A release is a written agreement between you and the person you are photographing, or the person who owns the property you are photographing. The purpose of the release is to protect you from any future lawsuits the person might file for claims such as defamation and invasion of privacy.

A model release says the person being photographed has given consent to be photographed and to the use of the images you capture. It doesn’t just apply to professional models or situations where people know they are posing for photos. You should seek to get a signed model release any time that your photos contain recognizable images of people, unless you are certain that you will never want to use them for anything other than editorial purposes.

A property release says that the owner of a certain property, such as a pet or a building, has given you consent to take and use images of the property. You don’t need one for public property, such as government buildings (although you may run into problems just from photographing them, for security reasons). But for images of private property — and particularly of objects that are closely identified with specific people — you are safer if you get a release.

The releases you obtain should be saved forever and should be linked in some way with the photographs to which they relate. You can expect to be asked to produce them whenever you license an image, and you will need them if you ever have to defend yourself in court.

The Right of Privacy

Although the laws of the 50 states vary, all states recognize that individuals have a right to be let alone in their daily lives and that harm (in the form of embarrassment, scorn or loss of status) can result if that right is violated.

However, the right of privacy is not absolute. In particular, the courts have long held that news reporting and social, political and economic commentary — the things the First Amendment was designed to protect — are more valuable to society than an individual’s right to be let alone. Therefore, images that are part of the public colloquy about events have usually been exempt from privacy lawsuits. In contrast, the courts have generally held that making money is distinctly less valuable to society than the right to be let alone.

Thus, privacy issues typically arise when an image is used for purposes of trade or advertising. That is, it’s not the picture, but how it is used that determines the need for a release. For instance, an image that is printed in a newspaper, shown in an exhibition or reproduced in a book might well be immune from a privacy suit. But the commercial sale of coffee mugs or t-shirts with the same image would probably not enjoy such protection. An advertisement almost certainly would not be immune.

Therefore, if you are on an advertising assignment, you will need to collect releases from every person in your shots. News assignments are a little trickier. You are always better off if you have permission to photograph your subjects and can prove it. But it’s not always possible to get permission and, in the U.S., you can report the news without it. Lacking a release, however, you are limited in how you can license the image later on.

These days, even editorial clients are requiring releases — and releases using their specific forms — with more and more frequency, so you need to check the terms of your agreements with your clients and stock houses to see what is required.

The Right of Publicity

In an increasing number of states (California in particular), a famous individual has an additional “right of publicity”: the right to control how his fame can be exploited for commercial purposes. Unlike rights of privacy, which die with the persons to whom they belong, rights of publicity survive their owners and can be passed along for generations. Rights of publicity also tend to be more specific in their prohibitions than rights of privacy.

Attorney Andrew Berger offers a more in-depth explanation of this right, with examples, on the Editorial Photographers web site.

For photographers and their clients, the right of publicity can become a problem when people become celebrities after you have taken their picture. It can especially be a problem with crowd scenes.

Defamation

A defamation lawsuit alleges that a person has been portrayed falsely or maliciously in such a way as to damage his reputation. (The term “defamation” includes both slander, which is spoken, and libel, which is published in some tangible medium.) The falsity may be direct, such as by compositing several images to depict a scene that did not happen, or indirect, such as advertising a rehabilitation clinic with a picture of someone who has never been a patient there. As always, there is a distinction between commercial use and editorial use, with commercial uses being held to stricter standards of truthfulness.

Property owners’ rights

Privacy and defamation cannot apply to objects (although defamation can apply to business entities). Things — cars, buildings, statuary, costumes, animals, etc. — don’t have legal rights. But the people who are closely associated with those objects do have rights and could claim that your photo of their property has caused harm. This is a tricky area of law, with few precedents to guide us. We discuss property releases in more detail on a separate page. In general, though, we advocate following the cautious rule, “When in doubt, try to get a release.”

Why we take this seriously

Most of the time, you take your pictures, everybody gets paid and that’s the end of it. Once in a while, though, things can go very wrong.

An article in the Los Angeles Times for Feb. 1, 2005 (no longer available online) described how Nestlé got slapped with a $15 million jury award because it used a model’s picture without taking care of the paperwork. In this case, there was no blame on the photographer; rather, the client (Nestlé) was accused of failing to pay all the fees that were specified in the model’s contract. But the size of the verdict shows that juries do take model’s rights very seriously.

