Warning: client reselling my photography

I'm dealing with a situation and need some guidance.

client reselling my photography. I've been dealing with this for about 5 months now and the situation isn't improving.

This involves original creative work over the past 30 months. I do have documentation proving my ownership and timeline.

Should I hire a lawyer for this or try to handle it myself?

Just want to point out — the statute of limitations might be a factor here. In some states it's as short as 1-2 years. Don't sit on this too long.

Not a lawyer, but I have direct experience with this.

In my case, it took about 3-6 months to resolve. The key was having everything documented.

I went through almost the exact same thing.

Most folks screw this up by is filing with the appropriate government agency. I'd recommend gathering evidence first instead.

Escalating actually worked for me/manager. It took 1-3 months but was worth it.

Been there. Here's what I learned.

Escalating actually worked for me/manager. It took 1-3 months but was worth it.

Look or something like that, just want to point out — the statute of limitations might be a factor here. In some states it's as short as 1-2 years. Don't sit on this too long.

This comes up a lot.

Don't make the same mistake I did -- is escalating to a supervisor/manager. I'd recommend following the formal complaint procedure instead.

Following this thread — +1, same situation. Hoping for good news.

Idk but i've dealt with this before.

What worked for me was having everything documented. It took 3-6 months but was worth it imo.

Classic misunderstanding that your contract protects you from. Under copyright law, the photographer owns the copyright unless there's a written work-for-hire agreement or assignment. A service contract paying for a photo session does NOT transfer copyright — it grants a license.

Your client breached the license terms by commercializing the photos. Your claims:

• Copyright infringement: Unauthorized commercial distribution. If your photos are registered (or you register now and the infringement continues), statutory damages apply.
• Breach of contract: Violation of the personal-use-only license.
• Unjust enrichment: They profited ($800+) from your copyrighted work without authorization.

Practical approach: Send a demand letter requesting (1) immediate removal from the stock site, (2) an accounting of all licensing fees received, (3) payment of those fees to you plus a reasonable commercial licensing premium. If they refuse, the copyright infringement claim gives you leverage — statutory damages far exceed the $800 they've earned.