corbystock
Suspended / Banned
- Messages
- 483
- Name
- chris
- Edit My Images
- No
So you have given them a CD of images they can use & he wants a print for free, he may aswell have spat in your face. I'd tell him to go boil his head.


Give him a big 7 x 5 print with a water-mark slap bang in the middle![]()
That's not quite true. A little more complicated and not quite as black and white.
not quite - he can supply the image for editoral use but for any sort of advertisment/promotion he needs a model release.
This is certainly very common at all the events we go to, people ask all the time for free prints. Recently someone want to take some of our samples for free, as they recognised someone in the photos from a previous event!
My take is always that I'll give event organisers some website sized JPGs for advertising in return for booking us to attend an event. These are generally photos that other people have ordered and that would be processed anyway.
I'd never give someone a free print just because they ask for it unless the circumstances were exceptional. It sets a precedent that is difficult to negotiate out of. It also give the impression that the print itself is easy and very cheap to produce, which may or may not be true, but that's what people assume if you give stuff away. All that does is further de-value photography in their eyes, which doesn't help future sales.
Unless you absolutely need this person for you continued business survival I'd send him a polite message along the lines of
"Although I can supply small electronic images for free, the costs associated with editing, preparing for print, printing, checking, packaging and posting a physical print mean that supplying paper products for free is not possible. A smaller size does not materially reduce these costs, and distributing free prints too all my event clients would reduce my profit to unsustainable levels."
I'd attach an electronic copy, the same size and quality as the ones you provide the club for we advertising, including any watermark if you mark the others.
That way you have done something for him, and if and when anyone asks why he only has the small low quality image he'll have to say because he didn't want to pay £7 for it...
Excellent shot by the way![]()


I'd charge him more like £70, but there you go...
I can not believe the rubbish I'm reading. If you want money you guys then act like a professional.
We shoot lots of sports teams and shoot clubs in traditional grp shots. These clubs have upto 12 teams of various ages.
We give the club/coach a free framed shot. The potential of each club shoot is £2k.
You are missing the whole picture here. Then from that you get other clubs and the tournaments that with 3 togs helping you can turn into a few grand from a weekend event.
Bitching about a free print, Jeeeez. you will earn shed lodes from treating the people who book you well.
Is it any wonder a lot of you are still doing a day job.
A club has nearly 150-200 kids in the club. at a £10 each you will coin it in. sell a average shot for £70...
How much? What will you sell? Nowt, big fat ZERO. I did not see David Bailey or Bob Carlos on this thread. These are everyday folk .
Wake up people. Please.
I can not believe the rubbish I'm reading. If you want money you guys then act like a professional.
We shoot lots of sports teams and shoot clubs in traditional grp shots. These clubs have upto 12 teams of various ages.
We give the club/coach a free framed shot. The potential of each club shoot is £2k.
You are missing the whole picture here. Then from that you get other clubs and the tournaments that with 3 togs helping you can turn into a few grand from a weekend event.
Bitching about a free print, Jeeeez. you will earn shed lodes from treating the people who book you well.
Is it any wonder a lot of you are still doing a day job.
A club has nearly 150-200 kids in the club. at a £10 each you will coin it in. sell a average shot for £70...
How much? What will you sell? Nowt, big fat ZERO. I did not see David Bailey or Bob Carlos on this thread. These are everyday folk .
Wake up people. Please.

hmm im not sure what i would do. He is the manager so is he doing you a favour by letting you do the photos?
Or look up DE Photo. They are a Franchise but the local tog to you may need another shooter.
I can not believe the rubbish I'm reading. If you want money you guys then act like a professional. <snip>