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Why I believe it's important to put your artwork online for people to see, but be smart about the way you do it!

My website: ArtByCedar.com

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"They copied all they could follow, but they couldn't copy my mind, so I left them sweating and stealing a year and a half behind." ~Rudyard Kipling

Here is a great article for your information: What Every Artist Should Know About Copyright: http://www.hermanstudios.com/copyrigh...

As soon as an artist creates a work, the copyright to that work automatically exists and belongs to the artist. You are not required to formally register your copyright with the U.S. copyright office, but there are benefits to doing so. The biggest one (in my opinion) is if someone steals your work and you want to file a copyright infringement lawsuit, it will help if you have registered your copyright in the past.

I personally don't worry too much about registering copyrights, but each person's situation and comfort level is different, so by all means register if you feel the need! I like the idea of creating a book of all your artwork to date and registering it as a collection of work--this seems to be the most cost-effective thing for visual artists anyway. Of course you'd have to do it periodically--every 5 years at least, to ensure that all your work is covered.

Here's a couple good links to brief overviews of what you need to know if you're considering registering your copyright:

http://www.copyrightalliance.org/file...

http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ40...

Regardless of whether or not you register your copyright officially, your copyright exists and you own it. Keeping a good record of your work as you create it, as proof of what you have created, is vital, as well as being sure not to put high-res images online, as I say in this video.