PRINTS

ARCHIVE RIGHTS & PROTECTION

Prints is an invitation-only photographic archive curated by Ranw Aso-Rashid. Selected works from the archive are made publicly viewable through the official Prints website and authorised channels.

The portraits within the archive are published for public viewing, archival documentation and the presentation of the collection. Their publication on this website does not place them in the public domain, waive copyright, or grant a general licence to reproduce, distribute or commercially exploit any image.

This page establishes the principles governing the protection, reproduction and authorised use of material belonging to the Prints archive.

1. Copyright

The photographic works within Prints are protected by copyright.

Under UK law, copyright protection arises automatically in original photography; registration is not required. Copyright generally gives the rights holder control over acts including copying, distribution, communication to the public and adaptation, subject to applicable statutory exceptions.

Unless expressly stated otherwise in a written agreement, the creation of a physical print, the publication of a portrait on this website, the provision of a digital master to a subject, or the sale of a limited-edition impression does not by itself transfer copyright in the underlying photographic work.

No licence or permission to reproduce any photograph is granted by this website. Any permission granted by the archive will be specific to the purpose, medium, territory and period expressly agreed in writing.

2. Public Availability Is Not Public-Domain Status

The fact that a Prints portrait is publicly visible on this website, or has been published through an official Prints social-media account or other authorised channel, does not mean that the image is free to copy.

A publicly accessible photograph remains capable of being protected by copyright. As a general rule, permission is required to copy or otherwise use a copyright-protected image unless a specific legal exception applies.

Accordingly:

Publicly viewable does not mean freely reproducible.

Being available online does not constitute a licence.

Being searchable does not constitute permission.

3. Prohibited Reproduction and Distribution

Unless expressly authorised in writing, no person or organisation may reproduce, distribute or commercially exploit a Prints photograph except to the extent that a specific statutory exception applies.

This includes, without limitation:

downloading and re-uploading an image;
copying an image onto another website;
reproducing an image in a publication;
reproducing an image in marketing or advertising;
using an image on social media as an uploaded image rather than linking to the authorised source;
incorporating an image into another creative work;
printing or producing physical copies;
creating merchandise featuring an image;
licensing or sublicensing an image to another party;
placing an image into an image library or stock library;
selling or offering an image for download;
using an image as part of branding or promotional material;
scraping or systematically collecting images from the archive;
reproducing an image in a database or archive operated by another organisation; or
materially altering, manipulating or adapting a portrait.

The fact that an unauthorised reproduction is made without charge does not, by itself, make the reproduction authorised.

4. Social Media

Prints recognises that social platforms are an important means through which cultural work and journalism are discussed.

There is an important distinction between linking to an authorised Prints page and copying the underlying photograph.

A person may share or reference an authorised Prints webpage through an ordinary hyperlink. That does not grant permission to download the portrait and upload a copy to another platform.

Where a platform permits a user to share an authorised post through its native sharing functionality, that functionality remains subject to the platform's own terms and the rights of the relevant rights holder.

Unauthorised downloading, re-hosting or uploading of the underlying photographic file is not authorised by Prints.

5. Press, Journalism and Editorial Coverage

Prints welcomes legitimate journalism, criticism, review and editorial coverage concerning the archive and its subjects.

The archive does not operate as a general image-licensing library. Reproduction of a Prints portrait is not routinely authorised. Where prior permission is legally required, reproduction must be expressly authorised in writing by the applicable rights holder before publication, transmission, display or distribution.

Journalists, editors, publishers, broadcasters, documentary producers, researchers, institutions and other professional organisations wishing to reproduce a Prints portrait should contact the archive before doing so.

Requests should identify:

the publication, programme, exhibition or production;
the specific portrait or subject concerned;
the intended editorial or cultural purpose;
the proposed format;
whether the reproduction will appear in print, online, broadcast, projection or another medium;
the territory in which it will appear;
the anticipated audience;
the proposed publication, transmission or exhibition date;
the proposed placement and prominence; and
the anticipated duration of the use.

