Pardon the non-sports posting, but I got some warm fuzzies after reading this story.<\/p>\n
As photographers, we depend on licensing our work to pay bills. I think most non-photographers would be stunned to know how much it costs to be in this business. The equipment we have to purchase is astronomically high. I have a set of strobes in the Dean Smith Center at UNC-Chapel Hill that alone cost me over $7,000.<\/p>\n
Often, I get requests for people to use a photo of mine for xyz (where xyz could be anything from a poster to a website). I say sure, but we need to discuss licensing. I often get a stunned response. They wonder why would I charge for a photo. After all, it doesn’t cost me anything to email a photo, right? What they don’t consider is the amount of money and time I had to invest to produce a particular photo in the first place. Here is just a short list of investments I’ve made:<\/p>\n
I could go on ad nauseum<\/em> frankly. The point I want to make is that I spend more money and time producing images than the casual observer understands. I went into photography to be a good photographer – not a half-ass photographer (or “guy with a camera” as pejoratively known in the industry). As such, I require income to invest in top-of-the-line gear as well as repair it. I have one lens than easily costs $500 for simple repairs. For a camera, Canon charges me $150 just to open the box if I send one in for repair.<\/p>\n So I get obviously frustrated when people ask for my photos for free, unless it is for a legitimate charity. Worse though, is when someone tries to download an image from my website and print it. That is flat out theft. I would imagine that those who steal my images have jobs — don’t they expect to be compensated by their supervisor for the work they do? Shouldn’t I also expect to be compensated for my work?<\/p>\n