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DPChallenge Forums >> Photography Discussion >> advice on diplomacy etc
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 10/05/2006 12:48:09 AM · #1
Hi all,

Wanted to get input on a relatively benign, but potentially fruitful little situation I have.

I've recently been allowed onto a film set (through a connection with one of the crew workers) to take photos. It's not big Hollywood biz, but not tiny either. I was allowed on the condition that I wouldn't publish any of the photos I take. Fine. The friend who got me in suggested it might be nice for me to take photos of the crew at work as the higher ups might be interested in having them later. (I was personally there to take photos of other inanimate things I found interesting). So I took a bunch of photos of filming in progress... mostly of the crew and only the cast in background.

Upon my request my friend has asked the artistic director if she'd be interested in seeing the photos. She has asked for a CD.

Soo.... the question I'm putting to you is not whether I send full-size photos or not. I will be resizing to relatively small (600X400? suggestions are welcomed). The thing I'm wondering about is how to diplomatically relate to her if she DOES want photos. I wouldn't mind doing actual 'work' this way... go out to film shoots and take candids of the crew and if she really likes my stuff then I don't think that would be out of the question. Also, I want to get across that if she wants to publish any of the photos herself there would be a fee of some sort. This is where it's tricky. To be honest, the photos mean next to nothing to me (other than the recording of an experience) so if it would secure me a connection I'd be happy to give them without payment, but with a simple acknowledgement. On the other hand, if it won't secure me anything for the future I wouldn't mind being compensated financially.

Kind of a tricky one... any advice? (Do ask questions if I wasn't completely clear.)

Thanks in advance!

M
 10/05/2006 01:02:32 AM · #2
I understand that you want

1. some kind of work flow from the artistic director/film studio, in which case you will happily give them the CD for free as a loss leader.

OR

2. if no future work will be forthcoming, money for use of the images.

This is pretty much a commercial decision that you will have to take, based on all the circumstances.

You could provide a CD with 640x480, or watermarked originals (but be reasonably subtle about it). Accompany it with a note saying asking the director if she would like any high res originals and in the same note, whether she might be interested in arranging for you to come to more film sets.

You might get lucky, and she might indicate what your prospects are at the same time as asking for some high res originals or prints.

If you don't get lucky, you will have to make a choice.

10/05/2006 01:42:34 AM · #3
At risk of speaking outside of my realm of experience... I would think that an artistic director in a non-trivial-budget movie would be quite used to commercial arrangements for photographers. They are not your typical myspace generation person who thinks "it's out there, so I can use it however I want", and they know that if they got their studio into copyright trouble then they'd have problems finding work again in the industry.
10/05/2006 11:04:48 PM · #4
Thanks very much for your thoughts... any other input would be welcomed.
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