The archive will consider requests individually and retains complete discretion as to whether permission is granted.

Any permission granted by Prints is specific to the use expressly authorised in writing. It does not constitute a general licence to reproduce, distribute, publish, license or commercially exploit the photograph.

For example, permission to display a portrait digitally within a museum, gallery, festival, screening, exhibition or other cultural venue does not automatically authorise the same image to be reproduced on a website, social-media platform, publication, advertisement, promotional material or other medium.

Similarly, permission granted for an editorial article does not automatically extend to:

social-media publication outside the authorised article;
subsequent editions or publications;
syndication;
advertising or promotional material;
merchandise;
third-party websites;
image libraries;
commercial campaigns; or
use by affiliates, clients, distributors or other third parties.

Any additional use requires separate written authorisation where permission is legally required.

The provision of a preview image, press image, digital file or other material by Prints does not itself constitute permission to reproduce that material.

Where reproduction is authorised, Prints may impose specific conditions concerning the image supplied, credit, cropping, colour treatment, placement, resolution, medium, territory, duration and any other aspect of the reproduction.

A publisher, broadcaster, journalist, publicist, representative or other recipient of an authorised image must not transfer, sublicense, distribute or make the image available to another party except where such rights have been expressly granted in writing.

The archive reserves the right to decline any reproduction request without providing a reason.

Nothing in this section is intended to restrict any statutory copyright exception or other right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

6. Reporting, Criticism and Review

Prints recognises and respects legitimate journalism, criticism, review and reporting concerning the archive, its photographs and its subjects.

Nothing in this policy is intended to restrict any statutory copyright exception or other legal right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

UK copyright law provides certain limited exceptions under which copyright-protected material may be used without prior permission, including certain forms of criticism, review and quotation. The statutory exception for fair dealing in reporting current events does not apply to photographs. Any applicable exception remains subject to its statutory conditions.

Whether a particular reproduction falls within a statutory exception depends upon the specific circumstances of that use.

Accordingly, the existence of a statutory exception should not be assumed merely because a use is described as “editorial”, “journalistic”, “educational”, “non-commercial” or “newsworthy”.

Where there is any uncertainty as to whether permission is required, professional users should seek appropriate legal advice or contact Prints before reproducing the photograph.

Nothing in this policy grants permission where the law does not otherwise provide it, and nothing in this policy removes rights that the law expressly provides.

7. Image Integrity

The portraits within Prints form part of a curated photographic archive and are intended to remain faithful to the photographic work created by Ranw Aso-Rashid.

Where a photograph has been authorised for reproduction, it must be reproduced accurately and must not be altered, manipulated or presented in a manner that materially changes the work, misrepresents the subject or creates a false impression of the original photograph.

7.1 Prohibited Alteration

Prints does not authorise the creation, publication or distribution of AI-generated, synthetically altered or materially manipulated versions of any portrait within the archive.

No permission will be granted for such use.

This includes, without limitation:

generative AI alteration of a portrait;
AI-generated or synthetic modification of the subject;
face replacement or face swapping;
synthetic recreation of the subject;
materially altering the subject's appearance, expression or physical characteristics;
placing the subject into a synthetic or fabricated environment;
compositing the subject with other imagery in a manner that creates a new or altered representation;
generating derivative portraits based upon an original Prints photograph;
materially AI-enhancing a portrait in a manner that changes its photographic character; and
presenting any materially altered or synthetic image as an original Prints photograph.

The archive also prohibits the removal or deliberate alteration of archive identification, provenance information or required photographic credit from an authorised reproduction.

7.2 Composition, Colour and Presentation

An authorised reproduction must not be materially cropped, reframed, recoloured or otherwise altered in a manner that changes the intended composition, character or meaning of the photograph.

