Six Ways to Work on Your Photography Business While in Quarantine

April 14, 2020 by Leave a Comment
“Lens Cleaning” by The Preiser Project from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

I cringe every time I see a post about photographers and models teaming up to shoot during the COVID-19 pandemic when they should be social distancing and staying home. The only photographers who should be out shooting these days are the ones who are documenting the pandemic.

My business mentor taught me that when you’re not working in your business, you should be working on your business. Here are 6 ways you can work on your business while sheltering in place.

Edit Your Images From TFP Shoots

Models frequently complain that they rarely get images from open TFP shoots. They held up their end of the bargain. Now it’s time for you to do yours.

Brainstorm and Research Future Projects and Collaborations

Now is a good time to reach out to models you want to work with and research ideas for shoots you want to do when the Shelter In Place orders are lifted. There are lots of online groups where you can network with other photogs and models.

Create Your LLC

Are you still a sole proprietor? <shiver> Please fix that. No entrepreneur should be without a business entity for their company.

In most states, you can create a business entity online. Look up your state’s Secretary of State Office or Corporation Commission.

Review or Create Your Legal Documents

Do you have templates for your client contracts, model releases, and copyright license? If not, now you have the time to create them. If you have them, can you remember the last time your reviewed them? If not, now would be a good time to do that. A lot of people are double checking that they have an effective force majeure provision in their agreements.

If you want to respond to suspected copyright infringement by sending a cease and desist letter, now is the time to create an epic C&D template so you’re ready to lay the smack down on anyone who violates your rights.

Update Your Website

I bet it’s been a while since you did that. Make sure it accurately reflects your style and strengths. Even I’ve spent time while sheltering in place, updating this site.

Clean Your Gear

Now you have the time to clean your gear, including cleaning out gear you no longer use. Get your gear serviced if your camera shop is still open. Don’t forget to go through your memory cards and get rid of images you’ll never do anything with.

If you can’t resist the urge to pick up a camera, please limit yourself to shooting still life, self-portraits, and/or shooting at home with members of your household. You can also work on your craft by re-editing older photos and taking online trainings on various techniques and skills.

Lights Camera LawsuitTM

There’s always a need for quality legal information for photographers. That’s why I created an online course called Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography to address photographers’ most important questions. It’s 23 lessons, nearly 6 hours of legal information, with tons of information about contracts and copyright. I want you to feel secure in your business, confident in the way you operate day-to-day, knowing that you’ve set yourself up to get paid what your worth without incident.

The course is $497, but until June 1, 2020, you can get it for 20% off with promo code thrive20.

Filed Under: Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Share, Don’t Steal Content in Response to COVID-19

March 22, 2020 by Leave a Comment
Don’t Steal by Marguerite Elias from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

During this pandemic, many companies are reaching out to their audience with message of reassurance, information about changes in their services, and ways their audience can help during this challenging time.

My friend, Jessica Bay, walks dogs professionally as well as educates would-be professional dog walkers. She created a helpful graphic for her audience:

A short while later, she noticed this in her social media feed:

And later this one:

She asked me if these were instances of copyright infringement. If someone is copying word-for-word or close to it, that raises the red flag for copyright infringement. There are definite similarities. I wouldn’t be surprised if one of these graphics were inspired by another’s post.

Let’s assume that one of these graphics is a rip-off of another. It doesn’t make sense to me that someone would do that. In a niche market like dog walking and pet sitting, there’s no downside to sharing another’s graphic since the provider has to be in the physical vicinity of their clients. And for companies that educate would-be dog walkers, you should be confident enough in your work that your clients aren’t going to jump ship because of a graphic on social media.

Conversely, there are only so many ways to convey the same information, and independent creation is a defense against copyright infringement. It’s possible that each of these three companies independently came up with the idea of creating a graphic about how their audience could support the dog walking/pet care industry while under quarantine or practicing social distancing.  

My Two Cents

Speaking as a lawyer and as an entrepreneur, if you see a graphic that would be helpful to your audience, share it. The best way you can add to the conversation would be to create your own content that builds on the original message, not just repeats it. (If you’re going to create content that repeats another’s message or general information, at least find an original way to do it.) If someone wanted to build on this, they could have created a graphic about the importance of maintaining normalcy in your pet’s life, which includes their walking schedule.

If you get caught copying another’s content that’s so blatant that everyone will know that one is a rip-off of the other, it’s going to have an adverse impact. Instead of coming across has helpful, you risk being seen as lacking integrity and creativity.

