Compensation for website use?

er1kksen · 02-25-2010, 12:26 PM

A friend of mine is taking studying music business, and as part of her course she's being assigned to "manage" the image of a local artist (Tina Marie Williams). So she recruited me to take photos at a show. Discussing details with the prof (who's in charge of the whole thing) prior to the show, he inquired as to what sort of compensation I require for their intended use (display on a website).

I've never done this kind of thing before. What's reasonable to be asking per image? I'd like to at least cover the cost of the fresh set of lithiums I supplied the K-x with for the shoot.

An early crop of samples is here, if the quality of the work has any bearing on the matter: sample gallery. I've been told they like the results a lot so far.

There's a good chance they'll be hiring me again in the future, so I'm looking at this as a definite potential opportunity to start building a revenue base from my photography.

Gaelen · 02-25-2010, 12:51 PM

That's really up to you, I've supplied shots for friends before and just taked a watermark in the corner with my website address so people can contact me. I've also done jobs specific for website use where I was paid a flat fee for the shoot.

If you're looking at is as an opportunity to spread your name around, you might just want to go with a watermark.

Here's a site that I work with, I supply him with images and in turn they splatter my name on the page

CellBlock D - Sideways till the tires are gone!

builttospill · 02-25-2010, 01:06 PM

If this is your first time doing this and you'd like to do it more, call a couple other local photographers and ask them what they'd charge. Base your rate on what you think is fair.

er1kksen · 02-25-2010, 01:37 PM

There really aren't a whole lot of "local photographers" where I'm at.... aside from the college, this is a pretty rural area. That's why I'm asking here.

Doing it just for free isn't a good option right now. I'm between jobs and have to pay the rent somehow...

George Lama · 02-25-2010, 10:27 PM

I'd suggest you think about it carefully as you're dealing with a college project and funds might limited. Also, decide what you value more - trying to squeeze all the money you can out of this gig, or think of it as an investment that could result in more business and offer them a one-time only deal.

Consider the value of your work (your work is good, I like the grit - fits her image nicely) but at the same time consider the situation.

I assume you did the photo session for free, so that's a bonus for them -

Questions I have:

1) How many photos they want to use on the site?

2) Any chance they will want to use it for printed materials as well (posters, flyers)?

3) How about CD covers? These are different pricing typically than promo materials.

4) Will they expect full quality digital files, or web-quality only?

er1kksen · 02-25-2010, 10:35 PM

It's a college project, but the college student end of it is just the simulated "managing." The person who's paying is the owner of a local record label, not a college student, so they're used to dealing with these kinds of things, financially speaking.

So far, I don't know how many photos they want to use. I'm doing another photoshoot for them next week that they're more likely to use for anything like cd covers or printed materials. What I'm really asking here is just what's generally considered a reasonable rate for licensing photo work done for web use, whether single-use or full transfer of copyright. I figure other people do this, right?

George Lama · 02-25-2010, 11:03 PM

It's not that straight-forward though - depends on a few factors.

For example, I did a photo-shoot for a local coffee-shop and my photos were to be used in newspaper advertising and on their website. I didn't charge them to do the shoot, but I charged them a flat fee for the usage of a handful of photos (their choice). In my case, in small-town USA, I charged about $20 per photo because I knew this first job would open the door for more work.

A second shoot was a food-shoot for their menu - I took less photos but the setup was much more involved so instead of charging by the photo, I charged them by the hour of work, $60 an hour plus a minimal usage flat-fee for use in the menu.

These two gigs with the same people resulted in a partnership with a local printer who saw our work plus two other food-shoots coming up soon.

If what you want is specific numbers I'd suggest to go with a flat-fee. Perhaps figure $30 per photo for web-use only. You might have to negotiate with the recording studio.

er1kksen · 02-26-2010, 07:34 AM

Actually, that response was extremely helpful, frogroast. Thanks. I've been working without even a ballpark figure, which is why I've just been wanting to hear some numbers to get a feel for the usual range.

I think I'm probably going to go with a flat fee between $15-30 per photo. I've still got a little while to decide it exactly.

