You 
get your portfolio images in from a photographer and are ready to get cracking on putting them to work for you. But, are you allowed to print these images? Are you allowed to use them on a business card or comp card? What if a magazine wants to run them, can you permit that? What if a company wants to use the image of you for their commercial purpose, what then?
You may be thinking “wait a second, I paid for these images, so they are mine!”
The first thing to understand is that when you hire a photographer, you (in most cases) are not actually buying the photos. You are instead buying the rights to use those photos. The distinction between the two is important as the photographer tends to remain the copyright holder of the work. And every photographer has a bit different policy or practice on what rights they will and will not sell.
Here are some tips for making sure you understand the rights you have to use the images you receive from photographers:
1 – Have the conversation before the shoot happens. Be sure to ask for the photographer’s usage terms in writing.
2 – Ask the photographer to put it easily as CANs and CAN’Ts. For example, you CAN print these and use these in your portfolio; however, you CAN’T send these off without permission. This is not a defined rule, just an example.
3 – Are you permitted to release the images to a third party? For example, if a magazine wants to print them are you allowed to hand them over?
4 – Inquire about rights for commercial usage. If someone contacts you or the photographer and wants the images for a commercial purpose, how do they prefer to handle that?
5 – Will the photographer communicate with you if they personally have the opportunity to “sell” or “release” the image to a third party?
6 – Get a written release form for the images once they are done. This will detail the specifics of what you discussed prior to the shoot and will be your written contract for what you can and cannot do with the images. For example, if you need to print the images, print shops will sometimes ask to see this written release form from the photographer.
Happy shooting!
Read more of James Patrick’s blogs at www.jamesmpatrick.com/blog
Listen to his podcast on the industry at www.theproexposure.com
Like his Facebook Page at www.facebook.com/jamespatrickphotography
Subscribe to RxMuscle on Youtube
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|||
