of Spain

Vistas and Views Exhibition – Will’s Art Warehouse, 30th January 2010 until 26th February 2010.

Posted on 01/02/2010 by Paul Debois

In November 2007 I started experimenting with film again, after a break of several years. More specifically, I was testing a pinhole camera. Digital had become very much the norm for commercial work and I just had a hunch about the effects that I could achieve using really simple equipment.

The black and white photographs I took at RHS Wisley through the winter of 2007 and 2008 evolved into a project I called ‘Pinhole Impressions’. They illustrate trees and the effect of wind as the leaves begin to fall. This series of images has just gone on show at Will’s Art Warehouse, London, as part of an exhibition called Vistas and Views. The work has been included with that of five other artists, who produce landscape work in various media – Nick Andrew – Nicole Etienne – Elaine Jones – Jonathan Pocock – Amanda Ralfe and Sarah Ross Thompson.

The two Tilia Tomentosa or Lime trees were the first taken in the series and have always been my favourites. I have been asked several times how difficult it was to blur the clouds in Photoshop. The answer is always met with disappointment when I say the images were shot in camera with no trickery – it was a genuinely windy day! The only enhancement is good old fashioned dodge and burn – but on my computer, not in the darkroom!

The Pinhole Impressions series, numbers One to Six, were previously exhibited in the International Garden Photographer of the year Exhibition at The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in 2008 and at Wakehurst Place in 2009.

Will’s Art Warehouse – 180 Lower Richmond Road, Putney, London SW15 1LY England t: +44 (0)20 8246 4840