UBB.threads Forums Edged Weapons Miscellaneous Dagger Forum Information on internet (correct or ?? )

A copyright lasts the life of the creator plus 70 years unless re-registered by the estate/assignee.

Copyrights go to the estate and can be assigned in a will. You can also sell or transfer the copyright to another individual or company. This action does not change the copyright expiration date and it is their responsibility to re-register the copyright when it expires.

Potentially, there are relatives that own rights to the drawings/photos, but they should be registered with the copyright office in the country of residence so they can be contacted for permission to publish. Publishers are expected to perform due diligence in identifying copyright owners. They can loose the entire publication investment in a successful copyright lawsuit.

You own the copyright to any photos you take unless you transfer the copyright. You can grant permission for a photo to be published and still retain the copyright. Just carefully read anything you are asked to sign to ensure the form is for permission and not a transfer I have allowed the use of photos from the GDC Reference Gallery in publications but the photos must be attributed to GDC and we do not transfer ownership of the copyright.

An interesting point, if you take a photo of an item which the owner does not want displayed, he has no legal grounds to suppress the photo even if he refuses permission to take the picture. This is the provision of the copyright laws that the paparazzi use to publish their shots of celebrities