Plagarising Inspiration

Slate has an interesting photo essay discussing the recent plagarism accusations over similar photos of the Nanpu Bridge. They compare and contrast the concepts of standing on the shoulders of giants, knowing nods to prior originators and the question of whether any new image is without inspiration from other artists. It's an interesting area for discussion, and with the increasing ability on the internet to image search and new copyright laws we're now faced with the much greater potential for litigation.

Ultimately I believe that it is hard for a photo to be identical, especially where natural subjects & locations are involved - at least it's a lot harder than in music where the same instruments are readily available. So we're faced with a situation that requires more interpretation and hence opinion.