EstherSP Offline Upload & Sell: Off
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Sources for contracts and general advice for business? | |
The main thing to keep in mind with contracts is that ultimately they are only as good as you and your clients word, as most do not have the resources to pursue legal recourse (with lawyers eating up money). If you don't trust the organization or your individual contact, then a lot of times it's better to just walk away from the job.
That said, a few resources that are always super helpful are www.aphotoeditor.com, and ASMP and PPA both have some decent templates. One approach I like to take with contracts is to have a base contract that doesn't change much from engagement to engagement. Should include legalese identifying you as the photographer, client as client, payment details, and basic usage (typically just stating web usage for your base contract is fine), copyright, indemnification, release of liability.
I find that 4 out of 5 situations, that base contract is sufficient for things like headshots, family portraits, weddings, and most non-commercial usage. Then for the instances where you need print usage language, you add bullets or sub-bullets under the existing usage section, etc.
You should also be putting just as much rigor into your estimating process, as I think that's the area where most photographers screw up as they're learning (I certainly did). What makes it harder is understanding the differences between estimating and building contracts for everyone from private individuals, to non-profits, to small businesses, to larger regional businesses, to enterprise, government, etc.
Hope that helps!
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