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Wedding Couple wants RAW images


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I have wedding couple that will not pay the balance they owe until they receive the RAW images of the wedding. I

usually give the B&G the processed High Res JPG images (which I already did. The groom states he wants to print

the images larger than 8x10 and thus wants the RAW images. He is an amatuer photographer and I think he wants to

play around with the files.

 

What are your thoughts? Should I charge him a fee? State to him again that I do not give out the RAW images and

that it is not in the contract.

 

Your thoughts and suggestions would be appreciated.

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I seems improbable that an amateur photographer (of almost any level of skill or interest) would have arranged for the services of a professional photographer... and that this issue didn't come up. Your contract may not say that you'll hand them over, but does it also say that you will not?
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My wife and I were your B&G two years ago during our own wedding.

 

My advice? Happily give him the RAW with a big smile on your face.

 

If he is a photographer and getting married, all his friends are going to ask who the photographer was. What do you want him to say about you?

 

1) You are a great photographer who made him (the groom) very happy.

2) You are holding *his* RAW photos hostage.

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My contract states that I will give them high resolution JPG images. This was a destination wedding, they came to NYC so it was only the 3 of us for most of the day. They state along with the prints that are in the contract they want all the RAW images and then will send the balance of the photography payment.

 

I am not hugely against sending them the RAW images. I wanted to know if others have encountered this and what your thoughts on it are.

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First, fix the hole in your contract. For instance, specify a price for RAW. That will avoid repeating this headache.

 

Then, what will you lose if you give them the RAWs ?

 

If you lose nothing, well, then give them. A happy customer is always good for business. End of headache.

 

Unlike negs you can give your RAWs and still keep them... so it is only a matter of money loss... that's up to you to decide...

 

But if they want to make a huge print that means they like your pics. So be nice to them. Their friends will perhaps need a photog sometime in the future.

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Do you want to continue doing business with them? You have a contract that they seem to be willing to ignore. That would suggest that any subsequent licensing agreement you reach over use of copies of RAW files may not mean much to them.

 

I suppose a note that you would consider discussing licensing additional files and use after they have fulfilled their current contract obligations wouldn't hurt but discuss with your attorney what impact negotiating changes and new business might have on the ability to collect existing obligations or if it might change everything.

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I'm confused. How does giving them RAW files make it any easier to print large than giving them the full size high rez Jpegs? Its the same number of pixells right? If your printing at 300 DPI, and you have a 10mp camera, then your pretty much stuck at 9x13 or so (based off my 40D files). To print larger would mean that they would sacrifice DPI. but at what cost? At 250 dpi you could print up to 10.5 x 16 or so. At 200 dpi 13.3 x 20. The math is the same, Jpeg, RAW, Tiff, Jpeg2000, or any other format. A pixel is a pixel. And what printers will print from a RAW file? Maybe you could explain this to them, and reinforce that they are getting full sized Jpegs, and that the RAW files have just as many pixels.

 

Unless your contract says that you WILL give them RAW files, I wouldnt. Possibly give a few as a bonus, but giving away your RAW files just seems wrong to me. He wants to try editting on his own, does he have the proper programs to do this? Is his monitor calibrated? Is he going to get it printed at the local drugstore? If the prints come out looking... odd is he going to tell the ones that see it that its because he editted it wrong or is he going to just say 'DM was my photographer, why do you ask'?

 

Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but I wouldnt even offer RAW files. And if I were asked for them, I would charge so much that either they would say no thanks or I could buy quite a few lenses with what they paid.

 

But those are just my thoughts, feel free to ignore if I'm off base on this one.

Dan

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I have on rare occasions delivered RAW files to commerical clients as agreed to in the contract, however my preference is to make raw & PS adjustments myself ending with TIFF & JPEG images for my clients and this never has been an issue. Even great photographers need to tweak and adjust their images before they are proud of them.

If this is not an issue for you than I would give them the raw images with a smile.

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If they had made their final payment and asked if they could also please have the RAW files since the groom is a photorapher and wants to play with them I would be inclined to say yes, or at least sell them. But when they come in and try to play the bully and say you're not getting paid unless you hand over something you never contracted for, it gets my back up. If they said they wouldn't make final payment until you threw in a free 16x20 or an extra album, how would you respond? If you want to play nice and give them the RAW files instead of the JPG files or in addition, go ahead. I would be nice to the guy and say you'd be glad to give him the files but first you have to finish off everything that's been agreed to in the contract, including his payment to you. Say as soon as you get the final payment from him you'll be glad to send the RAW files. If you don't get the money first, you still don't have your final payment and have no leverage for getting it.
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We always include the RAWs ......less responsibility on the studio > for storage. With the large California fires this year >> we would be glad to have them store the RAWS. Since we do mainly destination coverages >>> a note for the wise ~~~ never have a BALANCE DUE. When they leave the ceremony site get payment in full.

