catullus camshaft: Pinterest and Copyright: What I'm Doing

So there's a lot of talk about Pinterest and copyright lately.?Many of you have asked me what I think about this issue, so I'm going to tell you what I've learned and what I have decided to do (at this point anyway).?Before I start, though, I just want to say I'm not a lawyer and none of this is meant to be legal advice.

Alright, carrying on?

There are those who have deleted their Pinterest accounts entirely:

Others aren't so quick to abandon Pinterest but speak caution and suggest ways to use it legally:

Some admit it's hard to know how to proceed given that Pinterest is new territory:

The big question everyone wants to know is ?Is Pinterest legal?? The short answer is that no one knows. There?s never truly been a service like Pinterest and the relevant court cases don?t provide a great deal of direct guidance.
~The Great Pinterest Divide: To Opt Out or Not?(plagiarismtoday.com)

Some point out ways Pinterest might need to make some changes to their policies, and quick:

I took a look at Pinterest?s DMCA Policy and related terms and found lots of things they need to fix immediately.
~ Changes Needed to Pinterest?s DMCA Policy?(dmcahandbook.com),?Connie J. Mableson, PLLC

Update: Here's a two-part post written by Katherine Tyrrell about her experience as an artist who had images pinned without permission, and how Pinterest responded by promptly. (Hat tip to Jana for the link.)

So, what's a blogger to do?

This could change at any time and each blogger needs to make their own decision, but for the time being, here's what I'm doing:

I'm not deleting my Pinterest account. For me, I don't think it's necessary at this point. Even if I end up deleting all my boards and all my pins, I can still pin my own stuff and I could ask permission from someone else if I really wanted to pin their stuff. So, I'm staying in for now.
I have deleted several boards already and am culling through my individual pins. The boards I deleted are the ones that are photography-based, such as photos of travel destinations and amazing photographs of wildlife or nature, etc. Simply put, anything that doesn't link back to a post with more content and is just a pretty picture, I'm steering clear of.
Going forward, I'm only pinning from sites that have the "Pin It" button.?This will be the tangible measure I'll use to decide whether or not I pin something. As a blogger, frankly, I'm all for pinning. I also know many others who feel the same way. I realize that the presence of ?"Pin It" button does not make me immune to legal action (if a blogger decided to go that route), however, it seems reasonable that if someone adds the "Pin It" button to their posts, they are probably OK with me pinning it.
I'm repinning a lot less.?Previously, if I saw something interesting on Pinterest, I'd just automatically repin it without a second thought. Now, as mentioned in?The Ultimate List of Pinterest Tips, I'm checking each pin to make sure I'm pinning directly from the original source. Many times this results in a brand new pin and not just a repin because the first pin wasn't ideal.
I'm (still) not using Pinterest's embed feature. Unless you are embedding your own image (like my own below), or an image you have permission to share, I'm hard-pressed to find a good reason to ever use the embed feature. Why? Well, just because an image is online does not mean it's free to use to make my blog look good. Also, if someone clicks on that image, it links back to Pinterest, not the original source.
I'm (really) adding my full URL to all images I create. I don't add my own images here very often, but whenever I do, you'll see my full URL. (Does anyone else think it's hilarious that I totally forgot to do that when I made the image for my Ultimate List of Pinterest Tips image? I know. I am awesome. {{smacks head}})
I'm going for the "chips and salsa" technique instead of the "whole enchilada" technique.?That's just a cute way of saying, when I pin, my goal will be to give a small hint of what someone will find if they click through. I will aim to make my pinned images and descriptions pique interest, not explain the whole thing. So, someone will have to click through to find the recipe, see the tutorial, get the directions, etc.
I'm reserving the right to change my mind. This issue is not going away soon and I'll keep my eyes and ears open. I expect there will be changes so I'll react accordingly. But for now, this is where I land.