Pet Photography/Release Form Help!?

L

Leland

New member
I'm looking to take pictures of other animals bar my own and family members. I won't be charging for this because I'm no where near good enough but I DO want to be able to have full copyright over them. So that I can use them for whatever I want etc.
I know animals don't necessarily need a release form like we would but i'd like to create one anyway, just to cover myself. I've done some research but can't seem to find anything useful.
Does anyone have a template for this or have any helpful input they can give me?
Thanks =)
I maybe should of said that i've asked owners to contact me if they would be willing to let me take photographs of their pets either at their own home or in public (ie, woods, parks etc).
I am also aware that I don't need a release form for my own pets...
Thanks for your answers, though =)
 
Release forms for objects are similar to those for people, except that you must specify what it is that you have photographed, who is the owner, and that this person by their signature below grants you the right of ownership of the copyright of the picture made of that object on such-and-such a date, at such-and-such city, etc., and that you have the right to use this photograph "with or without further notice."

If you are just going up and photographing where the object owner did NOT hire you to do so, then you might want to include a sentence that says "...in return for compensation of ___________", indicating that YOU paid THEM for the shot. The compensation you write in the blank might be "one dollar and other valuable consideration(s)," and you actually give them a dollar (or a print), thus establishing that you have PAID for the ownership right. You also state that "Object owner acknowledges by their signature below receipt of said compensation" to nail it shut. Of the two, I suggest the dollar, because it doesn't take any time to process and return. You can still give them a "free" print as a goodwill gesture.

In many cases, you will not need a release. For instance, I recently made a picture of some horses in a pasture from the road beyond the fence. While horses have no "expectation of privacy," and since there was certainly no pretense of privacy in this case since the view was available to anyone who stood on the public thoroughfare, I don't think I need to go through what would be a herculean effort to locate the owner for a release. Bottom line? Don't seek one unless you need it.

When do you need it? Get one if you have to invade the owner's sphere of influence to get the shot, or if you will be using the picture for sale to another, or if the shot will do something like identify the object to the public, such as if you used a picture of their house in an advertisement.

As for friends and family? I would still get a written release. CYA. For more definitive information, see your attorney.
 
Release forms for objects are similar to those for people, except that you must specify what it is that you have photographed, who is the owner, and that this person by their signature below grants you the right of ownership of the copyright of the picture made of that object on such-and-such a date, at such-and-such city, etc., and that you have the right to use this photograph "with or without further notice."

If you are just going up and photographing where the object owner did NOT hire you to do so, then you might want to include a sentence that says "...in return for compensation of ___________", indicating that YOU paid THEM for the shot. The compensation you write in the blank might be "one dollar and other valuable consideration(s)," and you actually give them a dollar (or a print), thus establishing that you have PAID for the ownership right. You also state that "Object owner acknowledges by their signature below receipt of said compensation" to nail it shut. Of the two, I suggest the dollar, because it doesn't take any time to process and return. You can still give them a "free" print as a goodwill gesture.

In many cases, you will not need a release. For instance, I recently made a picture of some horses in a pasture from the road beyond the fence. While horses have no "expectation of privacy," and since there was certainly no pretense of privacy in this case since the view was available to anyone who stood on the public thoroughfare, I don't think I need to go through what would be a herculean effort to locate the owner for a release. Bottom line? Don't seek one unless you need it.

When do you need it? Get one if you have to invade the owner's sphere of influence to get the shot, or if you will be using the picture for sale to another, or if the shot will do something like identify the object to the public, such as if you used a picture of their house in an advertisement.

As for friends and family? I would still get a written release. CYA. For more definitive information, see your attorney.
 
Back
Top