User:Abd/Bystander photos/Bystander selfies

A bystander selfie is a photograph or video where a person, the "subject," solicits the help of a bystander to create a work including the subject, and provides the camera to the bystander, who operates the camera to take the photo, who does not retain any possession of the latent image, returning the camera to the subject, and who takes no action at the time requesting or reserving rights or control over the work.

Professional photographers may serve as the bystander, if not hired, compensated or retained in their professional capacity, but only serving as might any bystander (even if they may do so with more than usual skill).

For Commons purposes, uploaders may claim "own work" for such bystander selfies, if they are the subject (or have acquired rights from the subject), and the fact that the subject is in the photo will not be used to claim "not own work."

"Bystander" may be known to the subject, it is not essential that it be a stranger.

Similar situations:

• A son of a famous subject being interviewed by a reporter took a photo with a film camera of the interview, including the reporter, and handed the film to the reporter, reserving no rights. The copyright and thus the right to release the resulting photo were considered, for Commons purposes, to belong to the reporter. See Commons:Deletion requests/File:Hamid Mir interviewing Osama bin Laden.jpg 2.

Not similar enough:

• A professional photographer is retained to take photographs, as at a wedding. The photographer is the "creator," and the subject cannot release rights without permission from the photographer (which may or may not be part of the contract). The same is true for professional portraits.