The passage of time doesn’t necessarily reduce your risk. In the Nov. 22, 1999, edition of the New York Observer, an article relates that Peter Beard was threatened with a lawsuit for a photo he’d taken a dozen years earlier. In 1987, Beard had photographed a 17-year-old girl near Lake Rudolph in Kenya. But by 1997, that girl had moved to Los Angeles, where she was waiting tables and looking for work as a model. A New York friend called to tell her that a SoHo gallery was selling her picture for thousands of dollars. She reacted by hiring a lawyer and demanding $50,000 plus 15 percent of Beard’s sales. (It appears that the matter was settled out of court, so we don’t know what really happened.)

Although a common subject your sun rise/set shot can be different each time you shoot. Atmospheric conditions including weather and pollution can add dramatic beauty to your work. Here are some tips to help you capture interesting and beautiful images:

Think Ahead

While sometimes wonderful sunrise and sunset shots can be taken spontaneously without any forethought it’s often the case that the best ones come out of planning. Explore locations for good sunsets a day or two before your shoot. Look for interesting places where you can see the sun track all the way down but where there will be opportunities for shots like foreground elements and silhouettes. Sunsets only take half an hour or so you want to think about these elements before they start or you might miss the shots you’re after.

Find out when the sun will set or rise and get there at least half an hour before hand as it’s often in the lead up to and the time after the sun appears or disappears that the real magic happens.

Keep an eye on the weather also. There are a variety of different types of sunsets that produce a range of different types of lights and patterns in the sky. Don’t just go for clear days for these shots – while they can produce some wonderful colors it’s usually the times where there is cloud around that the real action happens! Also be aware of days when there is dust or smoke in the air as they can produce amazing results also. Consider ahead of time what equipment you might need. Include a tripod, lenses that will give you a range of focal lengths, extra batteries etc.

Composition Techniques

Shoot at a variety of focal lengths – wide angle can create sweeping landscape shots but if you want the sun to be a feature of the shot you’ll want to be able to zoom right in. Keep in mind that the sun is just half a degree across so when you shoot with a wide lens it will only be taking up a reasonably small part of the photo. If you want it to be a feature of your shot you’ll need to zoom in on it using anything from a 200mm lens upwards. This will increase your need for a tripod!

Also be aware that when you look at the sun at the best of times it can be dangerous but when you look through a magnifying lens it can be quite dangerous is the sun is still too high in the sky.

Silhouettes as focal points – As with all photos, sunsets need a point of interest and one of the best ways to add one to a picture is to try to incorporate some sort of Silhouette into the shot. This could be something large like a mountain range, something that is part of the environment like a palm tree or a pier or could even be a person. The great thing about silhouettes is that they add mood and context to a sunset or sunrise shot. I’ll write more on silhouettes in a future article.

Rule of Thirds – Remember the rule of thirds in your photographing of sunrises and sunsets. While you can always break the rule it’s often a good idea to place elements like the horizon, sun, silhouettes etc off center.

Exposure Techniques

Shoot at a variety of exposures – if you let your camera decide what shutter lengths to shoot at you’re likely to get a shot that doesn’t really capture the beauty of the light. Quite often the shot will be under exposed because the sky is still reasonably light. Instead of relying upon the camera’s auto mode a sunset is an ideal time to switch your camera into aperture or shutter priority mode and to take a variety of shots at different exposures.

The great thing about sunsets and sunrises is that there is no one ‘right’ exposure and that you can get stunning results using a variety of them. Also keep in mind that different exposures (aperture and shutter speeds) will produce a variety of different results so it’s worth taking more than just a few shots – the key is to experiment. I tend to switch into shutter priority mode and start with a relatively quick shutter speed and then slowly work down to slower ones.

Bracketing – Another technique to try to get the right exposure is ‘bracketing’ where you look at what the camera suggests you take the picture at and then take a few shots at both under and over that mark. i.e. if your camera says to shoot at 1/60th of a second at f/8 you would shoot off a shot at 1/60 at f/5.6 and then at f/11. In doing so you end up with a series of shots at different exposures which will all give you slightly different results and colors. Most DSLR’s and some point and shoot digital cameras have a built in bracketing feature so you don’t need to do this manually – learn how to use it!

