Ethical Issue

I have in my portfolio a good (good enough that it got an NPN editor's pick a few months ago) image, taken from Steptoe Butte with a view of the Palouse in North East Washington. Recently, I was in a doctors office and saw an almost identical image, framed and for sale. I did a little homework and saw that it was captured by a local photographer before mine was.
What to do? If two people each photograph the Matterhorn from the same place and offer their images for sale, neither can be offended, but this location is a not quite so well known.
I dont want to offend my local competitor, but nor do I want to miss the opportunity to miss the sale of my own image.
Would appreciate any suggestions and thoughts

It is going to happen more frequently as the number of photographers increases (my prediction) and the number of sights remains constant (also my prediction). Your data are your data. If someone was right at your elbow and collected similar data, then God bless them too, but yours are yours.

Pete D. often predicts things that never come to pass. Worry not.

You do not really do anything and I do not think this has anything to do with eithics or offending anybody. His shot was his and yours is yours, no big deal. Maybe you will both get image sales. Look around some of the pro landscape photographers websites and see how many images they all have of the same location (like the Wave in Coyote Buttes).

I don't see ethics coming to play here either. You can't stake a claim to the location of your tripod. You try to find another market that he hasn't gotten to first!

Can't remember who, but someone once said something like "A great image is one that cannot be duplicated"... there's more to photography than location. That means you shouldn't worry about others taking photos from similar places as you, or taking photos in similar places to others. Only when entire portfolios seem to match, or very intimate landscapes or unique interpretations are duplicated, should there be some ethical concerns.

Steptoe Butte, so far as I know, is one of the most iconic places in E Washington, so I don't think you have anything to worry about!

"It is going to happen more frequently as the number of photographers increases (my prediction) and the number of sights remains constant (also my prediction)."

This is the reason I work very hard to go to places that are remote and (often) not easily accessible. It's a lot of work but rewarding, at least for me it is.

Greg
Nevada

Only when entire portfolios seem to match, or very intimate landscapes or unique interpretations are duplicated, should there be some ethical concerns.

I'd agree with that.

You don't mention where you're trying to sell the image. If it is to that same Dr. then I can see a problem, otherwise I wouldn't be concerned. Steptoe Butte is a very popular place for photography and I would bet you that I and many others have images that are very similar to yours but that doesn't stop me/them from marketing those images.

I was shooting at Rainier a couple of years ago, found a nice spot to set up, did some shooting and as I was leaving another photog asked if he could set up in the same location. I appreciated his asking and obviously couldn't say no. Turns out his image appeared on the cover of a calendar a couple of years later, a calendar that I also submitted to...his image was identical to the one I had taken....oh well.

Thanks to all of you for your input. I am encouraged to proceed with my image.