Normal technical processes required for legitimate publication, printing, broadcasting or digital display — including reasonable resizing, file compression, file conversion and technical colour management — are permitted where they do not materially alter the photograph.

Where reproduction has been authorised, Prints may specify the file, resolution, dimensions, crop, colour profile, credit and other reproduction requirements necessary to preserve the integrity and provenance of the work.

7.3 Authenticity

A materially altered, synthetic or derivative image must not be presented, represented or described as an original Printsphotograph.

The archive's photographs are documentary and archival works. Their integrity, provenance and authenticity are fundamental to the purpose of Prints.

No permission, licence or implied consent is granted to create synthetic or materially manipulated derivatives of the archive's portraits.

8. Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Automated Systems

Prints does not authorise, license or permit its photographs to be used for the training, development, testing, fine-tuning, operation or improvement of artificial intelligence or machine-learning systems.

No permission will be granted for such use.

This prohibition applies to the use of Prints photographs, whether individually or as part of a collection, dataset or automated process, for:

training or fine-tuning generative AI models;
developing image-generation systems;
developing or training computer-vision systems;
facial-recognition or biometric datasets;
machine-learning datasets;
synthetic-media systems;
automated image-generation or image-manipulation systems;
AI-powered image enhancement where the purpose is to create a materially altered derivative;
dataset creation, aggregation or indexing for AI development;
model evaluation or testing;
commercial or non-commercial AI research where the photographs are incorporated into a training, testing or development dataset; or
any substantially similar artificial-intelligence or machine-learning purpose.

No person or organisation may deliberately scrape, crawl, download, collect, extract, aggregate or systematically process Prints photographs for any of these purposes.

The prohibition applies regardless of whether the resulting system, dataset or model is commercial or non-commercial and regardless of whether the photographs are obtained directly from the Prints website, an authorised social-media account, a third-party website, an image search engine or another source.

Public accessibility does not constitute consent to AI training, data extraction or machine-learning use.

The archive may employ technical measures, metadata, image identification, monitoring systems and other reasonable measures to identify automated extraction or unauthorised use of its imagery.

Nothing in this section is intended to override a statutory right or exception that cannot lawfully be excluded. Where the legal position concerning a particular automated use is uncertain, the relevant organisation should obtain independent legal advice.

9. Digital Identification and Provenance

Prints may incorporate unique digital identification markers, provenance information, embedded metadata, image fingerprints and/or other technical rights-management measures into published imagery and associated files.

These measures form part of the archive's provenance and rights-protection framework and may be used to:

identify individual photographic works;
establish and preserve provenance;
associate a photograph with its original archive record;
distinguish authorised archive material from unauthorised copies;
document individual editions and impressions;
assist in identifying reproductions derived from an original Prints photograph;
monitor the circulation and publication of archive imagery online;
support authentication of archive material;
assist in identifying unauthorised reproduction, distribution or manipulation; and
support the protection and enforcement of rights in the archive.

Where appropriate, individual photographs may be assigned a unique permanent archive identifier which corresponds to the relevant provenance record maintained by Prints. Such records may include information concerning the photographic work, original negative or film, master scan, date of creation, subject, edition, impression and applicable rights.

Prints may also use image-fingerprinting, invisible identification technologies, embedded metadata, reverse-image identification and other appropriate technical measures designed to assist in recognising archive photographs and identifying copies or derivatives of those works.

These measures may remain associated with an image even where the image has been resized, compressed or otherwise technically processed, although no technical identification system can guarantee detection of every copy or alteration.

The archive may use image-recognition technology, reverse-image identification, automated image monitoring, web monitoring and other appropriate technologies to identify potential unauthorised reproduction, distribution, manipulation, scraping or exploitation of its photographs.

No person may knowingly remove, disable, obscure, falsify or deliberately circumvent a digital identification, provenance or rights-management measure applied to a Prints photograph where doing so is intended to facilitate, conceal or assist unauthorised use.

