Release Needed?

When I started doing photography professionally, the role in which a model release played in terms of the work I do was never very clear. There had always been questions about when/if I needed to have a signed model release to use pictures in my portfolio, on the web site, on the blog, etc. Photographer friends I have disagreed on what the rules were and we all know there's a lot of really bad information floating around on the interwebs. Even lawyers who say they "specialize" in this disagree with each other. If you go to any web forum on the subject, you'll find a variety of answers. 

Finally I decided to read a book dedicated to this very subject. I feel like now I have a pretty clear understanding about what the law says in terms of the work I do, but I’m certainly no expert. The two areas I'm going to discuss are 1. where and who are you allowed to photograph and 2. is a release needed to show examples of your work? There can be a variety of answers to both questions depending on the exact circumstances.

Personal Use

The whole question of when and where a picture can be taken is constantly being challenged. The law states that you can take a photo of anyone in a public place. That is to say the subject is out in public with no reasonable expectation of privacy.  People walking down the street or playing in a public park can all be photographed without consent. I DO NOT recommend walking up to a random person and shoving a camera in their face, but photographing the public is perfectly legal. Whats more, you are allowed to make prints, share with friends are post them to your personal web site. This is called personal use.

That means that if I have a personal blog and I want to include an entry about some street musicians I saw playing on the corner, I can post their picture without their permission. Again, I don’t recommend doing this...it’s always a good idea to get at least a verbal “ok” in situations like that. You don’t want to be known in your town as the guy/girl that sneaks photos of people when they’re in a public place and unaware. ESPECIALLY kids. 

It’s important to be smart about this. Don’t stick your camera in places it really shouldn’t be. If you’re a man and you go to a public park and start taking photos of children, you’re asking for trouble. Legal though it may be, the public won’t appreciate it and probably won’t tolerate it either. Use your head!

Commercial Use

Commercial use simply means using someone’s image to help promote a product or idea. Whether or not the owner is getting paid for it, the person in the photo has to approve this type of usage. For that, most photographers will ask for a signed model release. 

There are many other laws regarding usage of photos, licensing etc. but I only picked the two that I thought would affect the most people. It’s also important to remember that circumstances of any of these situations may affect what is technically allowed. I recommend the book, A Digital Photographers Guide to Model Releases by Dan Heller for more in depth info.