When does a group of published photographs qualify for a single reg-
istration using Form GR⁄PPh⁄CON?
A single group copyright registra-
tion can be made if all the following conditions are met:
1 All the photographs are by the same photographer, whether the author
is an individual or an employer for hire.
2 All the photographs were first published in the same calendar year.
3 All the photographs have the same copyright claimant(s)
When to use this form:
You may use Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON to list title and
publication date information to supplement Form VA for a group of pub-
lished photographs that qualifies for a single registration under Section 202.3
of the Copyright Office regulations. Use of Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON is optional.
If Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON is used, there is a limit of 50 continuation sheets or
750 photos per registration.
The advantage of group registration:
Any number of photographs pub-
lished within a calendar year may be registered “on the basis of a single de-
posit, application, and registration fee.”
Cautions about group registration:
If infringement of a published work
begins before the work has been registered, the copyright owner can obtain
the ordinary remedies for copyright infringement (including injunctions,
actual damages and profits, and impounding and disposition of infringing
articles). However, the owner cannot obtain special remedies (statutory
damages and attorney’s fees) unless registration was made before the in-
fringement commenced or within 3 months after first publication of the
work. To be certain that your application, deposit, and fee are received in the
Copyright Office within 3 months of publication of the earliest published pho-
tograph within the group, you may wish to register fewer than 3 months of pub-
lished photographs on a single application.
This Form GR⁄PPh⁄CON:
• May only be submitted together with a Form VA.
• Must individually list a group of published photos that qualifies for a
single copyright registration.
• May be photocopied to create room for additional entries, up to a
maximum of 50 continuation sheets (or 750 photos, with 15 on each
Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON).
Procedures for Group Registration of Photographs
1 You must file a basic application on Form VA that contains information
required for copyright registration.
2 Use of Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON together with Form VA is optional. Form
GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON provides separate identification for each photograph and
gives information about the first publication of each as required by the
regulation.
3 If Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON is not used, the individual date of first publication
for each photo must be provided on the deposited copies of the photos.
What Copies Should Be Deposited for a Group Registration
of Photographs?
You must deposit a copy of each photograph included in the group for which
registration is sought. One copy of each photograph should be submitted
in one of the following formats. The formats are listed in the Library of
Congress’s order of preference:
• Digital form on one or more cd-roms including cd-rws and dvd-
roms, in one of these formats: jpeg, gif, tiff, or pcd
• Unmounted prints at least 3
* 3" in size, but no larger than 20* 24"
• Contact sheets
• Slides, each with a single image
• A format in which the photograph has been published, for example, clip-
pings from newspapers or magazines
• A photocopy of each photograph, which must be either a photocopy of
an unmounted print at least 3 * 3" in size, but no larger than 20 * 24", or
a photocopy of the photograph in its published format. It must be a
color photocopy if the photograph was published in color.
• Slides, each containing up to 36 images
• A videotape clearly depicting each photograph
note: For a photograph published before March 1, 1989, the copy of the
photograph must be one that shows the photograph as it was first pub-
lished. The copy of the photograph must show the copyright notice, if any,
that appeared on, or in connection with, the photographic work. This is nec-
essary because the copyright law in effect from January 1, 1978, through Feb-
ruary 28, 1989, required that a work be published with a copyright notice
identifying the owner of the copyright and the year date of first publica-
tion of the work. (For more information, consult Circular 3,
Copyright Notice
.)
The deposit copy for a photograph published prior to March 1, 1989, may be
any of the above-listed formats as long as the format deposited faithfully
reproduces the photograph in its exact, first-publication appearance.
CONTINUATION SHEET FOR FORM VA
7 Instructions for Group Registration of Published Photographs
Detach and read these instructions before completing this form.
Make sure all applicable spaces have been filled in before you return this form.
This form is not to be used to register unpublished photographs.
Basic Information
Line-by-Line Instructions
for Registering a Group of Published Photographs on Form VA (with or without a Form GR/PPh/CON )
Please type or print using black ink. The form is used to produce the certificate.
It is possible to register a group of published photographs using only
Form VA. The use of Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON is optional.
1 Space 1: Title
You must give a title for the group (for example: John Smith’s published
photos 2001). In the “Previous or Alternative Titles” space you must state
“Group Registration ⁄ Published Photos” and give the approximate number
of photographs in the group (for example: Group Registration ⁄ Published
Photos; approx. 450 photographs).
If you complete Form GR ⁄ PPh ⁄ CON, you will provide a separate title
for each individual photograph in the group in space B.
2 Space 2: Author
If the photographs are not works made for hire, name the photographer as
the author. If the photographs are works made for hire, name the employer