Photography contract template and the subject of contractual relations between the customer and the photographer, in principle, have become very relevant and vital, as any photographer thinks about it sooner or later. Regardless of the style, genre of photography, each photographer decides to work on a prepared contract in order to protect himself/herself from unnecessary risks and prescribe all of his/her services and prices for them to clients to prevent complaints. Photography contract template and the subject of contractual relations between the customer and the photographer, in principle, have become very relevant and vital, as any photographer thinks about it sooner or later. Regardless of the style, genre of photography, each photographer decides to work on a prepared contract in order to protect himself/herself from unnecessary risks and prescribe all of his/her services and prices for them to clients to prevent complaints. By tradition, our photo editing service will help photographers in any situation, so in this article we propose to find out which paragraphs should be present in the contract. To simplify the case, we provide examples of contracts for you.

 How to write a photography contract template

First you need to understand why you need a contract and what it can provide. Of course, first of all, the contract is written proof that the model (the client) agreed with the photographer about something. The more detailed the conditions will be, the easier it will be for the photographer to work and so the clients will be more satisfied.  Usually photographers work with models by agreement, but, as a rule, they are spoken orally. A verbal agreement will be difficult to defend in court. This will require witnesses, which are almost certainly not, as usually the conditions are stipulated by the photographer alone with the models.The essence of the photography session contract gives a guarantee of order and payment on a certain date, and for the customers it is a guarantee that the photographer will attend the photo session in a proper way.

 1. Copyright

The first thing that needs to be determined is what protects or should protect the concluded contract. It is important to understand that there are no weaker parties when concluding a contract   the rights of both are equal, and each of them tries to protect its own interests by an agreement.The most important moment in formation of a basic photography contract is copyright. A photographer who creates a photo (an object of intellectual property) has absolutely all rights to this property. Without the photographer’s permission, models do not have the right to print photos or publish them anywhere (including social networks). Usually no one even talks about this moment.

 2. Guarantee

No less important point is the moment of guarantee. When signing a contract, this document imposes on both parties a number of responsibilities. Models guarantee the presence on a photo session and that will provide the photographer with absolutely everything necessary. The photographer, in turn, guarantees that he/she will come to the photoshoot on the appointed day and the appointed time and take photos at a previously agreed price. Some moments of any photography contract template that you need to consider when forming a contract:

• The contract must be concluded in writing form. You can use not only the paper form of photography contract template, but also conclude, for example, the contract by e-mail, although in practice it is still less reliable, but absolutely legal, with all the requirements for electronic signature. Non-compliance with the written form entails the invalidity of the contract (in terms of copyright regulation).

• In photography order form template a clear and competent formulation of the copyright aspect is necessary. Exclusive copyright can be transferred (some analogue of the contract of sale) and provided (some analogue of the lease / use agreement). In the first case, the photographer does not retain the rights to use photographs (even in the portfolio), in the second case, the limits of the use of photographs by both the photographer and the model are determined in the contract. Any illiterate expressions can not only lead to a dispute and unpredictability in its resolution, but even lead to the rescission of the contract.

• If the model agrees to provide the photographer with the right to use photographs with her / his image (even for the photographer’s portfolio), it is necessary to clearly state in the contract which photos (or all), how and with what limitations the model allows the photographer to use.

• In the contract it is necessary to clearly and indisputably identify, with respect to which photos it is. This can be achieved by proper application design, photo transfer and / or a detailed description of the photo session and the conditions of photography (the main task is the indisputable identification of photos).

• In any photography contract template, the place, time and day of photography are mandatory. If the photographer is far from reaching the location or photographing can take the whole day (for example, a wedding), then the points about payment for travel, meals and other services must necessarily be stipulated and spelled out in the contract.

• The procedure and amount of payment for services. Perhaps, this is the most important point in the photography order form template, on which, in fact, it is based. Be sure to establish and prescribe your services and prices for them, photo post processing, video, etc. The question of the caution money for photographing should also be stipulated.

• Much attention should be paid to the rights and duties of the photographer, which services are included in the payment: photography, photo post processing, photo printing, etc. It is important to prescribe in the contract that the equipment and manner of photographing depends on the photographer, in what form and how many photos will be provided.

• Also, do not forget about the paragraph with the details and addresses of the parties.The point about which only photographers can be mentioned is the exclusivity of the photographer. This means that the customer undertakes not to hire other professional photographers for the duration of the event. The exclusivity clause does not apply to the video recording of the event.

