I want to start this chapter with a disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. While I think it is important to cover some of the basics, you are advised to seek legal council specific to the region where you will be working before embarking on any shoot—especially one involving a nude or semi-nude model.
Seek legal council specific to the region where you will be working . . .
As noted previously, it is important to establish the age and identity of your model by making a copy of her identification. I require two forms of ID, one of which must be a photo ID (and I prefer it if both are). A driver’s license, passport, or other officially issued document will work. I shoot a RAW image of each of these documents and keep the files in my permanent records.
With the paperwork out of the way, you can focus on the session without worries about future problems.
While requiring ID has always been a good idea, since the passage of 18 US 2257 legislation, designed to protect minors from sexual exploitation, it is a must. The law is hazy about where and when 2257 paperwork is specifically required, so I err on the side of caution and have documentation signed by every model I shoot. Even if the images are “just a test shoot” or “just for your boyfriend,” if I am shooting you, you have to sign a 2257 form. This goes for males and females, clothed or unclothed.
For some reason, many photographers don’t want to do this. The most common push-back photographers give is, “But this is a trade or free shoot.” Even so, what does it hurt to document the model’s age? It takes just a few minutes and can prevent a lot of headaches down the road. For example, what will happen in two years if someone wants to buy those images? Many companies will not even accept submissions for publication without seeing the model’s ID first. (And tracking down a model to get her ID two years after the shoot is often difficult.)
Other photographers say, “Oh, it’s no big deal. Women here show off their bodies all the time.” I live in Las Vegas, where it’s not uncommon to see topless women at the pools and girls walking around in thong bikinis at most hotels or out on the strip. Females show their bodies without much worry. However, people in more conservative areas of the country might not have the same community standards. A topless girl at their local pool might get arrested. This is another reason I err on the side of caution and get that 2257 paperwork out of the way.
Because the 2257 law covers the recording of “sexually explicit” images, some photographers say, “I’m not shooting anything sexually explicit.” Well, if the Supreme Court can’t define what is or isn’t obscene, then you can’t either—and you shouldn’t even try. Keep in mind that “sexually explicit” has nothing to do with “nude.” If you spend any amount of time on Google, you can find countless sexual fetish sites. On many of them, the models don’t get naked—but these are certainly sexually explicit images (at least to someone with that fetish).
if the Supreme Court can’t define what is or isn’t obscene, then you can’t either—and you shouldn’t even try.
You would be shocked at the number of experienced nude models who tell me they have never had to sign any paperwork. Why would any photographer take that risk?
If you talk to ten different lawyers you will get twenty different answers about what a model release is and how it should be created.
I created the image. So what does that mean? From the second I click the shutter, I am the copyright holder of that image (unless someone hired and paid me). I own the image and I can do whatever I want with that image. However, if the person in the image I have created is identifiable and I publish that image, I can open myself up to civil lawsuits. If the model publishes that image without my permission (as the copyright holder), that opens up her to lawsuits as well.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
—Benjamin Franklin
To be safe and clear, my model release covers just about everything under the sun. The basics of mine are:
1. The model’s name and my name.
2. Statement that I own the copyright.
3. Statement that I can distribute the images however I want.
4. Notice that the model doesn’t have image approval (I have final say over how the images should look).
5. Disclaimer that if the model is hurt by my work, she can’t come after me for damages.
6. Statement that model gives her full consent to freely allow me to do what I want with the images.
7. Statement that the model has or will give me verbal refusal regarding anything she doesn’t want to do.
8. List of other names the model has used (married/maiden names, stage names, etc.).
There are also some other items specific to the area where I live (you should check to see what’s required in your area), but overall that is what my model release covers.
Time for Prints (TFP) Agreement
Time-for-prints (TFP) shoots are common in this industry, allowing photographers and models to create images for their promotional purposes without money changing hands. According to my agreement, we can use the images to promote ourselves as much as we want—but if either of us has an opportunity to sell the images, we must contact the other party first and split the profits upon the completion of the sale.
My TFP agreement form states that I own the copyright (and all other rights) to the images, then lists what I plan to do with the images. It also grants the model a license to use the images for non-commercial purposes, including trade shows cards, business cards, zed cards, printed materials promoting the model, and non-paying photography/modeling web sites. The form also notes how I should be credited and how the model should be credited when images are used for these purposes. (Models often use a different name for nude work, so it’s important to know and use this “stage name.”)
I really don’t know many other photographers who use TFP agreements—but, again, I like having things explained as clearly as possible. It really helps when everyone is on the same page.
When I hire another photographer or videographer to work on a shoot, I have them sign a release that gives me the copyright to all the images created on that job—work they have done for a fee. Additionally, I have a location release in my files. Some of the companies I work with require a property release, stating I have secured the proper permission to use the location that appears in their images.