Permission to use photography – what you need to know

Commissioning photography of your projects can allow you to promote your work in many different ways, and is well worth the cost. But if you commission images, it is essential to understand the law of copyright and to have the correct permissions in place from the start in order to use the photos, or send them to someone else to use like a magazine, PR agency, or the BIID, for example.

Get it wrong and you can end up paying for the unauthorised use you have made of any photograph. You could even face legal action which could entail paying for using a photo as well as the court costs. Equally, it’s also essential that you haven’t compromised a client’s privacy by failing to gain consent for using the photos in the way you want to. 

Think copyright and client permission when commissioning any photography to avoid problems further down the line.
 

Client permission

Before commissioning photography you need to be sure that your client gives permission for the uses to which you want to put the images. For instance, the client may not want their home shown in a magazine or to be used as part of marketing material.

The rule you should follow? Always get permission from the client in full and in writing from the offset.
 

Working with photographers

If you’re commissioning a photographer, be aware of the law of copyright. The images your photographer creates are protected by copyright with consequences you must understand.

The creator of an image is the first owner of the copyright in that image. Typically, that means the photographer you have engaged although if an image is created by someone as part of their employment rather than a freelance photographer, the employer generally owns the copyright.

The reason this is important is that it is only the copyright owner who can give permission to reproduce the image in any form. You cannot share an image with others, put it on your website, post it on social media, put it into marketing material, use it in a magazine and so on without this permission. 

Of course, you’ve commissioned the images because you want to use them in any of these ways or others, and there are two options that allow you to do so. The first is that you could ask the photographer to transfer (assign) copyright. Be mindful that a photographer is unlikely to agree to this for a number of reasons and, even if he/she did so, they’d want to agree a fee separate from that paid for the original commission. That could make it a costly option.

Instead, the usual practice is for a photographer to license use of the work for a fee. This provides permission to use the copyright work on certain conditions and for a specific period. The licence should be agreed as part of a written and signed contract with the photographer, and it should cover all of the uses to which you might want to put the images. 

Note that it is also important to pay attention to any stipulations in the contract about crediting the photographer when the images are used as you must follow these. Let other parties such as magazines or PR agencies know about them if they will be reproducing the images in print or online so they can credit the photographer as agreed, too. 
 

Commission photography confidently

Failing to gain all the necessary permissions to use photography can mean missed opportunities, added costs, or even legal consequences. 

BIID PR agency Wildwood Plus told us: ‘Once a project is completed, the photography provides the opportunity to show off an interior designer’s work in a multitude of ways. When working with a photographer, we recommend paying a flat rate to the photographer to purchase full image rights in perpetuity, for personal, business or commercial purposes. This will then allow for the photography to be used across websites, print, advertising, marketing, presentations, social media, etc. This gives the interior designer the opportunity to gain as much recognition for their hard work as possible. It is also important to check the full terms of the licence and agreement between you and the photographer, including credit requests. If this is something you have agreed, you should always include it in the captioning/credit of your images to ensure you’re meeting the conditions of the contract.’
 

Find more about digital images, photographs and the internet in the copyright notice from the Intellectual Property Office. 

Get advice on styling for photography you’ve commissioned