If You Get Caught Stealing Content

If someone calls you out for potentially stealing content, and that’s what you did, just delete what you created, and don’t do it again. Saying it’s a “good message to spread” is not a valid excuse for copyright infringement.

Ripping off a company’s graphic is on the same level as claiming another person’s poem as your own because you thought it was pretty. I think some people have a mental disconnect where they don’t think copying commercial speech is as bad as other infringing behavior. (Creating a graphic with your business logo on it, even though it is not a sales pitch, is commercial speech.)

If someone has a good message to share, and their original content is shareable, then share it. That’s the best way to share the valuable message with your audience.

Sharing Done Right

I have seen this graphic all over social media over the last few days:

Hat tip to The Counseling Teacher for creating such a helpful graphic. This graphic has the right message at the right time. Additionally, I haven’t seen any instances where sharing this graphic had a negative impact on anyone’s business.

Filed Under: Intellectual Property, Internet law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lights Camera Lawsuit Pre-sale Starts Tomorrow!

February 13, 2020 by Leave a Comment
“Fireworks” by Epic Fireworks from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

I’m nearly pee-my-pants excited because the pre-sale for my first online course, Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography starts tomorrow! I’ve been working on this for well-over a year, and it’s so close to finally coming to market.

I’ve spent the last week promoting the bejezus out of this, and I’m so pleased that the response has been so positive:

Looks like a powerful product… I’m sure it will prove very popular!

Super good idea, and i love the curriculum.

Sound like a good (and much-needed) product.

Just forwarded it to every photographer I know

I will never stop being amazed at your entrepreneurial talents – what an amazing idea.  

On the eve of the pre-sale, I wanted to respond to some of the questions I’ve received about this course.

What inspired you to create this course?

I’ve worked as a lawyer for eight years and a model for five. Basically, I’ve worked on both sides of the camera without having to touch one. I’ve seen there is a great need for quality information about photography law, and, unfortunately, most photographers can’t afford to hire a lawyer to help with all their legal needs. I’ve seen too many photographers make costly mistakes that were completely avoidable, particularly related to their contracts and copyright. I created this course to save other photographers from making the same mistakes.

Why did you create a course instead of another type of product or event?

There are three reasons. First, by creating a course, I can maximize the number of people I can help while keeping the price down.

Second, the material in the course is evergreen (at least until the law changes), so I want it to be available when people are ready for it and looking for a reliable resource about photography law.

Third, people who buy the course will be able to access it again and again, versus a live event which is a one-and-done deal. If there are changes to the law, I can update the lesson in question or add an additional lesson to the course, and everyone who had purchased it to date will get it at no additional cost.

Does the course include contract templates?

No, and here’s why – I’m not allowed to under the rules of my law license. However, the course includes the list of provisions I include in my contracts and lots of sample verbiage from real documents I’ve created for photographer clients.

Where did the name Scarlet Maven come from?

Scarlet Maven is the name of my superhero alter ego.

Why did you have to create a separate business entity? What type did you create?

I created a separate entity, Scarlet Maven, LLC, to make it clear that there will not be an attorney-client relationship with people who buy the course.

On the advice of my accountant, I created an LLC for this business. LLCs are a great choice In Arizona, because they are basically set-it-and-forget-it entities. The state doesn’t require an annual report or fee. I don’t have to file anything with the state unless the company moves or dissolves.

What aspects of the course did you outsource?

Each lesson is going to be a screencast with a voiceover recording. I hired Elizabeth Fullerton at Boldfaced Design to create the templates for the PowerPoint slides.

Additionally, because I have no artistic talent and only had a feeling about what I wanted my logo to look like, I hired Dina Miller at Square Peg Creative to create the logos for Scarlet Maven and Lights Camera Lawsuit.

Both were money well spent. These ladies did a beautiful job.

How have you been promoting the course?

In addition to promoting the course through Scarlet Maven’s email list, I sent well over 500 individual emails to photographers, lawyers, and other professional creatives who might be interested in the course or who might know people who would be interested in the course.

The promotion won’t end with the pre-sale. I expect Lights Camera Lawsuit will be a course I sell for years to come, so I’ll continue to look for opportunity to reach more people about it.

What parts of this process were fun?

Creating the outline for the course and each of the lessons was fun. So has been talking with photographers about their needs and what they hoped to get out of this.

