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When negotiating an agreement, one is often faced with the challenge of balancing a client’s budget, licensing requirements, and intended use.

A photographer recently asked me to review a contract governing the license of his stock photographs of a musician to a record company.

We’ve compiled a list of what different news organizations have paid freelance photographers, and we’re including copies of actual contracts when we have them. Keep in mind that this information reflects what those organizations have paid in the past, not necessarily what they currently pay, or what they’ll offer you.

A publishing company was working with a politician on his memoir, and asked the photographer to capture a few portraits for the covers.

At the beginning of 2011, the photographer was commissioned by a regional magazine to capture individual seamless portraits and a group shot of four actresses staring in a cable TV comedy. The group shot ultimately landed on the cover of the issue.

A regional fashion magazine needed advice on photographer and photo director contracts, and how to make the agreements more agreeable.

Ditlo is a stock photography company that works with photographers and celebrities to license content to clients. Here’s a sample contract.

Email correspondence between a graphic designer and an experienced photographer, concerning an annual report shoot for a medium corporation.

Estimate and contract: Portraits of cast members from a television show, including landscape images of the town featured in the show.

For about six years now, I’ve been shooting for AARP. I’ve mostly worked for their member newsletter, but also the AARP Bulletin and website.

Day rate vs. space fees are customary for many magazines, but we’re increasingly seeing publications prefer flat fees for photo shoots.

Fast Company Assistant Photo Editor Lisa Parisi asked me to photograph a computer scientist at Carnegie Mellon for a story on robots.

Wonderful Machine began as a small cooperative, which was great for developing client relationships that we couldn’t tackle on our own.

Some magazines have their own rates and terms, others don’t. Either way, it’s good for photographers to have a contract template on hand.

I recently had an interesting experience negotiating the terms of a contract with a new magazine client for a cover shoot. Here’s the process.