Photo Restoration - - Restored photo "borrowing"

jannetie · #1 05-07-2006, 01:26 PM

Wanted to post here just in case others here might be having their photos lifted for use on unrelated retouch/restoration websites. For the second time in the past year, I've found my work on someone else's site.

http://www.chitracreations.com/html/...storation.html

There are quite a few examples there, and it wouldn't surprise me if many belonged to unsuspecting restorers.

Janice

aceman · #2 05-07-2006, 07:13 PM

Thats very interesting. For a start they are stealing images, and secondly it looks like they are exagerating thier skills quite substantually. A couple of their examples look like the restored example is the actual original and they have just detouched them, but then again their examples are so small its tough to be sure.

Doug Nelson · #3 05-07-2006, 08:24 PM

Use their live chat and see what they have to say about it

Post the chat log here if it's interesting.

Caitlin · #4 05-08-2006, 01:48 AM

Well they can't have stolen all of them - some of them are too pathetic to have been stolen. I thought this one was amusing: Add / Remove People - if you look at it it's simply been cropped! http://www.chitracreations.com/images/pe_addppl.gif

Gina_D · #5 05-08-2006, 04:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jannetie

Wanted to post here just in case others here might be having their photos lifted for use on unrelated retouch/restoration websites. For the second time in the past year, I've found my work on someone else's site.

Hi Janice,
Just curious if you had contacted them regarding this... or the other site for that matter. If so, did you receive any reply and/or did they remove the photos? Makes you wonder, if you've come across two instances this year, how many more are there out there that belong to yourself or others. Unfortunately, seems as though it happens more than we'd like to think!

Gina_D · #6 05-08-2006, 04:41 AM

Looked at their "About Us" page, interesting words considering the use of photos that don't belong to them. But, if they hold true, they may pull the photos as soon as it's brought to their attention. I suppose it's giving the benefit of the doubt to think this was a web designers error and that the owners can claim ignorance. I don't see how that could be if they actually LOOK at their own site though, they'd have to know what did and didn't belong to them.

"We believe in an idea that people can come together as customers, employees, vendors and shareholders in an organization to make life better for them and for the world around. The power of any idea rests in its realization. At Chitra Creations, we are working hard to realize it.

Our Values
Great organizations and persons are created with simple values and ideas. What makes them great is steadfast adherence to their values. We aim to reach our goals while practicing universal values.

1. Respect to Individuals: We respect every person around us. We respect their experiences and their thoughts. We are sensitive to their differing needs in our interactions with them.

2. Integrity: We deliver what we commit. What ever we do, we practice honesty and fairness. Our actions generate trust.

3. Simplicity: We make it simple, understandable and straight-forward.

4. Creativity: We solve problems by finding novel and superior solutions.

5. Learning: We grow mentally and intellectually by being constantly aware of the changes around us and listening to ideas and opinions with an open mind..."

Doug Nelson · #7 05-08-2006, 05:50 AM

I noticed the two "before" images, the one on your site and the one on theirs, have very different damage. Also, your restoration seems to have much better shadow detail, even if shrunk to match. Is there any possibility the two of you just happened on copies of the same original?

Caitlin · #8 05-08-2006, 06:40 AM

That was quick - the restored photo in question has gone.

jannetie · #9 05-08-2006, 12:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gina_D

Hi Janice,
Just curious if you had contacted them regarding this... or the other site for that matter. If so, did you receive any reply and/or did they remove the photos? Makes you wonder, if you've come across two instances this year, how many more are there out there that belong to yourself or others. Unfortunately, seems as though it happens more than we'd like to think!

Hi Gina, yes I did contact them immediately and received an email this AM saying they were taking the photo off the site immediately. They did, I'm happy to say. My partner and I wondered if we should say anything, since we're just giving them free advertising, lol.

The previous instance was the same, my photos were removed immediately. (I'm just a little more hot-headed than my partner, lol; he'd wait to see what happens.)

I posted here because I had the same thought; if this has happened to me, how many others who are so much more talented and knowledgeable with Photoshop (or other program) is this happening to? I'm usually pretty laid back, but this is something that really irks me. My skills are limited enough, I don't need anyone taking credit for the good stuff I've done! Things are much easier since I've started using Photoshop CS.

As for the earlier post of removing people from a photo, that is pathetic, even laughable! I missed that one when I was at the site.

Janice

jannetie · #10 05-08-2006, 12:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Doug Nelson

I noticed the two "before" images, the one on your site and the one on theirs, have very different damage. Also, your restoration seems to have much better shadow detail, even if shrunk to match. Is there any possibility the two of you just happened on copies of the same original?

Hi Doug,

We'd have wondered the same thing, but the photo belongs to my partner's family - there's only one copy of it. The family is small enough that there are only four others who have a copy of the restored pic. I noticed the shadows also; on the original copy, the photo is so streaked and faded it would probably show up in even a small web photo. Our thought was they took the fixed copy, faded it and chipped away the edges.

Just had a look at the original photograph myself; it doesn't even show up as streaky and faded as it really is on our site. I'd like to redo all our photos; back then I didn't have Photoshop and relied on a number of older, different and much more manual programs. There's that OCD kicking in again. I'm resisting the impulse.

Janice

chrishoggy · #11 05-08-2006, 01:19 PM

Just report them to the hosting company http://www.powweb.com/ and have the site shut down for copyrights breach. They are in breach of the hosting terms by violating copyrights law

suri · #12 05-08-2006, 01:22 PM

Chitra Creations is a company with professional Graphic Artists. We respect our profession and our fellow professionals in this field.

We thank you for bringing our attention to this image. We have taken down this image from our website and are investigating what has happened in this situation. We will take corrective and preventive actions.

Our Graphic Artists are skilled and work constantly to perfect their art. We have been doing restoration and retouching work for our customers. We have got very satisfied customers who repeatedly order from us.

It is our policy that we don't display works we have done for our customers to guard their privacy. We have only displayed in our website works of our Graphic Artists to show their versatility.

We standby the statements we made in the "About Us" section of our website.

Customer Service
Chitra Creations

therookie · #13 05-08-2006, 01:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caitlin

Well they can't have stolen all of them - some of them are too pathetic to have been stolen. I thought this one was amusing: Add / Remove People - if you look at it it's simply been cropped! http://www.chitracreations.com/images/pe_addppl.gif

lol that is hilarious they would post that as an example of removing people from a photo...

And my other question is if they are so good about not posting others' works as their own, how the heck did it end up on their site? hmmm....

jannetie · #14 05-08-2006, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by therookie

And my other question is if they are so good about not posting others' works as their own, how the heck did it end up on their site? hmmm....

Right to that! Especially since it wasn't a customer's request. They never had the photo sent to them in the first place! But no matter, it's gone from the site now (at least ours is, lol

). Just hope it doesn't happen to someone else.

Janice

PeteyB · #15 05-08-2006, 02:17 PM

In the movie Casablanca, Bogart says "Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine."

So jannetie ---- Of all the websites on the World Wide Web, how did you discover this offending one?