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Special Collections Reference Guide: Requesting Copies

How to Request Copies

Reproduction Requests

Patrons may request physical or digital copies of materials held by Special Collections. Special Collections copying is done by staff employees. Most orders take 7-10 days, but large orders may take up to four (4) weeks or more to complete. These copies are provided free of charge.

 

The following formats are available:

Personal use copies

Physical photocopy

Digital scan- PDF at 200 dpi

High resolution digital scans

400 to 600 dpi TIFF files for publication, website, broadcasting.

800-1200 for posters, signage, and large prints.

Audio/Visual

Reel to reel, cassette tapes, VHS or BetaMax will be converted to MP4 files

Delivery

Digital format orders will be delivered through email.

Physical photocopies can be picked up at the reference desk or mailed (for a fee).

 

Special Collections reserves the right to review all reproduction requests and to withhold permission to reproduce materials if, in the judgment of professional staff, reproduction would:

  • endanger the materials
  • violate copyright law
  • violate donor-imposed restrictions
  • place an undue burden on Special Collections staff

 

Patrons are advised that:

  • Copies are made as time permits. If you have a request that needs to be expedited, please let us know. We cannot guarantee that we will be able to meet your request but will attempt to do so.
  • Reproduction requests are capped on an annual basis. Patrons may request copies of up to 300 slides/negatives per year and copies of up to 500 pages of other materials per year.
  • Large (over 300 reproductions) or complicated requests must be reviewed by the Library's Reformatting Committee prior to fulfillment. This review can take up to 30 days.

If you have any questions about reproduction of Special Collections materials, call (801) 422-3175 or email specialcollections@byu.edu.

Copyright/Permissions

L. Tom Perry Special Collections welcomes you to use materials in our collections that are in the public domain and to make fair use of copyrighted materials as defined by copyright lawMaterials held by Special Collections may be protected by United States Copyright Law and/or by the copyright laws of other countries. Copyright law protects unpublished as well as published materials. 

Special Collections does not claim to control the rights for reproduction for all materials or images in its collections. Certain images or materials may be protected by copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity rights, or other interests not owned by the Brigham Young University.

If Brigham Young University does not clearly hold the copyright to an item, Special Collections cannot grant or deny permission to use that material.

For permission to use materials copyrighted by Brigham Young University, contact the BYU Copyright Licensing Office.

In obtaining a reproduction from the L. Tom Perry Special Collections you assume all responsibility for determining whether any permissions relating to copyright, privacy, publicity, trademark, or any other rights are necessary for your intended use, and for obtaining all required permissions.

The Society of American Archivists provides further guidance about using copyrighted and unpublished materials. The U.S. Copyright Office provides information about How to Investigate the Copyright Status of a Work.  When you cannot identify or locate the current copyright owner of a copyrighted work, the copyrighted material is sometimes called an “orphan work.” Columbia University Libraries and the Society of American Archivists also provide advice about documenting searches for copyright owners and using orphan work

If researchers plan to publish images of colleciton material and wish to cite their source, our preferred notation is: Courtesy, L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University.