What new skills did you have to learn?

This venture gave me the opportunity to learn some new skills. This was the first time I ever created a website with Squarespace. It’s quite different than working with WordPress, but not too hard once you learn the basics.

This is my first online course, and I’m using Teachery for it. I was so glad and relieved to learn that this platform is super easy to use. I’ve also taken a number of courses that platform, so I know how easy it is for users as well.

What challenges did you face?

Scarlet Maven is my side business, so one of the challenges I faced was making time to devote to the business, create the course, and promote it. I still have my full-time job being a lawyer, writer, and speaker where I don’t always control when I have deadlines or when work gets dropped in my lap.

The biggest challenge I faced, by far, with this venture has been managing my anxiety.

  • What if no one likes it?
  • What if no one buys it?
  • What if I screw up making it and it never gets to market?

These are the types of fears I wrestled with on a daily basis. Sometimes they caused me to procrastinate working on the course. The best way I knew to manage them was to focus on the next task in front of me instead of being consumed by the bigger fears related to the course’s overall success.

Lights Camera Lawsuit Pre-sale: February 14th-18th

The pre-sale for Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography will last only five days!

Pre-sale Starts: Friday, February 14, 2020 at 8am AZ Time

Pre-sale Ends: Tuesday, February 18, 2020 at 6pm AZ Time

Pre-sale Price: $199 (60% discount)

Please subscribe to make sure you don’t miss out on this fantastic pre-sale price. I’ll never offer this course at this price again.

When the course goes live on March 16, 2020, the price will be $497. This is still a bargain for 10+ hours of legal information, but why pay more?

Filed Under: Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

New Photographers: Signed Contracts Needed at the Start of Every Project

July 31, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“He Walks Dogs” by Damian Gadal from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

I recently heard a question from a new photographer. They are new to the business and focused on building their brand and rapport with potential clients. Their question was, “Should I have a contract on hand at the beginning stages of my business?”

My response was an emphatic: “Yes!”

Photography Contracts: Every Job, Every Time

A contract is a relationship management document. It puts everyone on the same page about what each side is giving and getting and sets the expectations about how each side should behave.

I tell my photographer clients to never accept a job without a signed contract, this applies even to TFP shoots (trade for photos). Your contract should outline what the client is hiring you to do, how/when you’ll be compensated, how the client can use the images, and who owns the copyright. It should also have terms that address how problems will be resolved.

If the Prospect Balks at a Contract

If you have a prospective client who says they “don’t think a contract is necessary,” turn and run. This raises to red flags for me: either they don’t understand how the business works, or they have devious reasons for not wanting a contract that could bite you in the butt in the future.

One of the best pieces of advice I got early in my career was, “You never regret the client you didn’t take.” I have had no regrets about declining a representation when a client balks at how I do business. Every time I decline one of these clients, I feel like I’ve dodged a bullet.

Don’t Worry that Requiring a Contract will Push Clients Away

Don’t worry about being perceived as “pushy” my holding firm that a contract is required. You can be polite and respectful while say, “This is how I do business. If you don’t want to sign a contract, that’s fine, but you won’t be working with me.”

You set the rules for how you work with clients. If they balk at your contract (assuming it’s reasonable), they shouldn’t be your client. A reasonable client would expect you to require a contract. A person with any business acumen won’t want to work with you without one.

Let the prospects who don’t want contracts to self-select out. If you have problems with a client at the beginning of the relationship, it’s an indicator that they will be problematic throughout the project.

If the prospect asks for a referral to another photographer, I recommend saying, “All the reputable photographers I know won’t take on a client without a signed contract.”

It’s Cheaper and Easier to Prevent Legal Problems than to Fix Them

This has been proven time and time again in my legal career. When a client comes to me with a business dispute, one of my first questions is, “What does your contract say?” When my client doesn’t have a contract, I have to piece together the terms of their agreement from emails, text messages, and the parties’ actions. Often my client spends more just having me piece these things together than what it would have cost them to have a custom contract template made.

Additionally, in a dispute, it’s much easier to create a demand letter than references the terms the other side agreed to and back them into a corner where they have to try to defend the indefensible rather than assert what the terms of the agreement are from the assembly of bits and pieces of communications and actions that the other side can more easily debate.

Lights Camera LawsuitTM

There’s always a need for quality legal information for photographers. That’s why I created an online course called Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography to address photographers’ most important questions. I want you to feel secure in your business, confident in the way you operate day-to-day, knowing that you’ve set yourself up to get paid what your worth without incident.

