Once you have your photographer chosen (learn more about this in part one) things to work out may include: who owns the photos when they’re done – you or the photographer?
- If you are hiring them and paying them money to take the photos, you would assume your band owns the rights to the photos, right? Not necessarily, in the United States, photos taken by staff photographers – employees of companies – are owned by the company, but photos taken by freelance photographers, even if the photos are paid for by a client or published in a magazine, the copyright still belongs to the freelance photographer unless they have signed something that says otherwise. If this is a problem for you or your band, which if you are up and coming, it could be, you can always draw up a quick work for hire agreement like this sample one here that says you or your band owns the copyright to the photos. If any of this is an issue – which it probably shouldn’t be – you want more publicity rather than less, so having your photographer have his or her photos of you published online or in print without your knowledge should really be a good thing rather than a bad thing – then be sure to discuss it with your photographer and have any formal agreements made before the shoot to avoid problems. You can read more about how photo copyright works in these situations here
- Other things to discuss with your photographer include costs and settling on a fair price to pay them that corresponds with your budget, agreeing when and how to pay them (will you pay them a check on the day, or in cash? Or will you mail them a check when you get your final photos?), arranging the date and time of the shoot, discussing how long it might take to get your finished photos back and whether you will get to see and choose from proofs before photos are edited or whether the photographer will just send you his/her favourite ones when finally edited. You must also double check that the photographer will indeed edit them as not all do, and if they will be sending you a disc of the finished photos or making them available to you online. Be sure you have also conveyed what exactly your purpose in taking these photos is – if they are for a magazine, your website, album cover etc or for general use., so the photographer has a better idea of what they’re going to be doing. After you have worked out some of these issues, it’s time to move on to the next part of the planning – organizing your location/s.
- Finding a great location is supremely important in ensuring you have an interesting and professional looking photo. A studio is great if you want a standard white or grey etc background that can be dressed up with some props or costumes and imagination!Multiple locations are better, try to use an area with lots of variety, the more shots you can get with different backgrounds and preferably at least some kind of change in your look, outfit, props etc, the more purposes you can use your photos for. The ‘standard’ band shoot you’ll see tends to be shot on either a white studio background or in some abandoned industrial looking building site. There is nothing wrong with using either of these typed of locations – things become clichés because they work – but try not to let yourself be limited to these two ideas only. Your band jam room, a bar, a stage, a venue, a forest, somebody’s house, a garage, a rooftop, a beach, a restaurant, a field, a farm, any of these places could work depending on your look and style – let your imagination run wild. Think about what you have access to and go from there – your photographer may have some ideas too. Once you’ve locked it down and decided what to do if the weather means you can’t shoot outdoors, and also make sure you’re not going to be doing anything illegal such as trespassing where you’re shooting – and if you need a photo permit to shoot in your area, your photographer should know what the deal is, and if not, google is your friend!
- The final step to think about before the shoot is your look – what are you going to wear?! Does your band have a certain on stage ‘look’? DO you wear masks or make up? Do you have a theatrical edge? Do you always wear all black or a flannel shirt and jeans uniform?! These photos are meant to reflect your personality as a band, so have fun with it! At least one set of photos should reflect your band in its ‘normal look’ whatever that means, but don’t be afraid to dress up in crazy costumes, add props, or do something creative for some of your photos – the idea is to get noticed! Thrift stores, 99 cent stores, movie costume/prop hiring places all have good stuff for this purpose. See if you can get a deal at a rental place by telling them what you’re up to – you never know who might be sympathetic to your cause. Borrow items from friends and family if you can, avoiding spending money is great but you do want these pictures to look the best they possibly can!
Stay tuned, for part 3! Or catch up on Part One here.