Auto Exposure Lock – Another exposure trick, if you don’t have a bracketing mode or don’t feel confident in using it is if your camera has ‘auto exposure lock’ which allows you to point your camera at a darker place and lock in exposure for that spot (i.e. you could point it at the ground in front of you and lock in that exposure) and then reframe the picture looking at the sunset. This will mean you get a more over exposed shot.

Experiment with White balance settings – when you set your camera to ‘Auto’ in its white balance mode you run the risk of losing some of the warm golden tones of a sunrise or sunset. Instead try shooting in ‘cloudy’ or ’shade’ which are usually used in cooler lights and tell your camera to warm things up a little. Alternatively – if you’re shooting a sunrise and do want a cooler, moody shot you can experiment with other white balance settings.

Other Sunset and Sunrise Tips

Tripod – If you’re shooting at longer shutters speeds and with longer focal lengths then a tripod or some other way of ensuring your camera is completely still is essential.

Manual Focus – sometimes when shooting in extreme lighting conditions some cameras can have trouble focusing. If this is the case for your camera consider switching to manual focus to ensure you get nice crisp shots.

Be aware of your surroundings – The wonderful thing about sunsets is that they not only create wonderful colors in the sky in front of you but they also can cast a beautiful golden light that is wonderful for other types of photography. As the sunset progresses keep an eye on other opportunities for shots around you (not just in front of you). You might find a great opportunity for a portrait, landscape shot, or macro shot behind you in the colder light.

Keep Shooting – A sunset or sunrise constantly changes over time and can produce great colors well after the sun goes down or appears so keep shooting at different exposures and focal lengths as I’ve mentioned above until you’re sure it’s all over.

Now with the advent of digital cameras/image manipulation I’m sometimes a wee bit overwhelmed by the number of options I can choose from when shooting and processing. As I’m composing a shot I’m thinking in my head how I can produce an image that not only documents the subject but also how post processing allows me to produce a concept that may not exist in the scene, or at least in the way I see it in my mind. Not with every shot but often I have to plan to convey what I see in my head (however vacant up there) and think several steps ahead in the whole work-flow process. I guess I did that to some degree in film but I don’t think in the same scope as in digital work. And not having to swap cameras for a quick change from color to B+W sure makes life easier!

Let’s look at a typical digital workflow and one I primarily use. I’ve included links to the equipment for those not familiar with what I mention here. I first capture images on my DSLR (Canon 50D) and then transfer the files to a secondary storage device (Epson EP-3000) in the field. Using Adobe Lightroom after the shoot I transfer images to both my PC (Dell Studio XPS) and a NAS – network attached storage device (Buffalo TeraStation) During this process I add metadata and copyright information. After the transfer I sort and delete the unusable images. Then I use Adobe Photoshop to correct, enhance or retouch the images. Lightroom offers some of these features but I prefer the options and control I have in Photoshop. After completing the image refinement I print to either a Canon i9900 or an Epson R220 printer.

I’m sure some of you experiment in the same manner but I sometimes go with a minimalist approach to a shoot. That’s one of the reasons I bought the Canon G11 – it can be used simplistically like the old 35mm rangefinder cameras. I say “old” but Leica still has digital rangefinder cams though ridiculously expensive! My interests in photography styles are quite varied and one I enjoy is street photography, especially in B+W. The G11 allows me do this creatively, quickly and unobtrusively. My Canon 50D with a grip, lens and flash can’t really offer that without raising a lot of unwanted attention or someone’s self-consciousness. I have been asked to leave or put away my DSLR in a club and it was Halloween!

In the same minimalist fashion I’ve done outdoor portraits using only available light and a collapsible reflector disk. It’s liberating and simpler but doesn’t always give me the control I want. In a way I guess it forces me to be more resourceful in this approach.

I wouldn’t say my analysis is a complaint as much as an observation. The easier digital photography becomes, at least at my level, the more complicated it can become. I say “my level” as opposed to simple point-n-shoot photographers than only want to record an event for their album or website. Digital photography is certainly a boon for their needs with easy camera/software automation. For the pro or advanced amateur with more equipment and software I think this is more of an issue.