02-25-2010, 12:26 PM	#1
er1kksen Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Forestville, NY Photos: Albums Posts: 1,801	Compensation for website use? A friend of mine is taking studying music business, and as part of her course she's being assigned to "manage" the image of a local artist (Tina Marie Williams). So she recruited me to take photos at a show. Discussing details with the prof (who's in charge of the whole thing) prior to the show, he inquired as to what sort of compensation I require for their intended use (display on a website). I've never done this kind of thing before. What's reasonable to be asking per image? I'd like to at least cover the cost of the fresh set of lithiums I supplied the K-x with for the shoot. An early crop of samples is here, if the quality of the work has any bearing on the matter: sample gallery. I've been told they like the results a lot so far. There's a good chance they'll be hiring me again in the future, so I'm looking at this as a definite potential opportunity to start building a revenue base from my photography.

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02-25-2010, 12:51 PM	#2
Gaelen Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Coquitlam, BC, Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 749	That's really up to you, I've supplied shots for friends before and just taked a watermark in the corner with my website address so people can contact me. I've also done jobs specific for website use where I was paid a flat fee for the shoot. If you're looking at is as an opportunity to spread your name around, you might just want to go with a watermark. Here's a site that I work with, I supply him with images and in turn they splatter my name on the page CellBlock D - Sideways till the tires are gone!

02-25-2010, 01:06 PM	#3
builttospill Pentaxian Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Utah, Idaho Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,398	If this is your first time doing this and you'd like to do it more, call a couple other local photographers and ask them what they'd charge. Base your rate on what you think is fair.

02-25-2010, 01:37 PM	#4
er1kksen Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Forestville, NY Photos: Albums Posts: 1,801 Original Poster	There really aren't a whole lot of "local photographers" where I'm at.... aside from the college, this is a pretty rural area. That's why I'm asking here. Doing it just for free isn't a good option right now. I'm between jobs and have to pay the rent somehow...

02-25-2010, 10:27 PM	#5
George Lama Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Buffalo/Rochester, NY Photos: Albums Posts: 1,133	I'd suggest you think about it carefully as you're dealing with a college project and funds might limited. Also, decide what you value more - trying to squeeze all the money you can out of this gig, or think of it as an investment that could result in more business and offer them a one-time only deal. Consider the value of your work (your work is good, I like the grit - fits her image nicely) but at the same time consider the situation. I assume you did the photo session for free, so that's a bonus for them - Questions I have: 1) How many photos they want to use on the site? 2) Any chance they will want to use it for printed materials as well (posters, flyers)? 3) How about CD covers? These are different pricing typically than promo materials. 4) Will they expect full quality digital files, or web-quality only?

02-25-2010, 10:35 PM	#6
er1kksen Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Forestville, NY Photos: Albums Posts: 1,801 Original Poster	It's a college project, but the college student end of it is just the simulated "managing." The person who's paying is the owner of a local record label, not a college student, so they're used to dealing with these kinds of things, financially speaking. So far, I don't know how many photos they want to use. I'm doing another photoshoot for them next week that they're more likely to use for anything like cd covers or printed materials. What I'm really asking here is just what's generally considered a reasonable rate for licensing photo work done for web use, whether single-use or full transfer of copyright. I figure other people do this, right?

02-25-2010, 11:03 PM	#7
George Lama Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Buffalo/Rochester, NY Photos: Albums Posts: 1,133	It's not that straight-forward though - depends on a few factors. For example, I did a photo-shoot for a local coffee-shop and my photos were to be used in newspaper advertising and on their website. I didn't charge them to do the shoot, but I charged them a flat fee for the usage of a handful of photos (their choice). In my case, in small-town USA, I charged about $20 per photo because I knew this first job would open the door for more work. A second shoot was a food-shoot for their menu - I took less photos but the setup was much more involved so instead of charging by the photo, I charged them by the hour of work, $60 an hour plus a minimal usage flat-fee for use in the menu. These two gigs with the same people resulted in a partnership with a local printer who saw our work plus two other food-shoots coming up soon. If what you want is specific numbers I'd suggest to go with a flat-fee. Perhaps figure $30 per photo for web-use only. You might have to negotiate with the recording studio.

02-26-2010, 07:34 AM	#8
er1kksen Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Forestville, NY Photos: Albums Posts: 1,801 Original Poster	Actually, that response was extremely helpful, frogroast. Thanks. I've been working without even a ballpark figure, which is why I've just been wanting to hear some numbers to get a feel for the usual range. I think I'm probably going to go with a flat fee between $15-30 per photo. I've still got a little while to decide it exactly.