Publish and be damned?

Hi everyone I'm new here. I have some question about copyrights & embargos. etc which some of you may have some knowledge about:

1. Promoter knows I write and supply photos to local NZ dive magazine

2. Promoter invites me on a dive charter to cover it (including visit of one well known diver in particular) for the local dive magazine, in conjunction with a video photographer (no documents or agreements between us as to exclusivity or indication of restrictions on where info is published)

3. I pay for the trip, and expect to cover it for dive magazine

4. A dispute develops over trip duration and I advise operator that I will tell others of my difficulties with him.

5. I commence legal action via disputes tribunal (small claims court) against operator to claim for days contracted to but not supplied (hearing is due in 2 weeks).

6. Promoter announces an embargo on all publication of materials from trip until the video is completed and suggests specified charges per image to me if I breach it as well as legal action. This seems to be an attempt to stop me telling anyone about his way of doing business.

7. Promoter claims copyrights and intellectual property rights of the charter and the visiting diver in particular are his.

8. Local dive magazine will run an article now from the video photographer

Any opinions on the behaviour of the promoter, vailidity of the embargo, risk to me if I go ahead and publish stories in competing magazines or publish on internet sites etc? Suggestions on what I could do now?

Thanks

sounds to me like a classic ... didnt set it up right situation.... dive company realised the profits involved and now wants some.

the fact that he's willing to fight for some profits means you either give in and get you name on it, or you fight and make no money from it and maybe dont get it published. I have seen this a few times in the cayman islands. If you do a trip for publishing purposes and have it all setup, you better make sure that everyone knows where they stand, and how much they make for it.

Clearly, the law that applies is specific to your area, but it seems to me that if there were no contract and you paid your own way there is nothing that distiguishes you from any other paying customer. Declaring otherwise after the fact does not make it so. Whether local magazines would be interested in the type of article you're likely to write is another matter.