At $497, the course contains nearly six hours of legal information you can immediately apply to your business. That’s less than what I charge for two hours of legal work for clients!  

Please subscribe for more information and to make sure you don’t miss out on any special offers or discounts.

Filed Under: Business Law, Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lawyer Responds to Photographers’ Problems

July 17, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“Photo Shoot” by Cliff from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

Last week, I saw a thread in an online photography group that started with a simple question: “What problems do you face as a photographer?” After reading hundreds of the responses, I wanted to respond to some of their problems as both a lawyer and an entrepreneur:

Competition – Other Photographers Offering Half the Price

My first thought when I read this was, “There’s a good chance it’s also half the quality.” You never want to be in a race to the lowest price. Instead of worrying about price, focus on what makes you different from the competition.

If someone wants a cheap photographer to document their once in a lifetime event, like their wedding, that’s their choice. If I were facing a client who said, “I can get someone to photograph my wedding at half this price,” I hope my response would be something like, “This is your special day. You have to choose who you trust to capture these moments for you.”

Personally, I have no problem when a client self-selects out from working with me if they don’t want to pay my rate. It’s better that they decide that early and go with someone else.

This problem reminds me of a sign I saw in a tattoo parlor: “Good tattoos aren’t cheap. Cheap tattoos aren’t good.” The same is likely true for photographers.

Clients Don’t See What We’re Worth

Part of being an entrepreneur is educating prospective client about the value we bring. It’s not that skilled photographers cost so much, but they’re worth so much. Some of the ways you can do this is by having a high-quality portfolio and a stellar reputation.

Remember: You’re not just taking photos; you’re creating an experience – every interaction from the first “hello” to the final deliverable. Your ability to take and edit photos are important, but so are the way you carry yourself, how you communicate, and your creativity, work ethic, and confidence in your skills. All of those things add or detract from your value as an artist. You want to be in a position where people want to hire you, not just any photographer.

I had a similar situation when I hired the designer who created the logos for Scarlet MavenTM and Lights Camera LawsuitTM. I could have used a discount service like 99 Designs or Fiverr, but I didn’t want to entrust a stranger with this task. I wanted to work with Square Peg Creative and Dina Miller. I’d seen and loved the way she created. I was willing to pay extra for that experience, and the resulting logos that I love.

How to Tell People I’m a Proper Photographer

The best way to tell people that you’re a professional photographer is to act like one. Create a business entity, a website with a portfolio, and contract templates for your services. If you want people to take your seriously, you have to act like a professional.

Speaking of Contracts

Contracts are relationship management documents. Once a client signs the contract, they are bound by its terms. Whenever there’s a problem, you can refer back to the contract and the terms they already agreed to. This is where you can put information like,

  • The deposit is non-refundable.
  • The photographer chooses the best images to show client. The client will not get raw images.
  • There’s no guarantee you’ll capture every image the client was hoping for.
  • The client is not allowed to edit the final images. This includes adding filters or stickers or cropping the images.

There’s a video I recommend to almost every entrepreneur called F*ck You, Pay Me, that features a graphic designer and his lawyer talking about how they use contracts to make sure the client pays per the contract’s terms. The suggestions work for many types of professional creatives.

Clients with High Expectations and Low Budgets

While many people don’t like talking about money, it is a topic you want to discuss early in the vetting process by either giving the prospective client your price list or asking about their budget. Don’t be afraid to be frank with clients who have expectations that are way beyond what they can afford. Tell them what they can afford based on their budget, as well as what you could do if they are willing to pay more so they can make an educated decision about what they want.

Clients Who Try to Negotiate on Price

In the photographer-client relationship, they are hiring you. You get to decide what is and is not negotiable in your contract. If your rates are not negotiable, be clear about that the first time they ask.

In my practice, I hand pick who are my pro bono clients and who gets a discount. That’s my call, not the other way around.

Here’s a tip I saw from another photographer: Make your prices all-inclusive. Don’t list separate prices for shooting and editing, because it opens the door for clients to try to haggle on one or the other.

Companies that Want You to Work for Free or Magazines that Want to Use Images for Free

Oh, it’s so cute when people want you to work for “exposure.” You get to decide how you respond to those requests. Here are some of my favorites:

  • Exposure is not a currency that my landlord accepts.
  • I can’t pay my mortgage with exposure.
  • People die of exposure.

