5 Things You Need to Ask When Hiring a Professional Photographer

Do you shoot digital or film?

Don’t laugh. Some photographers still shoot film and love it. While digital is now the standard of photography, don’t forget to ask which medium they will be using and make sure it’s what you want.

Digitals, prints or both?

“I only want digitals” is something I hear a lot from clients.  Some only want digital files because they are easy to share with many people at one time.  On the flipside, many photographers rely on print sales for income, so they may offer a combination of both.  Digital negatives are equivalent to film negatives and in the past, a client would never ask the photographer for all of their negatives but expected to get prints only. That doesn’t mean a photographer won’t sell you digital negatives, but it will be more expensive to purchase than a printed image. Be sure to ask if you will be getting digitals negatives, physical prints or both.

Do I need to sign a contract?

Absolutely. Do not hire a photographer without signing a contract specifying the particulars (i.e. how much is the session fee, what’s included, is a deposit required, etc.). Always get everything in writing. I don’t care how great or small the job, get it in writing! It’s a protection for the client and the photographer. If someone does me a favor, then I’m relaxed on the contract as I have already decided to give them the digital negatives with no strings attached.  I do have them sign a model release so I can use the photos for future marketing material and even that release specifies the terms and conditions of the photographs they receive and who retains copyright.

Speaking of which…

Who owns the copyright?

Just because it’s a picture of you doesn’t mean you, the customer, owns the copyright to the photo. The Copyright Act of 1790 states that the ownership of an image is retained by the person who created it. Therefore, unless you have a work-for-hire agreement, you do not own the images. You are licensing the images. Copyright stays with the photographer, except if you’re a monkey. Read more.

Retouching photos

After you purchase your digital negatives, are you allowed to alter the images? Ninety-nine percent of photographers will say no.  People hire photographers because they like their style of work and altering an image or making edits to it violates the photographer’s reputation.  A customer’s artistic vision will be different from that of the professional photographer who has spent years perfecting their craft. Before making any edits to images, ask what their policy is and then respect it.