Instagram Etiquette: How to Properly Credit Someone's Work
Photographers deserve credit for their work. They also deserve payment. You may assume they’d like the publicity, however as much as anyone likes publicity, they also deserve credit and the chance to negotiate payment.
Finding an image on instagram and posting in on your business page without permission is not cool. Plus, it breaches copyright. Many businesses find a cool pic, tag the photographer on instagram and assume that the photographer will like the publicity.
I’d like to use a lot of things for my personal and business gain, but I need to ask and be prepared to potentially pay for that privilege. All artists would like to be asked, paid and then credited in due course.
So be kind, ask them for their permission, and definitely DON’T use any photo that you don’t have permission to use.
What’s the official word from Instagram?
Instagram states, “Copyright is a legal right that protects original works of authorship. Typically, if you create an original work, you have a copyright from the moment that you create it.
Copyright covers a wide variety of types of works, including:
Visual or audiovisual works: videos, films, TV shows and broadcasts, video games, paintings, photographs
Audio works: songs, musical compositions, sound recordings, spoken word recordings
Written works: books, plays, manuscripts, articles, musical scores”
Find out more about Instagram’s official copyright here.
What is the best practice for crediting photographers on instagram?
Always ask the photographer first. Send them a DM, text, email, whichever. Ask them for permission. Simple. If they don’t mind, ask how they’d like to be credited. For example, if they took the photo for a client, they may ask you to tag them with their handle and the client’s handle, eg @itsjoshmoses for @portfreshseafoods. You can use a camera emoji or simply the words ‘photo credit’ or ‘video credit’. Always take the time to find the photographer’s instagram profile and tag them in the photo. PLEASE make sure that the tag actually goes to their page!
I’ve paid for professional photos. Do I still have to credit the photographer for them?
It’s common courtesy, plus it will help your reach and engagement. Do you know why it’s common courtesy? It lets anyone else know who to ask if they’d like to use them. For example, a photographer takes a photo for a window company. The homeowner and the builder may also like to share the photos on their social media accounts. They then know who to ask, tag and credit.
Most content creators will share their photos from your feed, at least to their Story, which will extend your reach which is great if your photographer’s followers are in your target market.
What if I’m posting a carousel with photos from two or more different photographers?
We like to make sure each and every photographer/content creator is tagged and credited for their work. If you have a carousel with more than one photographer’s photos you can credit them in this way:
Photo 1: 📷 @jackson_james__
Photo 2: 📷 @shaniasweetea
Photo 3: 📷 @blake_avery_content
Photo 4: 📷 @itsjoshmoses
Photo 5: 📷 @minzmedia
You may also like to make sure that if you are copying the post from say Instagram to Facebook, that you update the photographers Facebook profile, so that they can also share on the other channel. For example, @jackson_james__ on instagram and @jacksonjamesmusic on Facebook.