Chasing Payments

Ideally, you want to create a photographer-client relationship where it’s easier to comply with the terms of the contract and pay on time, than not. Many photographers charge a non-refundable deposit to book a shoot or event and require the balance to be paid in by the day of the shoot or event. At the latest, I don’t recommend a photographer provide proofs unless they’ve been paid for the shoot.

You also want to have terms in your contract about cancelled appointments, late payments, and non-payments, so that you set yourself up to get paid what you’re owed in a timely manner.

Are You Free Next Week?

You can put the information about how far in advance a prospective client should expect to book you near your contact information or in your FAQs if you have them.  

People Assuming You will Photoshop them Perfect

This problem reminds me of Christian Siriano on Project Runway when he said, “I’m not a miracle worker, lady. I can’t make you have an ass!”

In talking with your client, set some expectations about what Photoshop can and can’t do. Assume your client doesn’t know anything about photography, unless they are a professional photographer themselves. You can educate your clients by showing them before and after images so they can see the type of edits you’ll be doing for them.

It’s ok to have fun with it, if that’s your style, by saying things like, “If you’re 5’2”, I can’t make you 5’10”,” or “If you have a ‘dad bod,’ I can’t transform you into Thor.” On the softer, more realistic side, remind your client that it’s your job to capture them looking their best, not like someone else.

Bonus Tips from my Experience as Model: Posing

Several people said they had problems with posing models or giving direction. As a model, my response is, “Don’t be afraid to try.” You’re the one behind the camera. I can’t see how I look.

If you give a model a pose and it doesn’t create a good image, try something else. I won’t know if you didn’t get the shot you wanted. I’ll think you have lots of ideas.

It’s ok to think out loud and say things such as, “I like how this light is hitting your eyes, let’s try this.”

I’ve you are afraid you won’t remember the ideas you wanted to try from other images, bring notes to the shoot. It shows you’re prepared, and thinking about what types of images might be best for me.

Learning how to pose models and give direction is something you develop over time, with practice, and watching others. Unless you’re doing some extreme work, no one is going to die. And don’t forget – I can’t see how I look, so as far as I know, whatever you’re trying is brilliant.

Lights Camera LawsuitTM

There’s always a need for quality legal information for photographers. That’s why I created an online course called Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography to address photographers’ most important questions. I want you to feel secure in your business, confident in the way you operate day-to-day, knowing that you’ve set yourself up to get paid what your worth without incident.

At $497, the course contains nearly six hours of legal information you can immediately apply to your business. That’s less than what I charge for two hours of legal work for clients!  

Please subscribe for more information and to make sure you don’t miss out on any special offers or discounts.

Filed Under: Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to Give a Discount on your Photography Services without Discounting your Value

July 10, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“The Belly Dancer with the Fans” by mmockingbird from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

Sometimes photographers, like all service providers, want to provide a discount for their services. Perhaps it’s for a friend, someone you’ve always wanted to work with, or an organization you know can’t afford you and you want to help.

Nothing Wrong with a Discount

There is nothing wrong with offering a discount for your photography services, whether it’s a special one-off or a promotion that’s available to any client.

The challenge is you don’t want to cheapen the perceived value you provide. When a person buys an item at a cheap price, they may have lower expectations about it and will perceive it as less valuable than a similar product that performs the same function but costs twice as much. You don’t want your clients to discount the value you’re giving them, even when they get it at a discounted price.   

Have you noticed that it’s often the clients who are getting the biggest discounts who complain the most? I made that mistake once. I quoted someone an exceptionally low flat fee to do their contract because I thought it would be an easy project. The nitpicked so much and requested so many changes, that by the time it was done, the amount I made per hour of work was laughable. (This was also the client who taught me to put a cap on the number of edits I’d do on a flat fee project. If they wanted more edits after that, they had to pay hourly.)

Always Show a Photography Client your Value

Even when you give a client a discount, always include your standard price and then the discount. Being a professional photographer is two jobs in one – you’re an artist and an entrepreneur. The entrepreneur’s job includes educating clients and prospects what you are worth. Photography clients are not just paying for your time, but also your talents. Remind them about the value you bring to the table, regardless of what they’re paying.

This tactic is not offensive.  You see this when you buy things online. The website always starts by posting the price and tells you how much of a discount they’re giving you and the price you’re getting.