<p> I for one, do not like the fact they can now alter the contract ....demanding their RAWs or no payment. Although the sales would most likely be small, with only the couple attending the wedding, I still see them holding you hostage. Should you conclude to send the RAWs >> make sure they arrive COD ! In future, draw up a secure contract & full payment at the ceremony required. We still like our package for small weddings :::: shoot film and hand them the unprocessed rolls...

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I would give them what they want and consider it a lesson learned for future income opportunities. I don't think you have anything to lose. It was only the three of you and more then likely their not going to purchase anything additional from you. Any prints they do make should be the best possible quality and a raw file may be beneficial. They will be showing and giving your work to friends and it would be in your interest to look its best. My only concern would be if they will actually send the balance after getting RAWs. Should have been paid in full before they got the JPEGs, or better yet before shooting the job. Thanks for sharing your experience; it's something that I will consider in the future.
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It's up to you and what's important to you David. It appears however as if you've fulfilled your contract and i'll be darn if i'd let a client TELL me what to do before they send in final payment when it is contrary to the contract. That in itself would ruffle my feathers. In which case, i would point out the legalities of the contract and set a deadline for final payment due. If final payment wasn't received, i would follow through with the legalities. Matter of fact, i'm in the process of that now with my first non-paying client. We don't put that verbage in our contract for just a scare tatic; is there to be acted upon. My advice is simple....act upon your contract :)

 

People worry too much about the effects of their referral base. My thoughts are....i don't want a non-payment client and the possibility is very hight that i wouldn't want their freinds :)

 

As a side note...the attorney that i'll be using is a past wedding client of mine.

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"You are holding *his* RAW photos hostage."

They are NOT his, they are yours. However if your contract is unclear you may have to fork them over. Consider this: There is considerable skill and professional control of the image in the conversion from RAW. You have the right to edit and retouch your work based on hard won knowledge and experience so the client gets the best results. Do you want to turn that, and your reputation, over to a novice? NO! Additionally, I know it's common for B&G's to get a set of Jpegs for sharing and posting and such. That is fine. But high resolution files? Of course he wants the big files to make big prints. For all the years I shot weddings large prints were a MAJOR source of revenue. If your pricing model does not include prints you are cutting yourself off of a primary income stream.

 

"Do you want to continue doing business with them?"

By giving away your RAW files (or negs in film days) you are virtually assured you will not be doing any more business with these clients and without your practiced eye in RAW conversion, retouching and printing (or at least quality controlling the print output) your creative work will not be seen in the best light. Fix your contract, act like a professional that cares about his work and your reputation and bank account will be the better for it.

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In my opinion, RAW images are an unfinished product and I practically never give them away. All the fixes and adjustments that you make later to get the perfect photos are not in the RAW files and you may get criticized based on your RAW files.

 

That said, I shot some tabletops for company ads not so long ago and the graphic artist wanted the RAWs for further tweaking as he worked on the final assembly. I gave them to him but with all the adjustments to exposure and suggested crops included (this can get saved in RAW file (or DNG)). But still, nobody else got to see the RAWs, only the printed ad.

 

Regarding the "we'll pay you when we get the RAWs" approach, well that depends on what's in the contract (written or verbal).

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I offer hi-res files on disc in my contract it states jpegs. On occasion I've had clients (most are either amateur photogs or graphic designers) ask for RAW files. As long as they're paying for the hi-res it doesn't bother me to give them RAW files. However, prior to RAW file delivery I have them sign the following:

 

Transfer of Files Agreement

In exchange for valuable consideration, XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX hereby

transfers non-exclusive rights to images made by XXXXXXXXX and other agents of XXXXXXXXXXXXX at the wedding of XXXXXXXX and XXXXXXXXXXX on XXXXXXXXXX to XXXXXXXXXXXXX (client). Both parties agree to the following terms:

1. Client acknowledges that the copyright to the above referred images remain under the

ownership of XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. Client may not transfer copyright to any other person or entity.

2. Client may reproduce images for personal use only.

3. In case of delivery of RAW digital photographic files, client acknowledges that the files

are delivered “as is” and no digital photographic post-processing has been done to the

files and that the files “as is” may not make the desired quality of reproduction.

4. Upon acceptance of this agreement, client agrees that XXXXXXXXXXXXXX may choose to no longer archive these files and images from the above referred wedding may no longer be available.

5. Client agrees that upon acceptance of this agreement, any consideration paid to XXXXXXXXXXXXX is considered non-refundable for any reason.

 

To me, #3 and #5 are the most important. This is signed before I hand over a disc.

--JL

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I've never had anyone ask for RAW (most of my clients don't even know what they are or have the appropriate software to convert them), but you won't lose anything if you charge them a small handling fee for burning the disc. If he's digital-savvy, surely he'll know that it's an easy procedure to just burn them to disc, so I would not charge much. The 15 minutes tops that it might take you is worth something, though.

 

This is probably the rare exception, not the rule these days, so burn 'em to disc and hand 'em over.

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