3. Duties

The second part of the photography order form template will be the duties of the customer, that is, models. The photographer can mention such clauses as providing rest and food (if necessary), transport (if the photoshoot ends late in the evening), as well as ensuring proper payment for services in accordance with the section in the contract. When all the duties of the parties are prescribed, the defenses to liability of the parties, all points are agreed and settled, then between the photographer and the customer can be signed a photography contract. The contract can be free, and can be certified by the company seal (if this photographer is not a freelancer) or a notary.
 You can include in the general photography contract all the articles that you deem necessary, as well as the articles that the customer will require; in the future this will save you from complaints and other problems.

Portrait photography session contract

We examined the main and general points of any contract between the photographer and the customer, now we move on to more specific paragraphs that should be mentioned for a portrait photoshoot. We bring to your attention the articles from the free photography order form template.  In the portrait photography contract, services and conditions of portrait photography must be prescribed. In addition to the well-known information like the parties’ data and their requisites, the date and place of signing the contract, the following should be mentioned:

1. Place and date of the photo session. Time required for photographing.

2. The amount of the deposit if necessary, the ability to change or reschedule the date and place of photography.

3. Fees and conditions for cancellation of photographing by one of the parties.

4. Possible conditions and moments of failure or violation of photography.

5. Copyright. All rights to the photos are transferred to the customer, who can use them for commerce, personal use and publication on the Internet. But without the stipulated points, all the rights to photos still belong to the photographer, so his permission to use the photos in his own interest is necessary.

6. Additional costs for transport, food, etc. In some cases, the provision of transport, food, necessary clothing falls on the shoulders of the client.

7. Force majeure situations.

8. The cost of a portrait photo session, the number of final images that need to be transferred to the client, photo editing and the total number of the retouched photos. The cost of printing photos and art retouch is discussed separately with the client.

9. Other annexes and paragraphs, which are discussed separately.Such legal aspects of the relationship between the photographer and the model should be considered and included in the contract.

Wedding photography session contract

 Perhaps one of the large and serious contracts will be an agreement for a wedding photoshoot, which initially carries a lot of pitfalls and other conditions that are best prescribed in the contract in order to avoid discontent of one of the parties. In addition to all the above paragraphs, which should be in the above free photography order form template, it is necessary to mention the following aspects, which relate to the wedding photo session.In the first place, it is necessary to conduct consulting services and pre-wedding arrangements that occur during or after the conclusion of the wedding photography contracts. Also, the cost of the services and the services themselves, and the amount of the retainer should be listed.
The conditions of photography, force majeure, the ban on photography in some places, the use of flash or the involvement of other photographers for wedding photography is also prescribed in photography agreement form and discussed in advance with the newlyweds.
 The rights to use photographs remain for the photographer and are transferred to the newlyweds, and it is also necessary to clarify with the newlyweds the possibility of using their photos for the portfolio. You can find out about the creation of portfolio websites and the laying out of wedding photos here “Wedding photography websites   the secret of success”. We hope that we have highlighted the most important points of the agreement and you will be able to protect yourself and your customers as much as possible.

How to write a photography agreement form

The contract shall be deemed to be the agreement of two or more persons on the establishment, modification or termination of civil rights and obligations. The contract can be written or oral. The contract in writing can be concluded by drawing up one document signed by the parties, as well as by exchanging documents via postal, telephone, electronic or other communication, which allows stating reliably that the document originates from the party under the contract.The photography agreement form has the following paragraphs:

1. Date and place, customer and performer.

2. Duties of the photographer and clients.

3. Specifically prescribed conditions: who, how and in what quantity can use the photos.

4. Protection of rights to photographs.

5. Use of photos for the portfolio.

6. Reserved rights. The rights to the photographs remain with the customer, who can dispose of them at his discretion.

7. Confidentiality.

The photographer, regardless of the circumstances, must follow the conditions of the registered confidentiality.
 Such a contract must have authenticity and be lawful within the state and the country as a whole, without violating the rights and duties of a person and not contradicting the constitution.We reviewed the fundamental propositions of the free photography order form template, which should be spelled out in this agreement; everything else depends on you and your future customers. In any case, the conclusion of a contract always brings peace and security to both sides of the agreement.We always try to be useful to our customers and readers; we share important news, tips and experiences. Recently, we still offer all comers not only discounts on our photo editing prices, but also participate in the competition with a cash prize. For more details, see “WeEdit.photos is looking for talents”.Good luck with your work and be careful!