How to Write an Invoice or Contract with a Discount

This is how I’d write an invoice or payment section of a photography contract that includes a discount:

Sitting Fee:                       $200.00

I-Like-You Discount:           -$75.00

Total Sitting Fee:               $125.00

You get to choose what you’re going to call your discounts. I encourage my clients to be creative and include their personality in their contracts, but you have to decide what works for you.

Lights Camera LawsuitTM

There’s always a need for quality legal information for photographers. That’s why I created an online course called Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography to address photographers’ most important questions. I want you to feel secure in your business, confident in the way you operate day-to-day, knowing that you’ve set yourself up to get paid what your worth without incident.

At $497, the course contains nearly six hours of legal information you can immediately apply to your business. That’s less than what I charge for two hours of legal work for clients!  

Please subscribe for more information and to make sure you don’t miss out on any special offers or discounts.

Filed Under: Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Clarify What Your Photography Client is Buying: Prints vs Digital License

July 3, 2019 by Leave a Comment
“Shooting the Dress” by Garry Knight from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

Professional portrait photographers generally need at least two contracts when working with a client: one for the sitting and one for the deliverables. For the latter, make sure the client is crystal clear about what they are, and equally important, what they are not buying. Having clarity on the front end will prevents problems on the back end.

Assume Clients Don’t Understand Copyright

Part of your job as a professional photographer is to educate your client about the basics of copyright and how it applies to images you’ve been hired to create. Many people assume that they are allowed to take a print, scan it, and share online or via email.

In my pre-lawyer life, that’s what I thought. I spent plenty of time in the computer lab during my undergrad scanning photos. There was even a bulletin board dedicated to the photos that people left in the machine.

This is still an issue for Joe Average people. Here’s a real question that recently came across my screen: I hired a photographer to take family pictures. I want to share them online and with extended family. The photographer says I can’t do that. Why?

I suspect this person bought prints and not a digital license, or they have a license but it doesn’t include an allowance to distribute the images.

As a risk-adverse lawyer, I would put specific verbiage in the contract that states what the client can and can’t do with the photos, including that only the digital version the photographer provides can be used to share the images with family and friends, probably in bold print.

This serves two purposes:

  1. It protects your copyright, and
  2. It maintains the quality of your work.

It’s also a good idea to include the information about your socials so they can tag you. (Good clients give credit their photographer when posting images online, even if they’re not required to.)

What the Client gets with Prints

When a client buys prints, they are buying the tangible object – the picture on whatever medium it was printed. They are buying the thing. They are not getting the copyright right or any copyright rights (unless that’s part of the contract they signed).

The limits of what someone can do with a print are similar to what they can do if they bought a book. They can display it, sell it, give it away, destroy it, etc. What they can’t do is make copies of it.

Scanning a print is making a copy. So is taking a photo of the photo.

I’ve seen people do this at amusement parks. They don’t want to buy the photo the park took of them on the rollercoaster, so they take a photo of the screen where the image is displayed – so they take photo of the photo. When I’ve seen this happen, the teenage clerk usually says, “We’re not supposed to let people do that.” Now you know why. 

What the Client gets with a Digital License

What a client can do with a digital license depends on the limits within the license itself.

Whoever owns a copyright has the exclusive right to control if and how the work is copied, distributed, displayed, performed, and what derivative works can be made from it. If I were writing a license for a photographer, I’d address all five of these rights – including “perform,” even though that’s not a verb we typically use in regards to photographs, but I’d rather be thorough.

Most of the time, the photography licenses I draft are for a non-exclusive, perpetual, worldwide license. It also addresses whether the licensee is allowed to use the images for commercial use. Sometimes the photographer requests additional provisions, like one that says the licensee isn’t allowed to alter the images, which may include cropping.

Following the license provision, I often add a sentence that states all other uses of the images must be approved by the photographer in advance.

Solution: All Print Packages Include a Digital License

One way to address this issue to require clients to purchase a digital license when they’re purchasing prints. The client won’t have to scan any images if they already have digital versions.

When you first meet with a client to discuss their needs, ask them about what they want to do with the final images, including how they want to show them to others. If you hear a client talking about how they can’t wait to share the photo with family/friends – clarify what they mean and make sure purchase a package that suits their needs.

Lights Camera LawsuitTM

There’s always a need for quality legal information for photographers. That’s why I created an online course called Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography to address photographers’ most important questions. I want you to feel secure in your business, confident in the way you operate day-to-day, knowing that you’ve set yourself up to get paid what your worth without incident.

