Cooool. Looks like it could be somewhere near a mountainous area.
If you’re painting it, then you must have already been in contact with the photographer to ask permission. I’m sure he or she could tell you where it was taken.
It is a cool shot!
I can’t believe you have to ask someone if you can paint from their photos.
I’ve had people contact me to ask if they could paint my baby fox photos. They gave me my choice of prints for the honor 
Most of the time I just use it as a reference, the painting is different in the end than the photo… it’s just a reference.
I did ask permission for this one, it’s off of webshots, and I asked if I could use it as a reference and they said yes.
I found out it was taken in Manitoba, Canada.
[QUOTE=wanabe;3938967]
I can’t believe you have to ask someone if you can paint from their photos.[/QUOTE]
Why wouldn’t you ask?
The time required to track down the owner?
I have a photo of Neuschwanstein Castle on my office wall. Can you imagine how difficult it would be to find the person who took the photo?
I find it hard to believe there is any legal requirement to do so.
Unless it’s a stock photo, you’re infringing on copyright laws if you don’t request permission.
Good on you OP for asking! 
If you alter it sufficiently than copyright no longer applies, i.e. background, exact position etc. There’s a % of how much needs to be changed, but I can’t remember what it is…
There is no “percentage rule”. If it looks like a copy to the average viewer (read, potential juror), it’s a copy. If you can overlay the copy with the original and it matches, it’s a copy.
As both an artist and a photographer, I’ve never understood the attraction to copying someone else’s images. What you end up with is never really your own vision. At best, it’s a loose interpretation of an image that someone else has already worked hard to create.
What’s a “stock photo”?
A stock photo is a photo that has been sold to a stock agency for use in advertising and the like… i.e. www.corbis.com
I can’t agree with you more Terri!
If it’s been sold to an advertizing agency, wouldn’t they want you to get permission? Especially since they paid money for it.
I disagree. To paint wildlife even the most seasoned painters use reference photos of some kind. Landscapes and animal portraits or wildlife scenes are often referenced from a photo. The painting is still an original artwork and does not copy the photo exactly.
Sorry but I disagree here.
Anyway I find it rude and snarky that you would criticize my intentions when my intent was to share this beautiful photo I found, not the painting. Next time I won’t share it.
This is the reason I don’t post on COTH anymore, hardly. It’s such a PITA with people like this.
Maybe I should just delete it all together… thank you for ruining this for me and others who just wanted to enjoy the photo.
It is really cool!
right, and there is a law called “fair use” that allows a reference photo to be used in this way. The intent is not to copy exactly, just to use it as a guide.
People just have to shoot people down on here so much, even when they are trying to add to this community on here… in a positive way. I haven’t posted on this site in months… for this reason.
I meant nothing snarky in my reply, and I apologize if it came across that way. What I said is simply my own truth about my own work.
I said nothing about NOT using photos as reference for painting. I personally use photos as reference in my paintings about 60% if the time – but I only use my own photos. The rest of the time I paint from life, so when I get to the studio I’ve already done a lot of on-site research about what I’m painting.
Since I am not a wildlife photographer it would be pretty hard for me to get a photo like this to work from. If the photo is on Webshots, its meant to be shared with the public. I never said I was the photographer, only that I was using it as a reference.
I work from my own photos when I can, but I am not in all places where I would like to create a painting. If I want to paint a wave scene from Carmel, and I am in Virginia, I need a photograph to get the coast line right and the details.
Photos are also necessary when doing portraits of any kind unless you have someone sitting for you. How else would you get the features right.
I just felt your comments were critical of my using a photo like this to paint from. It gave me inspiration to paint… and I don’t live in Manitoba, so I searched for it on a public site.
I’m pea-green with envy that y’all can paint. I don’t care where all y’all get your inspiration I’m just plain jealous.
Hey - La Gringa - don’t go! You’re supposed to come over to paint my chickens! I’ve got a rooster that is absolutely STUNNING.
He’s evil and I’m going to eat him soon so hurry up and come over!
And… I’ve got pigs napping in the grass. Awfully cute. The Free Horse is in love again and won’t leave them. He’s pining. Good Lord.
I don’t think any of them would squeal if you painted their portraits… pun intended.
