DISPLAYMODE fashion and modeling talent network

You are here: Home

Articles on Modeling

If you think the world of catwalk shows and fashion shoots and such things as law have nothing in common, think again. Like any other business, modeling has to deal with issues like financial obligations, copyright infringements, shams and fraud, and before you become head over heels engrossed in adding new credits to your modeling portfolio, you have to make sure the legal aspects of your career are well taken care of.

This article is part of a widely published series of articles aimed at explaining the complex subject of modeling and copyright law making the legal side of the modeling business understandable to aspiring catwalk queens, cover girls and anyone involved in fashion photography and art.

One of the subjects modeling newcomers may have to face is protecting themselves from unlawful usage of their images by photographers and third parties.

If it’s never happened to you before, try to make sure it’s never going to happen in the future. If you’re wondering “what is unlawful usage, anyway?”, assume that you were posing for an ad or a calendar only to discover the image has also appeared on other mediums like billboards, posters, post cards, or any other kind of commercial print.

Ever posed for a friend, who said he’s only going to use the shot for his photographer’s portfolio and who later sold pictures from the shooting to a magazine? This is also an example of unlawful usage of your image. Your rights have been violated and someone profited from using pictures that you posed for without your consent – and without paying you anything.

Unfortunately, it may get worse. Occasions when a model, who thought she was posing for photographer’s art exhibition discovers her images on a porn website or gracing the pages of a raunchy adult magazine, are far from rare.

In a bid to help modeling professionals avoid copyright infringements, we have assembled bits of advice from the experienced old-timers. Taking some precautions won’t hurt, so to protect yourself make sure you sign an agreement with your photographer prior to every shooting. Such agreements are common in a world of professional photography and should cover the type and the purpose of shooting, the medium the picture will appear on (poster, website, magazine), the financial part of your cooperation and copyright – who may use this shot and what for, and whether the consent of another party is needed.

If the photographer doesn’t offer you to sign such an agreement, offer it yourself. If he refuses or tries to avoid signing it, it means he is not completely open about his plans as to using your image.

If you’re posing for an ad campaign, signing a contract is mandatory. It’s main items should cover the list of mediums your image will be used on. This is to protect you financially, since payment varies with the number of mediums and the amount of work.

If you are signed up with the agency, it should be taking care of all the above mentioned issues, but in any case, don’t be too shy to control the situation yourself. Try to get copies of all the artwork that has been created using your image.

Last, but not least, make sure these issues are taken care of BEFORE you start the shooting.

Still, if you discover your image has been unlawfully used, you may do the following:

if you are signed up with the agency, it should attend to your problems. Notify your agency immediately and make sure it starts dealing with the situation without delay.
if you are an independent model, get copies of mediums that feature your unlawfully used image, take your copy of the original shoot and the agreement that you signed with the photographer and go to a lawyer without hesitation.
if you haven’t signed any agreements and don’t have a copy of an original shot, chances to protect your rights are very small. In this case you have to consult a lawyer and decide upon your further actions.
if an image you posed for has been taken off the photographer’s online portfolio and used for profit on a website owned by someone else (for instance paid adult website), unbeknownst to both you and your photographer, you can write an e-mail to a website owner and ask him to put the pages down. If he doesn’t, the next step would be contacting the webmaster of the server and asking to shut down the entire site, or else the server people might be sued for allowing piracy.

Legislation and, subsequently, legal action taken towards copyright violators differ from country to country. If you are a U.S. citizen, you can file a lawsuit in federal court against the person who infringed your copyright, if you can prove he did it wilfully and for profit. In this case, a U.S. Attorney may initiate criminal investigation.

However, if a website owner who violated your copyright lives in another country, things may get difficult. Internet is global. Laws, unfortunately, aren’t. Given that the World Wide Web is still a relatively new medium, the laws of some countries simply don’t extend as far as controlling web-content. Some countries recognize a U.S. copyright and help with violators. Some don't.

Whatever happens, don’t resort to pressure and don’t try settling matters directly with the offender, since you are not experienced enough to deal with the situation. Talk to a lawyer, if you think your copyright has been infringed. Be consistent and consult specialists.