The deliberate removal or circumvention of identifying or provenance information may itself be documented as part of the archive's evidence concerning suspected infringement.

The existence or absence of a visible watermark, metadata field, digital identifier, image fingerprint or other technical protection measure does not determine whether copyright exists or whether an image may lawfully be reproduced.

Technical identification and monitoring measures are supplementary to the underlying copyright and other rights applicable to the photographic work. They do not constitute the source of those rights.

9.1 Provenance and Authentication

Prints may maintain a private provenance record for each photographic work within the archive.

The archive may use the corresponding identifier and associated records to establish the relationship between:

the original photographic work → the archival master → the authorised digital presentation → the limited physical edition → any expressly authorised reproduction

The archive may retain provenance and identification records independently of publicly accessible website files.

9.2 Monitoring

Where appropriate, Prints may use automated or manual monitoring processes to identify photographs appearing outside authorised channels.

Identification of a photograph does not, by itself, establish that an infringement has occurred. Any suspected unauthorised use may be reviewed in context and documented in accordance with the archive's Monitoring and Evidence procedures.

10. Monitoring and Evidence

Where appropriate, Prints may monitor, identify and document suspected unauthorised reproduction, distribution, manipulation, scraping, automated extraction or other unauthorised activity involving archive material.

Records may include:

the location of the reproduction or suspected infringement;
the date and time it was identified;
the URL, platform, publication or service on which it appeared;
screenshots or archived copies;
image-identification information;
digital identifiers and provenance data;
metadata;
edition and impression information;
evidence of downloading, scraping or automated extraction where available;
evidence of manipulation or synthetic alteration where available;
correspondence concerning the use; and
any other information reasonably relevant to establishing the circumstances of the use.

Such records may be retained for the legitimate purposes of protecting, administering, authenticating and enforcing rights in the archive, including the preparation of correspondence, takedown requests, licensing decisions, legal claims and court proceedings.

Where appropriate, information concerning suspected infringement may be supplied to legal representatives, courts, relevant platforms, hosting providers or other parties for the purpose of protecting or enforcing the applicable rights.

11. Unauthorised Use and Enforcement

Prints takes the protection of its photographic archive seriously.

Where the archive identifies suspected unauthorised reproduction, distribution, commercial exploitation, scraping, automated extraction, deliberate manipulation, synthetic alteration or other infringement, it may investigate, document and take appropriate enforcement action.

This may include:

contacting the individual or organisation responsible;
requiring the immediate cessation of the unauthorised activity;
issuing a formal copyright, cease-and-desist or infringement notice;
requesting removal of unauthorised material from a website, platform, hosting provider or other service;
requiring the destruction or withdrawal of unauthorised copies where legally available;
seeking payment, damages or other monetary remedies where legally available;
seeking an account of profits where legally available;
seeking injunctive or other court-ordered relief;
referring the matter to solicitors, counsel or other legal representatives;
preserving and presenting evidence of the infringement;
commencing civil proceedings in the appropriate court; and
pursuing any other remedy available under applicable law.

The archive may take particular interest in deliberate, knowing, repeated or systematic infringement, including:

knowingly reproducing a portrait without permission where permission is required;
commercially exploiting a portrait without authorisation;
systematically downloading or scraping archive imagery;
circumventing or removing digital identification or provenance measures;
incorporating archive photographs into unauthorised AI or machine-learning datasets;
creating or distributing materially manipulated or synthetic versions of portraits;
falsely presenting an altered or synthetic image as an original Prints photograph;
sublicensing, selling or distributing an unauthorised copy;
continuing an unauthorised activity after being notified of the archive's rights; or
assisting or facilitating another person's unauthorised exploitation of archive material.

Where appropriate, Prints may seek damages, injunctive relief, legal costs and any other remedies available under applicable law. UK copyright guidance confirms that courts may, among other remedies, grant injunctions and award damages for infringement.

