Re: filmscanners: OT: photographing on the street

[TREVITHO@aol.com]

In a message dated 21/5/01 5:05:05 am, dflandrum@earthlink.net writes:

<< This area of law is not my area of expertise - I am a corporate lawyer.  I

know enough to be wary.  I do some street photography and do not get model

releases.  I have always wondered what a model release is anyway.  If I were

to draft one that truly covered my risks, the release would probably be

several pages long. >>

Actually "model releases" cover two different things. The right to expose the 
persons privacy and the right to exploit the image.

If you are dealing with a professional model you are asking for use related 
to commercial exploitation. You probably will have to pay more for a poster 
than a small trade ad. There is a general theory which holds that the more 
work a model gets the less future work they will get. They can often only 
work for one perfume company for instance. This argument cannot be used by a 
non-professional model or a child who is deemed to not suffer financial loss 
of earnings with the publication of their image. This is where invasion of 
privacy seems a bit of a minefield. A few years ago the context had to be 
defamatory or cause actual emotional pain. Now it seems that lawyers get 
called because someone wants to get rich quick. 



Bob Croxford
Cornwall
England

www.atmosphere.co.uk