Why offering "Free" isn't always a bad idea...

[evader]

Sorry this is so long...just thought I would share a different side of "giving away your photo's"...

Earlier this year I was approached by a tourism organization wanting to purchase some of my photo's to use in their tourist guide. Being fairly new to photography and only doing it really as a hobby I had no idea what to charge. I did some quick looking around online...including here at DPS and quickly realized that selling your photo's cheap or giving them away for "recognition" is frowned upon (to put it nicely).
While I understood where most people were coming from I have to be honest...I was just pretty excited that someone wanted to publish some of my photo's. They ended up purchasing 10 of them with limited rights (learned all about that here at DPS) for $20 each. I know that's not a lot but I'll be honest I probably would have let them have them for free if they had asked...I just thought it was cool that they wanted them.

Fast forward to about a month ago. I get an email from another tourism organization inviting me and 10 other photographers to a meeting with them. This tourism organization is a big one that has received a government grant to completely re-do their tourism marketing campaign. So they are starting by building a new photo bank and because of time constraints (focus is on Fall photo's) one of the prerequisites for being invited to bid on the photography job is having already done work for one of the local tourism associations (see above).

So, they need us to put together a bid for doing the job that includes a "day rate" for shooting. So, of course I log onto DPS to ask some questions about pricing for "day rate" jobs. One of the stipulations in the contract is that the tourism organization will own all rights to all photo's taken. After asking my questions here on DPS the majority of replies were "do not ever give up the rights to your photos". I explained that, that is what the contract calls for...they will pay me a day rate but they will own the rights to all photo's. Again I was told "don't give up rights to your photo's"...I was even told to not bid on the job at all...I think I was even called an idiot...

I didn't listen...I did bid on the job and giving up exclusive rights to the photo's didn't really bother me because that is what I was being hired to do.
Anyways...I ended up getting hired (along with 7 other photographers) to get done what they wanted to get done (Fall photo's). I bid enough so that one day of shooting would make me enough to purchase the new lens I want. They ended up hiring me for 4 days worth of shooting.

I finished my shooting on Friday and today I got an email offering me a contract to do Winter, Spring and Summer photo's for their photo bank as well. All said and done I will make almost $40,000 for 12 - 14 days worth of shooting...all because I practically gave away some of my photo's to that original tourism organization and because I wasn't bothered by the fact that someone wanted to have exclusive rights to the photo's they were hiring me to take.

That's an extra $40,000 in my pocket...if that makes me an idiot...I'm ok with that

[nickbedford]

I wouldn't be passing up $40,000 for only 12-14 days of shooting!

I personally would see this as a way to set yourself up with a bunch of great lenses, lighting and studio gear of your own and to get a great portfolio and website together and still having a great deal left to support yourself.

14 days of photos is little when you have years and years to get them back with the professional gear you could afford. It would lead to even better opportunities.

I personally say go for it.

[Niresangwa]

If you'd argued and kept the rights to the images you could have made $120,000

seriously though, good on you! go buy a corvette or something!

[IainM]

Nice one. And I don't think giving the rights for your photos up is a bad thing at all, in fact in that particular situation I'd say it was entirely fair of them to keep all rights.

If I was an industrial designer doing a job for a company my design would belong to them, after, that is the product they are paying for - the intellectual product.

Well done to you, I am most definitely jealous.

[scootermcq]

Evader..... that's awsome!!! Now, if you worked 260 days a year like most 9-5 jobs, that's almost 3/4 of a million a year!!

Not a bad investment of your inital images!!

[MrJones]

wow! good for you
I love the story and I don't think "keeping the rights" is a MUST. do what ever fits you, and only you.

[OsmosisStudios]

Congrats and all, but...

Recognize the fact that you're not the majority. Your not even close. Your the extraordinarily rare exception. And, of course, you don't have the rights to the photos nor the ability to re-sell them to another client in the future, which would quite literally double your money.

The general recommendation, as noted in other threads, is a limited use rights agreement, or even a temporarily exclusive use rights. But full-on giving up the rights is, as you mentioned, practically idiotic.

[Jim Bryant]

You're either one damn fool or lucky. Glad you're making so much cash, but think of how much you could have made by selling them only limited rights. And you're getting paid in Canadian currency right? Anyways.........have fun and take outstanding photos.

[Jim Poor]

I just don't know, I make 1/8 of that in two good days of event shooting. So, that puts us in about the same category of earnings for about the same amount of days. The catch is, that I also make about 50% more than that on re-sales, publication, and other licensing.

Mind you, I don't actively seek any publication or image licensing, so if I were to start, that would likely end up in another 50% or better income on images already taken.

If it's worth it to you, then great, but you haven't really thought it through.

Don't forget that the 40K will turn into 38K or so before you even see it.
Are they also paying for your gas, lodging, equipment, insurance?

[sk66]

Congrats!

One thing that is kind of being missed I think is that this contract was fixed and being put out for bid... Someone was going to take the job if you didn't... Add to that you are getting paid a day rate, not per image. You could easily be getting $40k for pictures you would have a very hard time selling on a 1 by 1 basis. Could you have made more by keeping the rights? Maybe... Would you have? Not likely.

It would be a bit different if you could have negotiated the rights clause...(I would have at least asked about keeping usage rights for yourself)
Basically you took a job as an "employee" taking pics for a living (or a "work made for hire" contract)...The "employer" owns the pics and rights to them automatically. Not a bad thing really if you are making acceptable money.
I'm sure many would love to be in your position...