Copyright infringement claims in England and Wales are dealt with through the courts. Depending on the nature, complexity and value of the claim, proceedings may be brought through the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court or, where appropriate, the High Court.

The archive does not undertake to issue a warning or informal notice before commencing or seeking urgent legal action where the circumstances justify immediate action.

The fact that an infringement is initially addressed informally does not constitute a waiver of any right or remedy.

Any decision concerning enforcement, settlement, licensing, litigation or other action will be made by the applicable rights holder on a case-by-case basis.

Nothing in this section limits any statutory exception or other legal right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

12. Limited-Edition Prints

Prints makes selected portraits available as strictly limited physical editions.

Each edition is limited to ten impressions across all sizes.

The edition is closed permanently once the authorised ten-impression limit has been reached.

No additional impressions will subsequently be produced, regardless of demand, patronage, institutional status or the identity of a prospective purchaser. The authorised edition consists solely of the ten impressions designated by the archive. No additional impressions may subsequently be created or substituted under the same edition.

12.1 Ownership of a physical print

A purchaser acquires the authorised physical impression specified in their purchase documentation.

Purchase of a physical print does not transfer:

copyright in the photograph;
reproduction rights;
publication rights;
commercial licensing rights;
merchandising rights;
the right to create derivative works; or
any other intellectual property rights in the underlying photographic work,

unless expressly transferred through a separate written agreement signed by the applicable rights holder.

A collector therefore owns the authorised physical artwork, while the underlying intellectual property remains separately protected.

Ownership of an individual physical impression does not confer any right to reproduce, scan, digitise, photograph for reproduction, merchandise, licence or otherwise exploit the underlying photographic work.

13. Digital Masters Provided to Subjects

Each subject retains a digital master of their portrait as part of their personal legacy, in accordance with the Prints subject arrangements.

The provision of a digital master should not be interpreted as a general assignment of copyright unless an applicable written agreement expressly states otherwise.

Any rights granted to a subject concerning their own portrait are governed by the terms agreed between the subject and the archive.

Where a subject wishes to use their portrait for professional, editorial, promotional or commercial purposes, the applicable subject agreement should be consulted.

The provision of a digital master does not authorise the subject or any third party to sell, licence, reproduce or commercially exploit the photograph except to the extent expressly permitted by the applicable written subject agreement.

14. Subject Representatives, Agents and Publicists

A subject's representative, agent, manager, publicist, employer or other intermediary does not automatically acquire rights to reproduce or distribute a Prints portrait merely by representing the individual depicted.

Where a representative wishes to obtain an image for authorised use on behalf of a subject, the request should be made to the archive and the intended use specified.

Any permission granted will be subject to the terms confirmed in writing.

A representative's authority to act on behalf of a subject does not, without appropriate authority from the applicable rights holder, extend to the licensing or reproduction of the photographic work.

15. Galleries, Museums and Cultural Institutions

Prints welcomes appropriate enquiries from galleries, museums, universities, cultural institutions, archives and other organisations whose work is consistent with the purpose of the collection.

Requests concerning exhibitions, publications, research, educational projects, institutional archives or other cultural uses should be made directly to the archive.

Institutional status does not itself create permission to reproduce a portrait.

Each proposed reproduction, display or publication remains subject to the applicable rights and any written permission granted by the rights holder.

16. Commercial and Advertising Use

Commercial reproduction or exploitation of Prints imagery is not permitted without prior written permission from the applicable rights holder, unless a specific statutory exception applies.

This includes use in:

advertising;
product packaging;
corporate communications;
promotional campaigns;
commercial websites;
branded social-media content;
sponsorship materials;
merchandise;
hospitality and venue branding;
marketing campaigns;
commercial publications; and
any other activity in which the photograph is used to promote, sell or endorse a product, service, organisation or commercial proposition.

Permission for editorial publication does not constitute permission for advertising or promotional use.

