THE PHOTOGRAPHY PAGE

Willet (Tringa semipalmata), photo by Nigel Tate.

Editors

Libby Avis (Moths)
Robb Bennett (Spiders)
Ian Gardiner (Freshwater molluscs)
Chris Guppy (Butterflies)
Rose Klinkenberg (General)
Eric (Rick) Taylor (Fish)

Introduction

Photos are how we visualize our wild creatures, and photos on E-Fauna BC are a big part of the project. Donations of photos are always very welcome. If you are interested in donating photos for use on the E-Fauna site, details on how to submit them, the types of photos we are looking for, copyrights and permissions, and how photos are selected for publication are provided below.

In order to donate photos to E-Fauna BC, you first have to register as a photographer. Use the Register button on the home page to register. Once you are registered, we will send you (in a few days) your user name and password so you can upload photos. Use the Upload Photos button to upload photos.

General Information

Photos that you submit to E-Fauna BC will appear in our photo galleries. They may also appear on our information pages, or as the lead photo on our atlas pages. We periodically change these photos in order to showcase many photographers.

All photos published on E-Fauna are reviewed by experts who donate their time to check identifications and ensure the accuracy of the photo galleries. In fact, the entire photo section on E-Fauna is run by volunteers.

If the species in your photos cannot be identified to the species level, then your photo will most likely be deleted from our photo database. We generally only use photos where species identification can be made. There are exceptions, however, such as sponges.

Our software automatically reduces the resolution of your photos before they appear in our photo galleries. That is, we reduce the size and the dpi (dots per inch). This is aimed at discouraging photo theft.

Citizen Science: Mapping Your Photo Records

Photographers submitting photos to E-Fauna can participate in helping to map our wild species. If you submit coordinates with your photos, then we can add your location record to our maps. Learn more about becoming a citizen scientist on E-Fauna BC and how to have your photo records appear in our distribution maps.

Permissions to Use E-Fauna Photos

All photos on E-Fauna BC are covered by Canada's copyright law. For permissions to use any photograph on E-Fauna BC, please contact the photographers directly using the little envelope located beside each photo in the photo gallery.

Idaho Forestsnail (Allogona ptychophora). Photo © by Robert Forsyth

How Good Does My Photo Have To Be?

Photographs on E-Fauna have multiple purposes. They document species occurrences, they assist with species identifications, and they provide insights into a species ecology. For this reason, though we would like the best photos possible, the photos you submit do not have to be exceptional. If you are unsure about the quality of your photos, send them in and let our reviewers decide if they should be published on E-Fauna.

Because we are interested in illustrating the species found in BCwith clear photos where identification can be confirmed by an expert, our main criterion for photo selection on E-Fauna is 'can the organism be identified to the species level?". Really good shots, photographically, may not show the feature we need to see for species identification, while less perfect photos might well show what we need to identification.

For this reason, it is important that your photos show, as far as possible, key characters of the species/species group you are photographing. Key characters are those characters that are used to taxonomically separate similar species. For some faunal groups, this is easier to do than for other groups. For example, bumble bees usually can be identified from photos, while flower flies often cannot. If the characters needed to identify your species are not present in your photo, or too small to see, then the photo may be deleted.

How Many Photos Of Each Species Do We Want?

Because of the multiple purposes of photos on E-Fauna, we aim to provide multiple shots of each species in the photo gallery. Don't be put off from submitting a shot because there is already a photo of that species in the gallery, or even if there are many photos. We have no limit on how many photos of each species we will post. If your photos illustrate something useful ecologically, or distributionally, or provide good insight into habitat--or if they are just plain beautiful--then we would love to have them. Many users just simply like to browse collections of species sphotos.

But there is another important reason to send in your photo. Because we will be mapping photo records, starting with vertebrates, it is also important for us to obtain photos for each species from new locations. If you don't see a dot on our maps for your location, then we would love to have your photo.

What Kind Of Photos Are We Looking For?

• We are interested in photos of BC species that are part of our flora, native or naturalized.
• We are interested in habitat shots, as well as photos of the species themselves.
• Photos do not need to be taken in BC, but should represent species, subspecies and varieties that are found in BC.
• We can only accommodate digital photos in our photo galleries.

Photos of adults, juveniles, seasonal photos, and photos of all life stages are welcome. The more of these sorts of photos we have, the better. Many of our users simply like to browse through the photo galleries.

Pacific red hermit crab (Elassochirus gilli), photo by Aaron Baldwin.

The Photo Publishing Process on E-Fauna BC

Photos on E-Fauna BC are generally published following review by experts in each group. This sometimes means that photos may sit for a while in our database while we wait for a review to be carried out. Reviewers check both the identification accuracy of the species in the photo and will often make an assessment on suitability for publication. To help us with the photo publishing process, please indicate if identification help was provided for your photos, and who provided it.

Photo Deletion

If you wish to have a photo removed from E-Fauna BC, then please send us an email. Photographers will often update their photo submissions with better photos, and you are welcome to do this any time.

Copyright and Other Details

1. As the photographer, you retain copyright of any image that you submit to the E-Fauna BC Image Bank.

2. E-Fauna BC will not provide permissions to use your photos, we direct all contact to the photographer.

3. By submitting your photographs to the database, you agree to allow E-Fauna BC to use the photograph as part of E-Fauna BC, an online atlas and associated database that is openly accessible to the public.

4. E-Fauna BC will display the following information with respect to your photo(s):

• Your name will be displayed next to the photograph in the photo gallery.
• Copyright information will be displayed on each photo gallery page.
• Your name will be included in the scrolling list of photographers that is provided on each page in the photo gallery. Users will be able to view all of your photos by clicking on your name.
• The URL to your home page, or other personal website, will be displayed in the photo details for each photo, if you provide it when uploading your photo.

5. Note that a blind contact form is attached to each photo in the E-Fauna photo gallery that allows people to contact you without revealing your email address. Your email address will not be displayed in the photo gallery. Photos used in our introduction pages provide email address links only with permission.

6. Note that any photos that are published on the web are open to photo theft, and this includes photos on E-Fauna BC. We aim to protect your photos through automatic reduction of the resolution and dpi of each photo submitted to our photo gallery in order to render them less usable.

7. For photographs submitted to E-Fauna BC, adherence to Canadian copyright law is the responsibility of the photographer.  Please ensure that you own and control the copyright to all photos that you submit to E-Fauna BC for publication, and that you have the right to submit the photos to our site.

8. Copyright Infringement and DMCA Policy. E-Fauna BC respects the intellectual property rights of others, and requests that users of the site do the same.

Pacific White-sided Dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obliquidens).  Photo © by David Blevins

Frequently Asked Questions

Additional details with respect to how E-Fauna BC will handle copyright issues can be found in the Image Bank FAQ.  All statements on that page apply to E-Fauna BC. Please view these for further information that applies directly to E-Fauna BC.  Please note that these pages will be subject to change as the photo submission process and our Image Bank display pages evolve over time.