5 legal mistakes photographers make (and how to avoid them)

Photography isn’t fraught with legal problems, but there are a few mistakes that some photographers make and are worth avoiding. Here are five prime examples.

1 Shooting photos on private land
The legal position may vary around the world, but in the UK you are allowed to take photographs on public land – even if you are photographing a private building. What causes confusion, however, is the fact that large areas of land that many people consider to be public are actually in private ownership.

Shopping malls and even the streets around them are classic examples. The National Trust also owns vast areas of countryside, and although it tolerates photographs being taken for non-commercial purposes, you need permission and have to pay a fee if you want to make money from your images.

While you may be able to get away with taking the odd shot in a shopping mall, you can expect a security guard to ask you to stop if they spot you. However, they have no right to take any of your equipment or ask you to delete the images.

As the owner’s representative, they do have the right to ask you to leave the premises. If you are shooting the shopping mall from public land, they have no right to intervene and if they become a nuisance, the police should be able to help you as they are well-versed in this area of law these days.

SEE MORE: Photographers Rights: the ultimate guide

2 Not respecting people’s privacy
A person’s right to privacy is protected to different degrees across the globe, but if you observe a few underlying principles you should be on safe ground.

For instance, if someone is doing something in a public area then they can reasonably expect to be photographed – especially if they are a celebrity.

If, however, they are in their own home or in a private area away from public gaze, they are taking steps to maintain their privacy and this should be respected. Happily, the days of photographers shinning up a drainpipe to get a salacious shot of a star in a hotel room are gone.

SEE MORE: How to become a professional photographer

3 Claiming copyright
Copyright does not need to be claimed, it is a right that is in place from the moment an image is created. However, copyright or ownership of an image can be transferred to another person or organisation if the photographer wishes to do so.

Photographers who are employed to take photographs of specific things or events are usually bound to an agreement which gives their employer the copyright for any images that they make.

Any images shot by our editorial teams when testing cameras or illustrating features, for example, belong to Future Publishing, our parent company, rather than the individuals.

Using an image without permission is a form of theft and is illegal. Some photographers choose to watermark their images to prevent them from being used illegally.

While this gives some protection, it also spoils the look of any shots on their website or image sharing sites, so many opt to only ever post images at small sizes making sure they are unsuitable for use other than web viewing.

Some people also feel that marking an image with a copyright logo indicates that other non-marked images are not copyrighted.

SEE MORE: How to copyright photos in Lightroom – protect your images in 6 easy steps

4 Not setting up a service agreement
Whenever you take photographs for someone it’s advisable to draw up a service agreement which explains exactly what you will supply and what the client can do with any digital files that you supply.

It should also explain who retains the copyright of the images. This may seem unnecessary when you are ‘just’ taking a few shots of your neighbours children, but if they subsequently create a monstrous montage using their dubious photoshop skills and submit the results to a competition listing you as the photographer, you may wish that you had agreed a few ground rules at the outset.

Clients need to know how many images they will get and what form they will be in. Some photographers only supply prints or albums, and it’s important to make sure that clients know that they will not get digital files that they can use to have cheap prints made.

You should also make it clear to clients that they will not get all the images that you shoot, they may be able to help you with the final selection, but they may see you shoot some that they never see.

The client is not sufficiently able to judge a good image from a poor one and they are not responsible for your reputation – you are.

Other areas that need to be considered within a service agreement include provision of a stylist, make-up artist and/or hair stylish as well who is responsible for liaising with the venue to obtain permission for the shoot.

And don’t forget to detail how and when any payments will be made.

SEE MORE: Wedding photographers – how much should you REALLY charge?

5 Failing to get a model release
Model releases aren’t essential, it depends upon how an image will be used, but it can limit the use of an image at a later stage. It’s usually far easier to get a release signed at the time of the shoot than at a later date, so it’s worth doing if you can.

Even friends can fall out or lose touch and if you’re to get the commercial value that you are due for a cover-worthy image, it’s vital that you have a release.

Model releases aren’t just for commercial shoots, they are also useful to get the full editorial value from an image. An editor looking to illustrate an article about domestic violence, for example, would be wise to steer clear of an image that lacks a model release.

Naturally if you’re street photographer or a photojournalist it’s not usually feasible to get a model release signed, but if you are setting up a shoot, then it makes sense to get the model to sign one, even if you are related.

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