Business

In Part One of this series, we discussed some of the basics of insurance, why we need it, and where to begin your search for a business policy. Armed with this foundational knowledge, we are ready to delve into much more specific topics to assist in your search for a policy or review of your existing coverage.

As businesses cautiously but optimistically resume operations, many are posting notices or asking customers to sign a COVID-19 waiver. Given the proactive stance many businesses are taking to shield themselves from liability, how do the potential legal implications of COVID-19 affect us as photographers? Do you need a coronavirus waiver to protect your business? Would such a document even stand up in court?

Business Insurance: Part One

As I write this, locales throughout the world are in varying degrees of “stay-at-home” orders to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of us are able to continue working, at least in a limited capacity, while others have found ourselves with time to catch up on housekeeping items like bookkeeping and copyright registrations.

The architectural photography community is spread thin across the world, yet we are a close-knit community brought together by the internet and our shared love of photographing homes, businesses, art, and design. Currently, there is little to no data available related to the way we operate and the most frequent questions that we receive on APAlmanac relate to how people across the world run their businesses and what they can do to improve their own businesses.

My guess is that almost every photographer and creative has probably come across a client that’s either tried to lowball them or just couldn’t afford them. These situations can be tough, especially if you’re just starting out in the industry. In my experience I’ve made a mess of a few negotiations but, these things come with time and experience.

Beloved British Baking Show Contestant YouTuber Tom Scott is known for his short, humorous, informational videos covering everything from sending garlic bread into space to navigating the interior of the brain with neurosurgeons. In one of his most ambitious projects to date, Tom Scott tackles a topic that is close to the hearts of every artist: copyright.

There are two categories of photographers in the world—those whose work has been infringed, and those whose work will be infringed. Sooner or later, it’s almost certain that it will happen to you. You’ll be casually scrolling through your social media feeds, or maybe researching a potential client’s website, when suddenly, you pause in disbelief as the reality sets in: your work has been used without your prior knowledge or permission.

I photograph a lot of homes for a lot of different clients with a lot of different end uses for those photographs. While in a perfect world I’d get a photo credit every time my work was submitted, sometimes that doesn’t happen and it’s up to me to get it fixed. Whether or not you think photo credit is important (it is, don’t @ me), you should always have any errors or omissions in credit resolved as soon as you can.

I think it’s safe to say that the current pandemic sucks for everyone involved. Short of toilet paper manufacturers, pretty much everyone on planet earth is dealing with ramifications and fallout of the ongoing…issue. A few days ago I asked a group of photographer colleagues how they were being impacted, and received a wide range of responses and opinions.

San Francisco photographer Peter Lyons has been working all over the Bay Area for years now, and since the advent of cameras using built-in GPS, he’s geo-tagged nearly every photo he’s taken. Peter recently shared a screen shot of his work history and I was blown away.

As far as I’m concerned, Peter embodies the image of a classic working photographer.

A scout is an integral part of the architectural photography process, but one mistake I see a lot of photographers making is that they agree to a scout before they are in contract to complete the shoot. It’s gone pear-shaped on me enough that I implemented a policy requiring a deposit before any scouting takes place; here’s why.

Although we’re required to wear many hats as photographers, we tend to think of ourselves as artists first, treating other roles as secondary, with sales often regarded as only an afterthought. The truth is that we are, first and foremost, salespeople. Photography is our trade—sales is our business.

Over the years I’ve had the great fortune of befriending many very talented photographers from around the world; I’ve also come to have an obsession with all things British thanks to binging episodes of Grand Designs and Top Gear. Consider me another American British Fetishist, I suppose.

It seems near-constantly that we are asked for ‘all rights’ to the photographs, or to own them in ‘perpetuity’ for some reason or another, but a recent e-mail exchange I was a part of presented a perfect opportunity to share one way I ensure my clients have the license they need while at the same time not giving in to overreach and a loss of image rights.