Thank you all for your valuable feedback.
I have in fact received an email this evening from a staff of the restauranteur saying her boss is interested to take up my offer of using my photos in return for credit. She ended by saying "If she likes the photos, I'm sure we will have an occasion to use your services in the future
". I have shown them the photos during the day of the shoot and I supposed she liked what she saw.
The past hour I have been googling and researching on copyright on photographs. I then came across some files I stored on my harddisk which I have saved a while back. I used to lived in Sydney and have just moved back to Singapore. It is based on Australia's copyright act 1968.
If it is correct then it may apply in Singapore context too, then a client who commissioned a job owns the copyright.
commissioned photographs: If you took a commissioned photograph before
the 30 July 1998, your client will own the copyright.
If the photograph was taken after 30 July 1998, you own the copyright. The only
exception to this rule is if the photograph was commissioned for a private or
domestic purpose (like a wedding or christening). In this case your client owns
the copyright, unless otherwise agreed.
Here is the link to the agency's
website.
Hope the seniors can clarify ...
Edit: But something else comes to mind - what if the food shots were taken during your break time, if such a break was agreed by your client? Does that then mean that since you were on your own time, the rights if usage of the food shots should be yours?
I kind of agree with you somehow. I spent an extra hour without charging my client.
You could argue that the additional food pictures fell outside this remit, but there is also probably a case to be made that you were there under his commission so you were essentially working for him, and that being the case those pictures are the client's as well.
I was asked to shoot some of the food pictures on the side as part of the event. But I went to the extend to bring my light strobe and setup a light tent.
Under UK law you do have a legal paternal right to be associated as the creator of an image, so if he doesn't credit you then in theory you could complain, and I suppose even take legal action, but I think the best that you would get out of it is the court would force him to credit you where applicable. So you don't stand to gain anything financially.
From that copyright note, it looks like even though a photographer has given up the copyright to the client who commissioned the work he still have the rights to be attributed as the creator of the work.
The fees for the job wasn't great so the least I could ask for is some form of credit when they use my images on their websites.
As mentioned above, if you are commissioned by someone then the copyright by default rests with them. Most picture sales on the other hand are actually only for reproduction rights and not copyright - for example anything you buy on a stock library whether royalty free or otherwise. That's why you're paying royalties. It is of course perfectly possible to sell your copyright as well.
Perhaps I should draft up an agreement with the client before a shoot to determine who owns the copyright and for which purposes. A prior agreement could override any of the copyrights exceptions and not grant the client unlimited copyright/usage. Again the exception for us would be if it is a high priced job then of course we can grant them the full copyrights.
Well then, summary is, unless otherwise agreed, your client owns the copyright so he is right that the restaurant should go through him. You have a right to be credited as the author of the photograph.
I will have to approach my client nicely and tell him that the restauranteur is interested to use a few of the images. I would prefer to keep the relationship with my client. As for the restauranteur they can always commission me to shoot for them if they like my work.
You have just unknowingly gave up another paying job. The restauranteur would no doubt have paid you for another shoot since has already seen what you can do.
In this case, all pictures taken for the client belongs to the client since they were taken while you were under his comission and credited to you. Should have just given your namecard and ask the restauranteur to call you another time as need to "check the terms of the agreement for the shoot" first.
Thanks for that. Of course I have handed out all my cards to anyone I met at the restaurant : ) Hence one of the staff contacted me. She even asked me what my rate is for other events.
The copyright thing has so many grey areas. I guess you guys do it too, i.e. keep some additional images and not give the whole lot as some are duplicates. In this case, what can you do with those images? Additional images that the client haven't seen and wouldn't know it was taken at the same event. Hmmm....
Regards,
Stan