Selling digital files

I have been asked from a retailer based in the usa to sell some of

my photos. He definitively need and asked for the digital files in

order to make prints on its own and then sell them on his shop (an

art shop I guess). What is the best way to sell photo-files? What

kind of rights I shouldn't sell? Any other kind of suggestion, tips,

etc, is VERY appreciated. Thnx to you all for your precious help.

you should sell a license to him for only the very specific rights for the size(s) and

number(s) of posters he intends on printing during a given period of time (one year, two

years, etc.) Before you do , if you are in the USA) make sure you have registered your

copyrights with the Library of congress to protect yourself. clearly state on your license/

invoice that payment in full is needed before the license is granted.

While Ellis' suggestion is a very good one...I, personaly, would be concerned about handing over original or duplicate files for a shop owner to produce prints from on his own.

 

First...there is the issue of quality control. How can you be assured that he will produce prints of the quality that you or your regular lab would do?

 

Second...there is the issue of how many prints he may actually be producing and/or selling? How would you possibly be able to audit inventory and sales when he has control of the original or duplicate files?

 

My suggestion would be to offer to produce whatever number & size of prints this seller thinks he might need to get started. This allows you the ability to control the quality of each print AND allows you first hand knowledge of what available inventory of your work he has on hand at any given time. From there, you just keep regular contact with the seller to assess print sales, inventory stock, etc. You give him more prints when he is running low on inventory and collect for past sales all at the same time.

 

Best of luck to you in this venture.

Tony: Isn't Ellis' response the industry standard though? From what I understand of the stock photo business that is how it seems to be done. Wouldn't anyone desiring to license your photos for commercial use need the originals?

 

I would say duplicating large numbers of prints for the shop owner would be too cost and time intensive.

Thnx! It was very helpfull. Just another question... since I am not from USA is there in your country a standardized form for such licences which I could use in the transaction of digital files?

michele go to www.editorialphotographers.com.

 

http://www.editorialphoto.com/forms/index.html

Ellis, I thank you very much. You have been very kind.

Patrick,

 

Yours is a very good question. As I percieved the question...the person requesting to digital files was intending to sell the prints he made as art or fine art much like the scenario an artist would encounter in a gallery situation. This is something completely different from a "license" to publish images in a commercial or editorial scenario.

 

I work with a wide variety of "fine artists" that sell work in a similar manner. Even the artists producing reproductions (ie seriographs, lithographs or giclee's would never turn over the digital scans of their work to their galleries. Instead...they supply the gallery with inventory in order to maintain quality control of these reproductions and to enable them to audit sales.

I am interested in this thread and want to take it a step further. What if your buyer wanted to make picture postcards from the digital photo file? Wouldn't he need the original digital file, as its not possible for the seller to make the post-cards for him...anyway, I hope u see where I am leading - I guess there must sometimes be a necessity to actually sell the file ? Or would u really licence it and 'trust / hope' it does not get used elsewhere?

I know of many photographers which make postcards theirself and then sell them in stock to shops.

Ian Marshall wrote: "Or would u really licence it and 'trust / hope' it does not get used elsewhere?"

 

In order for stock photographers to license images, they need to trust their clients, especially in this digital age. There will always be those who infringe on copyrights, but that's just the cost of doing business. In my opinion, it's better to sell a hundred usage licenses and have an image or two "stolen" than not license any images at all.