At $497, the course contains nearly six hours of legal information you can immediately apply to your business. That’s less than what I charge for two hours of legal work for clients!  

Please subscribe for more information and to make sure you don’t miss out on any special offers or discounts.

Filed Under: Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How to Respond When Someone Steals Your Photo

June 26, 2019 by 1 Comment
Running with the Seagulls by Ed Schipul from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

Photographers need to be mindful of the possibility that some people may use their photos without permission. People will pull images to use on their website and social media posts. Additionally, there are people who think they have rights to a photo merely because they’re in it. I’ve even heard of hair and makeup artists who take photos from the shoots they have worked on to use them in their portfolio.

This issue is compounded by the fact that there is inaccurate information about photo use on the internet. Some sources assert that you can use any photo you find on the internet as long as you give an attribution and a link to the original. They think they’re giving you free publicity, but what they may be doing is committing copyright infringement and telling you about it.

Start with the End in Mind

When I work with clients who believe their copyright has been violated, one of the first question I ask is,

How do you want this to end?

Knowing what the client wants as a result of my work tells me what avenue for recourse they’re interested in pursuing.

To maximize the likelihood of achieving your desired outcome, it’s best to decide before your photos are stolen how you want to respond to the alleged infringer so you can be prepared in advance for when it happens.

Always Respond When Someone Uses Your Photo Without Permission

You don’t set the precedent that people can use your photos without a license. If you let others use your work and then you want to assert your rights against another infringer, the infringer could point to your past behavior and argue that since you’ve allowed others to use your images without repercussions, that this new infringer should be treated the same.

(This is why you hear about companies sending strongly worded cease and desist letters to minor infringers. They have an obligation to protect their intellectual property.)

There are five ways you can respond when someone steals your photo:

Option #1: Grant Permission

If you’re ok with someone’s use of your image, you can grant them permission after the fact. It can be something simple like

Hi there. I noticed you’re using my photo for XYZ. I’m ok with uses like this, but in the future, you need to ask my permission in advance. I grant you permission for this use.

Option #2: Cease and Desist Letter

This is a letter from you (or your lawyer) to the suspected infringer that informs them of the copyright rights they violated, directs them to remove the image by a specified date, and tells them what you’ll do if they don’t comply. Be ready to follow through on whatever you threaten/promise in your letter, or you’ll lose credibility.

These are sometimes referred to as the “nastygram,” especially when it’s written by a lawyer and the client’s goal is to put the fear of god in the person so they comply. There is no rule that says you can’t send a letter that says,

I love that you love my photo, but you need to remove it by . . .

Option #3: DMCA Takedown Notice

DMCA stands for Digital Millennium Copyright Act. This option is only available in situations where your photo and the infringement of it are both on the internet. Instead of sending a cease and desist letter to the person who stole your photo, you send a takedown notice to the company that hosts the website where the infringement is occurring. Some social media platforms have a form on their site for submitting a takedown notice with designated spaces for all the information you’re required to include in a DMCA takedown.

Option #4: Send a Bill and a License

There is at least one photo licensing company that is notorious for doing this, but any photographer can send (or have their lawyer send) a letter to the suspected infringer that says,

By using my photo, you’ve agreed to my licensing terms. Here’s a copy of the license and your bill!

If you want to use this option, it’s ideal if you have your licensing terms or at least information about licensing on your website.

Option #5: Sue for Copyright Infringement

This option requires the most work in advance compared to the other options because you must register the photo’s copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office in order to be eligible to sue for infringement. There are time constraints in which you have to register you work in to be eligible for statutory damages, including attorneys’ fees. Additionally, your photo has to be stolen by someone who can afford to pay the damages, otherwise you may never collect (and you’ll likely have to pay for your attorney yourself).

If registered your photo too late, you can still sue, but you can only get your actual damages, and you have to pay your attorneys’ fees. Most of the time, in this situation, it’s not worth it to sue because you’ll spend more on your attorney than what you’d get in damages from the court.

What’s the Right Option to Protect Your Photography?

You have to make that decision yourself. Decide in advance how you want to respond when someone steals your photo and plan accordingly.

Your strategy for responding to suspected copyright infringement can include more than one of these options – such as sending a cease and desist letter yourself and if that doesn’t work, then have your attorney send one. Some people are more motivated to comply when they see the law firm’s letterhead.

