In my industry for some reason people have no problem stealing each other’s ideas. I’ve been alerted to people stealing my images and content numerous times and claiming them as their own. One photographer even went so far as to copy and paste my content… Full of all my grammatical errors and typos (it happens a lot). It’s like they’re not even trying to make it sound different. It’s too much work to come up with your own ideas, you have to take someone else’s but also you’re too lazy to even make the slightest effort to change it. Another photographer copied photos which even had watermarks already on it and put it on their site as their own. I mean, really?
I feel like I’m going crazy. Am I the only person who thinks this is wrong? I feel like I shouldn’t even be surprised because it keeps happening over and over. And it’s not limited to weddings professionals. Almost all of my artist friends have had their work stolen and copied by big brands. Lawsuits yield no reward. People find loopholes.
I’ve learned to not trust anyone. I have to limit what I say around others and block people from my social networking accounts. There are very few people allowed in my circle, and to them I can be completely honest and open. It’s a damn shame.
In my business I try very hard to make sure people are credited. I pay my employees very well, and I never take advantage of “connections” or throw my weight around. I know I can do whatever I wanted. I could yearn for success and wealth. I could dick people over and not give it a second thought. But that’s not who I am. If you want me to respect you, you better earn that respect. I’m not playing any games.
Doing stuff, the way i know how 