The problems involved here involve not only the most complicated aspect in the field of academic publishing, but also the most puzzling aspect in this field.
Generally speaking, when you submit an academic paper for the first time or the paper is finally approved, you will sign a copyright agreement with the relevant publishing house, and it is this copyright agreement that stipulates that "they", not "you", have the right to decide the pictures you can use. This applies to all charts and pictures, even if they are made or taken by themselves.
Confused? Angry? Well, I feel the same way.
The reason why I solved the copyright problem of pictures for the first time is due to the guidance of my former doctoral tutor. He is a researcher who has written many scientific papers. He also edited many textbooks and bestsellers.
During this period, he encountered a very common problem: in subsequent works, don't reuse the pictures and charts used in your early papers, especially for profit, such as books. How do you feel when you have to pay the publishing company to reuse the charts you recently made in a book?
As long as your paper has been published in a journal, the copyright belongs to the publishing house, "not you". For this, in the academic journals of non-profit nature, you only need to add the following contents to the explanatory text of the chart: "The reprint of this chart has been authorized by xxx, 20 19" (or similar words; The publisher will instruct you on how to use words.
You can use online forms or emails provided by journals and publishers to complete this procedure.
Don't be smart, just like my tutor once did: scan a chart with drawing software, turn it over, and then you think everything is normal, you can use the chart directly without applying for authorization!
In doing so, you may be lucky enough to succeed, or you may be self-defeating. Remember, charts, like words, can copy other people's works. In addition, they can copy your work.
Therefore, if you want to reuse the early used charts in future papers, you must apply for authorization, so it is almost certain that you must also obtain authorization before copying other people's pictures.