So you would like to create custom Zazzle products, only one hitch, you feel or know drawing and painting isn’t say your strong suit. Taking pictures off the web, isn’t exactly the best way to go either as if the image is under copy write, or intellectual copy right, you do run the risk of running into some nastiness and not excluding your products being taken off your stores public view. Fear not all is not lost. So long as you have a decent photo editing program ( I personally use Photoshop ) but I hear PSP is great as well, just have a decent program you can eidt and remove aspects you do not want from the photo, and a decent Digital Camera. Why I recommend the Digital Camera is, a half decent one will have features, that cell phones don’t (well not yet), that will allow you to take Photos in a range of conditions and lighting environments. There’s a whole world in your own yard ( if you have one) that you can take photos of, and not run into copy right laws.
Even if you do not have a yard there’s still a whole world outside your front door. So long as you have some artistic sense. YOU can take , edit and create original pieces. with no copyright laws. and you can generaly claim it is your work, an example of this is below
One of my favrotie desgins would be this one.
A simple yet effect design using rose petals
I simply had rose petals, and arranged them into each letter on a A4 piece of white paper, took a photo of each letter and then copy and pasted each into a single canvas. Ok I added a light drop shadow in red to help give them body and strength. Yet this is a principle of how to create a unique design from real life objects, breaking no copy right laws, and creating an original piece of romantic art ( in this example), you can then customize on products and sell on Zazzle.
A couple of pit fulls to watch out for.
I have a ton of ornaments I would love to use as part of a photo design. However I do not, once agin one runs into possible sticky copy right laws, though you may have brought the object the intellectual copy writes still remain with the original artist that thought it up, and then had it made. So really its just making sure I do not find a law suit in my email, or get itno any grey area of copy right.
Secound thing to be aware of, If you take a photo involving people, you must make sure they agree/ you have consent to have their person be used in a commercial way. this also applies to objects with a persons name on it, unless it is in a public domain. this does not include graveyards. If you want a photo of head stones , just be sure to take from an angle where the persons name is not visible.
Best of luck, happy photo taking and if you have any questions feel free to ask in the comments and I will answer the best I can a.s.a.p
