It’s absolutely critical for photographers to have a written agreement in place with their client prior to any shoot. There are just too many opportunities for misunderstandings not to. For most commercial projects, it’s up to the photographer to send the client their proposal, which typically includes a cost estimate and a terms & conditions page. But for most editorial assignments (and some commercial assignments), clients will have their own contracts that they’ll want the photographer to sign. It’s the photographer’s responsibility to thoroughly review it and ensure that licensing and terms are acceptable to them and appropriate for the creative fee. While the excitement of a shoot may cause a photographer to sign an agreement without thoroughly reading it, this can sometimes lead to an unintentional transfer of copyright or missed opportunities to charge for additional licensing, reminding us of the expression, “a fool and his money are soon parted.”
I frequently work with photographers to review contracts and make revisions, and I thought it would be helpful to share an editorial contract that I recently revised. The following video will elaborate on the tools I use to edit contracts while also discussing a few terms and clauses I frequently encounter.
If you have any questions, or if you would like us to help you create or edit a contract, please email me at [email protected] or call us at (610) 260-0200.