After a 15-year battle, former Drum magazine photographers will take on the family of Jim Bailey, 1950s editor and founder of the world-renowned publication, over the use and copyright of their work.
Former Drum photographers Jurgen Schadeberg, Ranjith Kallie, Ian Berry with Tilly Gosani, widow of Bob Gosani, are suing Bailey's Archive.
The archive contains 40 years of material from Drum and its various sister publications and was formed years after the pioneering magazine was banned in 1965.
The photographers allege that the archive does not recognise copyrights of their world-famous 1950s apartheid-era images and prints and is releasing them without paying them royalties.
The photographers claim they bought their own film and that they hold the copyright of their own work.
They want the return of their negatives and the choice of deciding if the Bailey family should act as their agents.
But Prospero Bailey, who manages the archive on behalf of the Bailey family, said that the photographers had always had access to the photographs and accused Schadeberg and his wife Claudia of trying to "cripple" the archive.
Media rights agency the Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) has donated R20 000 to the photographers' cause. The donation was made from the institute's defence fund.
Don MacRoberts, who is representing the photographers, said the case was a legal and ethical issue.
He said the summons had been served on behalf of the plaintiffs and that though the Baileys had indicated they would defend, they had run out of time to file a plea.
on Thursday Schadeberg said the archive was making a considerable amount of money from their work.
"You struggle for years and years to produce worthwhile work and then some very, very rich people live off it," he said.
But he said it was not just about the money. "The other thing that is equally upsetting is that on many of the pictures the captions and dates are wrong.
"If they do or show the images, the scans are of poor quality and cheaply made, which reflects on the photographer.
"And they don't give credit to the photographer.
"This is some sort of brutality. Photographers know how to look after their work.
Schadeberg said Ranjith Kallie was over 80 years old and did not have access to the pictures.
But Bailey claimed the photographers had always had access to the photographs, adding that the photographers had been accessing the images for years.
He claimed that Tilly Gosani had no idea of her part in the lawsuit.
He denied allegations that the family made a profit from the archive.
"It cost the family a fortune to develop and maintain. We don't make money out of the images. We want to keep it together as a collection, a unique collection.
"Drum cost my father millions and the archive cost us millions.
"I'm proud that my dad was able to produce a magazine right through the continent which was a breeding ground for talent.
"It belongs to Africa and not the wife of a German photographer," he said.
He said the photographers could not have the negatives back.
"It is a battle and I am duty-bound to fight it on behalf of my father. The archive should remain a collection that belongs to the entire Africa. My duty is to protect the collection.
"Jurgen and his wife have worked hard to cripple the archive."
Bailey said that Schadeberg had started the archive and had been part of the steering committee around the archive but had now resorted to "propaganda on a level that is deeply frustrating".
Raymond Louw, who is a member of Misa South Africa's governing council, said they contributed to the cause because as a body that defended the interests of journalists, they felt the case had justification and should be judged in a court.
"Their material was used for the profit of others without fair recompense for their creations. We felt that this should go before the court."