My copyright

[Claire]

Hi,
My friend is a singer/songwriter and will be releasing her first official CD pretty soon. She has financed it herself, the mixing and producing done by her friend, and a few of her friends took the pictures.

Now, she has chosen another friend's picture for the cover, but wants to use one of mine for her website and presentation pack.

We've discussed copyright and such, but as I'm new at this, what exactly would it mean in practice? I've told her it's fine to use the pictures, but haven't set a limit for the amount of prints she can do, nor for what she may use it for apart from the website and presentation pack.

Oh, and I haven't charged her either.

/Claire

[PhotosGuy]

This might help:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=31742

[IndyJeff]

First off Claire, register your imageswith the copyright office. Then get in writing how the images will be used and for how long. Settle on a price and once you get paid, the image is now licensed but, the license doesn't take effect until your paid, make that perfectly clear in the contract language. Don't give away the images or their use. What if she makes it big and is raking in the dough and wants to use your picture on an album cover? Guess what, she already has permission so you may not get anything out of it. By the time she makes it big she will have someone handling her finacial affairs and their interest will be in saving as much money as possible on production costs.
Now if you don't want to charge her anything maybe you could get her to sign a contract with you naming you her exclusive photographer and all photography needs would be handled thru you. Maybe you give the image away now but, if she hits it big it will mean "cash large" for you too.

Picture this, she is in concert in some big venue, headlining the show. Anyone who wants to take professional pictures must get your permission first because your her director of photography.

[Claire]

I have emailed my friend with your suggestions. We'll see how she replies. Personally I'm feeling a bit weird about charging her as all the people involved did it for a fun thing. My other friend and I had a blast just taking pictures and practising photography.

I don't mind her having a picture on the cover or website, but it's the presentation pack that has got me thinking about copyright and payment etc.

Ok, so let's say I decide to have her pay me. What in the world would I charge??? (The ever eternal question for an amateur).

[IndyJeff]

Claire like I said before, if you don't want to charge her don't but, get in writing what the images will be used for and get a contract limiting it for just that. Instead of money now, get an exclusive contract naming you as the beneficiary of that exclusive representation. Tell her it's not about money now because the money now isn't much but, it could be someday. You say she doesn't want to make it big, well that may be but, let some agent get ahold of her and start talking about making a cool half a mil a year clear and she may change her tune.

I guess what I am really trying to say is count on everything you shoot becoming a valuable image someday. Give it away now and you will have given it away for the future.

Another scenario, lets say she obtains some small fame from this cd she makes. A local critic does a piece on her and they need a photo. The paper uses your shot. Guess who just lost out on a paycheck. Now let's take that one step further, Rolling Stone magazine finds out about her and does a story and wants to use that great image from her website and it's a cover shot. Guess who just lost out on a major publication cover rate image paycheck. I'll give you one hint, it won't be your friend. Now if you register the copyright guess who has a great legal case against Rolling Stone magazine? Yep, that would be you and only you.


p.s if she has all these friends doing work for her for free, I would like to know her secret. I will need a new roof in a year or two and could use some free labor on that job.