Brochures and Releases

The way I understand it, is if it's anything other than a photograph, you need a release.

I'm looking to put together a small trifold handout to leave for commercial clients. Considering I'm not using the persons/property AS an ad, but rather displaying my work, do the same rules apply? In other words I will have portraits, commercial head shots I've done, food, business interiors, that I want to showcase - but they aren't endorsing me. However, I'm guessing because my business name is on it, it's considered commercial use?

In a strict sense, I think it ultimately comes down to who owns the images and what if any conditions you specified when you made them. FWIW, despite transferring copyright to most of my work, I do include samples on my website. Sometimes I ask permission, sometimes not. I've only had one instance out of thousands where the client didn't want me using the final completed pieces, most have been happy to oblige my requests.

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Buchinger wrote in post #17896661
The way I understand it, is if it's anything other than a photograph, you need a release.
I'm looking to put together a small trifold handout to leave for commercial clients. Considering I'm not using the persons/property AS an ad, but rather displaying my work, do the same rules apply? In other words I will have portraits, commercial head shots I've done, food, business interiors, that I want to showcase - but they aren't endorsing me. However, I'm guessing because my business name is on it, it's considered commercial use?

The contract that you have your clients sign should state in the fine print that you may use any of the images, including images of their likeness, to promote your photography business on any media, including print media, internet sites, social media, and any form of media not yet invented. This is pretty much standard fine print language for any basic contract that people sign when they hire you to photograph them.

If you have a decent contract, then you don't have to worry about these issues later.

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I assumed I needed a release. I don't include a model release portion in any of my contracts but weddings. Although I probably should.

I'm curious about corporations. Who is capable of giving a model release? Only the CEO? Any officer? Many of my portraits will either be within a building owned by the client or contain products sold by the client - so I'm trying to figure out if I need both the CEO and the subject.

I'll just end up getting them from everyone to be safe.

Fact: Individuals' right to privacy is governed by state laws (statutory or common-law). While many are similar, you'll want to review the laws applicable in your state.
This is a good resource, with statues and some case law examples:
http://www.dmlp.org …state-law-right-publicity

Non-lawyer's opinion: A brochure is considered commercial use - endorsing your product or service - so you'll want to get a release from any person pictured in your brochure.

Fact: A person can not give a model release on behalf of another person. A bride can not give a release for all her wedding guests or her bridal party. (except for guardians of minors, or similar instances).

Non-lawyer's opinion: It's very likely that you don't need a release for buildings, food, bridges, etc, unless they have an identifiable logo or other copyrighted material visible in the photo. Here's a pretty good read:
http://propertyintangi​ble.com …s-right-of-publicity.html