What is copyrights? 

According to The US Copyright Act of 1976, Copyright is the legal right to use, distribute, reproduce, profit and create derivative works from the creation of an image which comes under copyright ownership immediately after it’s made and set in a fixed tangible format. 

In photography, this applies as soon as any picture is taken, and this act gives the photographer exclusive legal authorship and law protection as well as several other rights. 

What type of copyrights do I get? 

Unless we’re under a Work For Hire basis or if we have an exclusive rights agreement, you’ll get a detailed license or permit to use any images I produce for you, but as the intellectual author of such images I always retain the copyrights. 

For instance, in the case of pictures, for an Airbnb; all images delivered will include a license for short-term rentals, so you can use them anywhere online only for this specific purpose. This license is also non-exclusive and non-transferable. Consequently you’re not allowed to sell those pictures or transfer them to, let’s say, your interior designer so he/she can promote his/her business online. For that, this person will need to contact me to purchase a commercial license, otherwise this act falls under copyright infringement which is penalized under Intellectual property law.

What is personal and commercial use?

A personal use license means that the images I produce for you can only be used in a non-commercial way, meaning they’ll not make any direct financial gain and are meant for sharing with family and friends, to use within your company informational website, your professional or personal social media profile and to make unlimited prints if you wish to. 

On the other hand, commercial use means that any images I produce for you are going to be used to generate a direct financial gain. This type of work normally includes a detailed agreement and a license specifying the usage, length of it and other variables. 

Pricing always differs between the two, even if the resulting images look the same. For instance; the pricing of headshots for a LinkedIn profile is not priced the same as if I was shooting headshots for a marketing campaign or for a Realtor’s business where the ROI is expected in the thousands or even more.

Can I have the copyrights of any work you do for me?

Although I normally don’t give up copyrights, yes. In some instances, companies or high profile clients prefer to have ownership of any images produced for them, and normally it’s their policy thus they’re aware that an exclusive license is normally accompanied of a high-cost fee from the rightful owner.