Regardless of your strategy, it’s best to speak with your attorney in advance and consult them when dealing with someone who’s using your photos without permission. There have been many times that I’ve written the cease and desist letter for my client to send that included the sentence,

I hope we can resolve this without having to get lawyers involved.

Lights Camera Lawsuit

There’s always a need for quality legal information for photographers. That’s why I created an online course called Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography to address photographers’ most important questions. I want you to feel secure in your business, confident in the way you operate day-to-day, knowing that you’ve set yourself up to get paid what your worth without incident.

At $497, the course contains nearly six hours of legal information you can immediately apply to your business. That’s less than what I charge for two hours of legal work for clients!  

Please subscribe for more information and to make sure you don’t miss out on any special offers or discounts.

Filed Under: Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What Makes an Effective Photography Contract Template

June 6, 2019 by 2 Comments
“Photographers” by Mark Fischer from Flickr (Creative Commons License)

One of the most common questions I get from photographers is, “Where can I get a good (free) contract template online?” I’m sorry to say that I have yet to come across such a resource that I’d feel comfortable recommending to anyone, but I can tell you what I look for when I review these documents.

Contract = Relationship Management Document

The best way I can define a contract is it’s a relationship management document. Its purpose is to put everyone involved on the same page about their responsibilities and how you will address certain problems if they occur. Contracts manage expectations and allow you to hold each other accountable to the promises you made.

When I write a contract for a client, I try to walk through the interaction between the people involved during the relationship created by the contract and consider potential problems that might occur.  

Here’s something to note about contracts: Whichever side writes the contract, does so based on their best interests. The drafter is looking out for their interests, not yours. I write the same type of contract quite differently depending on which side is my client.

Photography Contract Review

When a client asks me to review a photography contract template, these are some of the provisions I expect to see in a quality contract:

Parties and Scope: A contract should be clear about the who, what, where, and when between the parties. A third party should be able to read the contract and understand who is party to the contract and what their responsibilities are.  

Consideration: “Consideration” is legal term meaning an exchange between the parties – what is each side giving and getting. In photography contracts, it’s usually trade for photos (TFP) or payment for images.

Deliverables: I would expect a photography contract to clearly state what the model/client is getting from the photographer as well as any limits on what the model/client can do with the images.

Copyright Notice: The contract should state who will own the copyright in the images – the photographer or the model/client. If the model/client is getting the copyright, I’d expect them to have to pay more than if they were just getting the images and a license to use them in certain ways.

Model Release: If you want to use the images for marketing purposes or to make money off the images in other ways, you will probably need a model release.

Problems and Worst-Case Scenarios: How are you going to deal with common issues like cancellations, no-shows, refund requests, and late payments? Those all should be addressed in your contract. What about rare but bad problems, like the files from the shoot are stolen, corrupted, or otherwise destroyed before you can make a back-up copy? You may want to address the worst-case scenarios in your contract too – usually in the “force majeure” section.

Dispute Resolution: If there is a problem between the parties, how will you resolve it – mediation? Arbitration? Litigation? Some other way? In what county and state will this occur? Which state law applies? In some states, you must specify that the non-prevailing party has to pay for the prevailing party’s attorney’s fees, otherwise the court won’t likely require this.

Boilerplate Terms:  There are some provisions that I include in nearly every contract I write, like waiver, severability, modification, and entire agreement. These are the provisions that can have a substantial impact on your relationship with the other party but are often left out when a lay person tries to write their own contract.

No One Size Fits All

A contract template is a starting point for a contract with a model/client. There may be times when you need to revise it to fit the needs of a project. Additionally, you will likely need different templates for portrait work and event photography because the issues the contract needs to address are different.

There’s nothing wrong with using a contract from the internet as a place to get ideas for contract terms and how to phrase provisions, but I’ve never seen a contract template that someone got for free online that I would approve as written.

Lights Camera Lawsuit

There’s always a need for quality legal information for photographers. That’s why I created an online course called Lights Camera Lawsuit: The Legal Side of Professional Photography to address photographers’ most important questions. I want you to feel secure in your business, confident in the way you operate day-to-day, knowing that you’ve set yourself up to get paid what your worth without incident.

At $497, the course contains nearly six hours of legal information you can immediately apply to your business. That’s less than what I charge for two hours of legal work for clients!  

Please subscribe for more information and to make sure you don’t miss out on any special offers or discounts.

Filed Under: Photography & the Law Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
Next Page »