Can I Take Photographs from Another Website and Use Them As My Own

This might be very obvious but I'd thought I'd ask anyway.

I create custom frames from my house. There's a lot of styles of work I am capable of, but I don't have pictures of my work.

1. Can I take pictures from other websites and re-post them on mine, to demonstrate the work I can can preform?

2. If not, can I download the image and make slight changes in Photoshop and re-post them as my own?

No and No. You can't make copies of other peoples' works without permission.
There is no amount of obfuscation you can do to someone's else's work that will release their rights.

1. What would be the ramifications if I were to do this?
2. If they were to find out, is it common for the owner to ask me to take it down or is it more likely they would take immediate legal action?

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Quoting Crafts

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1. What would be the ramifications if I were to do this?

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You can be sued by the person who owns the pictures. You can be exposed to your clients/potential clients as a moral-less thief who would potentially cause them much financial risk to themselves if they were ever to use your services.

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2. If they were to find out, is it common for the owner to ask me to take it down or is it more likely they would take immediate legal action?

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Frankly, if you stole my stuff, I'd file a complaint with whatever service is hosting your site and your use of my photos (and possibly your whole site) will immediately go poof because no ISP wants to risk financial liability because of your moral turpitude and the federal government absolves them from liability if they do so. They can certainly sue you instead or in addition to doing this. I can guarantee that if you sue from those who makes a living for this they will come after you for $$$$ rather than letting you skulk away with a promise not to do it again.

You have been informed that what you want to do is ILLEGAL.

This is not the HOW DO I BREAK THE LAW AND GET AWAY WITH IT forum. This conversation is over. I will not be an accessory to your theivery.

17 USC 504

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(c) Statutory Damages.—
(1) Except as provided by clause (2) of this subsection, the copyright owner may elect, at any time before final judgment is rendered, to recover, instead of actual damages and profits, an award of statutory damages for all infringements involved in the action, with respect to any one work, for which any one infringer is liable individually, or for which any two or more infringers are liable jointly and severally, in a sum of not less than $750 or more than $30,000 as the court considers just. For the purposes of this subsection, all the parts of a compilation or derivative work constitute one work.
(2) In a case where the copyright owner sustains the burden of proving, and the court finds, that infringement was committed willfully, the court in its discretion may increase the award of statutory damages to a sum of not more than $150,000. In a case where the infringer sustains the burden of proving, and the court finds, that such infringer was not aware and had no reason to believe that his or her acts constituted an infringement of copyright, the court in its discretion may reduce the award of statutory damages to a sum of not less than $200. The court shall remit statutory damages in any case where an infringer believed and had reasonable grounds for believing that his or her use of the copyrighted work was a fair use under section 107, if the infringer was:
(i) an employee or agent of a nonprofit educational institution, library, or archives acting within the scope of his or her employment who, or such institution, library, or archives itself, which infringed by reproducing the work in copies or phonorecords; or
(ii) a public broadcasting entity which or a person who, as a regular part of the nonprofit activities of a public broadcasting entity (as defined in section 118 (f)) infringed by performing a published nondramatic literary work or by reproducing a transmission program embodying a performance of such a work.

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anywhere from $750 up to $150,000, I would lean towards the high end as your idea would lend itself towards being easily proven to be willful by the plaintiff and would be practically impossible for you to prove it innocent because it would not be innocent infringement at all.

they may also pursue actual damages/profits if you managed to make more than the statutory damages limit of 150k

you would also face all sorts of issues with your customers when they found out you faked your portfolio and were unable to deliver what they contracted you for.

I'm a small company trying to showcase the special frames I can make. I decided to post the pictures and put a small watermark disclaimer in the corner saying "picture belongs to _______. This is an example of skillful work that can be done."

Hope that doesn't take the jelly out of your doughnut flyingron.

If she wants to showcase "special frames she can make" then perhaps she should make some. And take pictures of them. And showcase them. Just an idea.

The idea is to replace the pictures in time with work I will preform. Until then I need to market so I'm using these pictures.

It's still illegal no matter how you slice it. You might get away with it, you might get sued, you might get your site taken down.
You can weasel all you want but there's still no justification for illegally stealing other people's work.
You've been informed by several people of htat.
You'er a pathetic sociopath.


Create you own work *OR* obtain permission *OR* pay someone for stock or custom photos/

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Quoting pastrami

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The idea is to replace the pictures in time with work I will preform. Until then I need to market so I'm using these pictures.

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So you have two user names here? I don't think that's allowed. And no, stealing from others is still illegal.

prediction, 6 or 7 months from now OP will be back crying for help when served with a major lawsuit.

Steal my photos/pictures and you will have a problem. :victorious:

There are millions of images that are in the public domain. Why not use those?

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Quoting Some Chowderhead who forgets I can see IP addresses

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Until then I need to market so I'm using these pictures.

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Tough noogies. US Copyright law does not care that you "need to market". What you're doing is illegal, period. Either create some sample work, like any honest business person would, or get permission from the owners of the photos you're stealing. Simply giving "credit" is not enough, you need actual permission, and they may expect compensation for their work.

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Quoting mmmagique

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So you have two user names here?

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Now s/he has zero.