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The best photography contract template collection

Running your own photography business isn’t without risks. Between copyright disputes, payment issues, and unrealistic client expectations, a lot can go wrong. Professional photography contracts protect your business by laying out the terms and conditions of your agreement from the get-go. By using HoneyBook’s contract management tools within its photography CRM software, you and your clients can sign contracts online to get sessions scheduled faster.

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Photography Contracts for Photographers

Design your ideal photography contract

Working with a lawyer is the safest bet when it comes to writing up a contract, but there are other means of getting a professional, legally-binding photography contract in place. With HoneyBook, you can use contracts created by attorneys. Just customize the design and content, and share easily from a single dashboard. And your clients can sign your agreements online for faster session scheduling.

Photography Contracts for second shooters

Create your own photography contract for free

If you’re looking to go the DIY route, HoneyBook also has a set of free downloadable photography contract templates that you can customize to create professional client contracts. Simply select the sample contract that best matches your business needs, customize it with your own design elements, and populate it with your specific legalese.

General photography contract Invoice
General photography contract Invoice

General photography contract invoice

Designed for every type of photography niche -- including commercial, wedding, portrait, and stock photography -- this template can be customized to any style preference.

Photography contract for independent contractor Invoice
Photography contract for independent contractor Invoice

Photography contract for independent contractor invoice

Created exclusively for independent contractors, this template can be personalized to match your brand and specific photography services.

Styled shoot photography contract Invoice
Styled shoot photography contract Invoice

Styled shoot photography contract invoice

Whether you regularly collaborate with other photographers, or you’re preparing for your first styled shoot, this contract template will help you cover all your bases.

Model release photography contract Invoice
Model release photography contract Invoice

Model release photography contract invoice

No matter who you’re photographing, this model release form template will ensure you have permission to publish your photos, share them in your portfolio, and create custom marketing materials without liability risk.

Event photography contract Invoice
Event photography contract Invoice

Event photography contract invoice

Useful for small birthday parties and large corporate fundraisers alike, this contract template has all the elements you need to reach an understanding with your clients ahead of time.

Snag HoneyBook’s free photography contract templates

Designed exclusively for professional photographers, HoneyBook’s photography contract templates for weddings, real estate, events and so much more, come equipped with all the fields and customization options you need to create polished contracts for your sessions. Created by attorneys, our contract templates allow you to take the stress out of the agreement process and get on with doing what you do best - capturing those special moments.

HoneyBook’s Free Photography Contracts
HoneyBook’s Free Photography Contracts

The best software for photography contract templates

HoneyBook for photographers

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Why you need a sample photography contract

How to create a photography contract

Creating a secure contract can be intimidating if you don’t have a legal background, but you can get it done with the right tools and templates. In fact, with HoneyBook’s contract management tools, you can draft up professional photography contracts in a few simple steps.

Choose a photography contract template
Choose a photography contract template

Choose a photography contract template

Start by selecting a sample contract that best fits your business model from HoneyBook’s collection. Then, adjust the design to fit your brand and company theme.
Populate the document with your terms and conditions
Populate the document with your terms and conditions

Populate the document with your terms and conditions

Enter your payment terms, copyright ownership, liability indemnification, deliverables, due dates, and cancellation policy. Then, direct HoneyBook to autofill your business and client information to make sure no human error occurs.
Share and sign online
Share and sign online

Share and sign online

Once you have a comprehensive contract, share it with your clients online. They can review and sign it from HoneyBook’s client portal effortlessly, and you’ll get a notification the moment their e-signature is submitted.

5 popular contracts for photographers

From basic photography contract templates to image licensing agreement forms, there are a lot of online contract options available to photographers. As a result, it can be difficult to know exactly which document is the best option for safeguarding your photography business against disagreement and lawsuits. Below we’ve broken down the most popular types of photography contract templates to help you pick the best legal document for your business and determine when and how to use it.

1

A commercial photography contract speaks to the unique relationship a photographer has with a commercial business and includes specific legal forms like an image licensing agreement. These contracts are best suited for brand, product, food, and architecture photoshoots.

2

A portrait photography contract is designed to lay out the terms and conditions of the photoshoot and protect photographers against potential liability arising out of copyright disputes, image usage, and payment issues. These are ideal for family portraits, model shots, and virtually all other types of portrait sessions.

3

A model release photography contract specifically focuses on your right as a business owner to use the model’s likeness in any way you choose. It provides you with coverage to add the images to your portfolio, add them into your marketing materials, and otherwise share them, these contracts are necessary anytime you photograph people.

4

An event photography contract template is made to simplify the agreement between you and your client when you’re hired to shoot a large celebration. As with a model release contract, event photography contracts often include photography release forms to help you get legal permission to use the images for your own purposes. They can be used for any type of event, such as an anniversary celebration, a birthday, and a graduation party.

5

A wedding photography contract, like other templates, include the standard terms and conditions sections needed to get a legally binding agreement in place. This includes space for your cancellation policy, refund policy, start and stop times for the session, payment requirements, and final deliverables.

How to personalize a general photography contract

HoneyBook’s photography contract features

Free photography contract templates

Grab a professional photography contract template free of charge from HoneyBook’s collection. Simply select the sample photography contract you like the best (and that fits your business model). Then, you can edit it online to fit your needs.

Customizable design

Play with the contract design elements using HoneyBook’s dashboard. You can trade out the generic banner image for one of your custom photographs. You can upload your logo into the top corner. And you can adjust the font and background colors to match your branding. With HoneyBook, branding your photography contracts only takes a few clicks.

Pre-written terms and conditions

Take the headache out of contract writing by using the standard liability indemnification, intellectual property, force majeure, severability, and photography release form text that comes with HoneyBook’s photography contract templates. Just add additional legal verbiage around the existing clauses and save the document to your dashboard. Then, get the sign off from your legal counsel and send the contract over to your clients for official signatures.

Smart fields

Populate your photography contract template with your clients’ information automatically, using HoneyBook’s smart fields. All you have to do is select the field you want to edit and enter the field value. The contract will update instantly and the formatting won’t be changed in the slightest.

HoneyBook’s Simple Photography Contract Features
HoneyBook’s Simple Photography Contract Features

Photography contract FAQ

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