17. No Implied Endorsement

Use of a Prints portrait must not imply that the subject, photographer, archive or rights holder endorses a product, service, organisation, political position, campaign or commercial proposition unless such endorsement has been expressly agreed in writing.

The identity of a subject within the archive does not create permission to associate that individual with a third-party commercial or political message.

18. Credit

Where a reproduction has been expressly authorised in writing, the archive may require a specified credit.

Unless alternative wording is supplied in writing, the preferred credit is:

Where space permits, the archive may additionally require:

From the Prints photographic archive.

Failure to provide the required credit may constitute a breach of the applicable permission or licence.

Copyright and moral-rights issues are distinct from ownership of a physical print, and UK guidance recognises the creator's potential right to be identified as the creator where that right has been asserted.

19. Requests for Permission

Anyone seeking permission to reproduce a Prints photograph in circumstances where permission is required must contact the archive and obtain written authorisation before reproduction, publication, display or distribution.

Requests should be sufficiently detailed to allow the archive to understand the proposed use.

Permission should not be assumed because:

the image is available on the website;
the image appears in a search engine;
the image appears on social media;
another person has previously reproduced it;
a journalist has previously used another Prints image;
the subject has shared the image;
the requester has purchased a physical print;
the requester has been given a digital file by another person; or
the requester has obtained the image from a third-party website.

Where permission is required, it should be obtained from the appropriate rights holder before the proposed use takes place.

Submission of a request does not create any entitlement to a licence or permission.

20. Unauthorised Copies and Third-Party Sources

A person who obtains a Prints image from an unauthorised third-party source does not thereby acquire rights to the image.

Similarly, the fact that an image has already been copied elsewhere does not establish that further copying is authorised.

Users should obtain permission from the relevant rights holder rather than relying upon the existence of an unauthorised copy.

21. Preservation of the Archive

The purpose of Prints is not simply to publish photographs but to establish a lasting photographic record.

The archive therefore maintains a distinction between:

the original photographic work;

the archival master;

the authorised web presentation;

the limited physical edition; and

any authorised licensed reproduction.

These are separate forms of the work and should not be treated as interchangeable.

The archive may maintain archival masters and associated provenance records independently from the publicly accessible versions displayed online.

22. No Waiver

Failure by Prints to enforce a particular right on one occasion does not constitute a waiver of that right.

Similarly, permitting one particular use does not establish a precedent or general licence for other uses.

Every permission granted by the archive should be understood according to its express written terms.

23. Changes to Archive Protection

Prints may update its technical, administrative and rights-management procedures as the archive develops.

Any future technological measures, identification systems or enforcement procedures may be introduced to protect the integrity and provenance of the collection.

The underlying rights of the relevant rights holder are not dependent upon the use of any particular technical protection measure.

MEDIA & PROFESSIONAL ENQUIRIES

Prints welcomes serious editorial coverage of the archive and its subjects.

Journalists, editors, publishers, broadcasters, documentary producers, researchers and institutions seeking authorised imagery should contact:

Prints
Curated by Ranw Aso-Rashid
[INSERT OFFICIAL EMAIL]

Please include:

Subject: Prints — Image Permission Request

Organisation:
Contact name:
Publication / programme / production:
Image or subject requested:
Intended use:
Print / digital / broadcast:
Territory:
Proposed publication date:
Proposed placement:
Duration of use:

The archive will respond to requests on an individual basis.

FINAL NOTICE

The portraits within Prints are published for viewing. They are not published for unrestricted reproduction.

Limited-edition ownership does not transfer reproduction rights.

Public availability does not constitute permission.

Unauthorised reproduction, distribution or exploitation may be investigated and, where appropriate, pursued through formal rights-enforcement and legal channels.

Prints exists to preserve the photographic record of the people who shape our time. Protecting the integrity, provenance and scarcity of that record is fundamental to the archive.