Licensing Headshot Question

Hi all,

I photographed a conference where I was paid directly by the conference. There were several public figures and they asked me for permission to use their portraits for web purposes. What is the normal process to grant them permission? Should I create a contract and ask for licensing fee? Not sure how to proceed with this one.

Thanks in advance!

Harry, you don't tell us which country you're in, so this is applicable to US only. Did you sign a contract with the conference promoters? If so what are the terms WRT copyright and licensing rights? If you had a contract with them, this might qualify as "work for hire" which may affect your rights to sell/license the photos.

More details please

Hi Charles, I didn't sign a contract with the conference promoters. The quote I provided didn't state copyright and licensing rights, it just stated for unlimited usage.

Unlimited usage by whom? Could the conference assign those usage rights? A little more information would help.

Any other fellow photographers can chime?

Nothing useful to add with respect to the original question, without more details.

The most pending as relevant are -

What country/state? (as implied above)

Unlimited usage by whom? (as asked above)

Could the conference assign those usage rights? (as asked above)

As some general comments (based upon a few assumptions therefore may be way of the target and the target changes depending upon where you are located in this world) -

- probably you're stuck between a rock and a hard place without any initial contract, anyway

- 'the quote' implies you're a business, (i.e. not an employee) and likely you own the copyright, but that's different to usage rights

- if 'the conference' has unlimited usage and it's not explicit (in the quote) that they cannot assign those rights to a third party then probably the question is moot

- if 'the conference' is a big company, and the above points are close to the mark then probably arguing the toss will be pointless

- the most elegant solution for you to work towards might be for 'the public figures' get to use your photos and you get a by-line credit on each use

WW

From what I read in this Fstoppers article on photo copyrights, @William Michael hits the nail on the head.

- as a photographer, you automatically own the "intellectual copyright" for each and every photo you take (you can only transfer the intellectual copyright for photos via a legally binding contract)

- licensing the use of copies of the photos for publication is a completely separate issue; you retain the intellectual copyright

You granted the conference 'unlimited usage' but not, it seems, 'exclusive usage' (even for a limited period of time). So legally, it seems you would be within your rights to license the publication of headshots. But there are other reasons to choose the 'elegant solution' suggested by Michael - business relationships (and repeat business):

- the public figures know that the headshots were taken at the conference and that you've already been paid by the conference

- the conference might not take kindly to reports that your making extra money from photos for which they paid you for

So you can hopefully afford to be gallant and "in this special case" license the use of the headshots free of charge or for a nominal fee (extra PP). You can ask that they mention you as the photographer and politely request that they consider you for any additional photographic work. Goodwill doesn't pays the bills but can help build a business relationship.

Mike

. . . William Michael hits the nail on the head . . . as a photographer, you automatically own the "intellectual copyright" for each and every photo you take (you can only transfer the intellectual copyright for photos via a legally binding contract)

Just for the archival record, (and this topic has been discussed a few times here on this Business Forum), I was careful NOT to write that.

Automatic copyright to the Photographer is not universal.

There are situations, in many jurisdictions, where copyright is first assigned NOT to the Photographer

Moreover, the text cited, specifically quotes (my bold now for emphasis) -

"For the purposes of this article we will be looking at, and linking to, the copyright laws specific to the United States of America. For individuals both in the U.S. and outside of it, in order to understand what laws protect your works in other countries you will have to look up the laws for the specific country in which you need copyright protection."

These facts make it imperative that the OP provide more information, the first snippet being where on this planet is s/he is working – just as Charles' implied question asks.

WW

I stand corrected, William. I should have noted to which countries (in this case the US and NL) this article and my post applies. I fully agree that copyright regulations are local and that that each photographer needs to learn about his/her local copyright regulations,

Thanks for this correction,

Mike

Just for the archival record, (and this topic has been discussed a few times here on this Busincss Forum), I was careful NOT to write that.

 

Automatic copyright to the Photographer is not universal.

 

There are situations, in many jurisdictions, where copyright is first assigned NOT to the Photographer

 

Moreover, the text cited, specifically quotes (my bold now for emphasis) -

 

"For the purposes of this article we will be looking at, and linking to, the copyright laws specific to the United States of America. For individuals both in the U.S. and outside of it, in order to understand what laws protect your works in other countries you will have to look up the laws for the specific country in which you need copyright protection."

 

These facts make it imperative that the OP provide more information, the first snippet being where on this planet is s/he is working – just as Charles' implied question asks.

 

WW

Thanks Mike - it's important because PN does have a world readership/membership and I know from personal experience, that novices (for example located where I live and work) have read PN Business Forum pages as "correct" and as a result do not know how copyright works for their situation.

In any case the OP's question is about usage or licensing rights - hopefully s/he will provide more information.

WW

Conferences I know do a group shot, which would not make good head shots.

Seems that the easy way around it is to do another shot, and price it appropriately.

Thanks all for your suggestions. To add more context, the client wants to use a few portraits I took for all media types (web, social media, profile etc).

They also want to use the images for an unlimited amount of time. In addition to the original, they also want a retouched and edited version as well. Of course, I'm happy to accommodate their request but want to make sure it'll be priced fairly.