: If I reference a medical textbook or website for hand drawing bones is that considered copyright infringement? I can't quite figure this one out. I am not copying a custom piece of work, I

@Connie430

Well, depending on the copyright license, medical drawings are treated equal to any other subject being drawn.

Here is a question about making drawings using photographs as a reference.

From a case ruling quoted on that site:


"To prove infringement, a plaintiff with a valid copyright must
demonstrate that: (1) the defendant has actually copied the
plaintiff's work; and (2) the copying is illegal because a substantial
similarity exists between the defendant's work and the protectible
elements of plaintiff's"


An interpretation of this could be: the pose, shading, angle, etc are "protectible elements", while human anatomy itself isn't. (But we're not lawyers!)

If your drawings aren't too blatantly copied you're probably safe under fair use.

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@Vandalay110

This is dodging the intent of the question a bit, but you could use the original Gray's Anatomy illustrations sources at Bartleby and Wikimedia. They're from the 1918 edition and are generally regarded as being in the public domain (IANAL).

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