Selling Your Wedding Pics Online???

[mws]

I use sugmug at the power account level. It's 60/year, they did just increase prices. I still think is a decent value for what you get. You can let people order prints with it, you just don't get to sell them "you get a profit" unless you use the pro level.

[rcarca]

Anyone doing similar printing/charging/fulfilment in the UK?

Richard

[nightbreath]

I live in Australia and it's fine, and about 99% sure same goes for the USA and UK. A model release is required for commercial use but that's a bit different to what it sounds. Selling prints to anyone is fine, the commercial use is only if you use them to promote products such as advertising, using on the front page of magazines or the front of your website / portfolio and things like that.

But what if someone purchases your photos to print them in large format as an art piece. So something that could have been sold for thousands of dollars is sold for nothing? Or only people who were invited to wedding have ability to purchase photos?

[PeterJ]

I live in Australia and it's fine, and about 99% sure same goes for the USA and UK. A model release is required for commercial use but that's a bit different to what it sounds. Selling prints to anyone is fine, the commercial use is only if you use them to promote products such as advertising, using on the front page of magazines or the front of your website / portfolio and things like that.

But what if someone purchases your photos to print them in large format as an art piece. So something that could have been sold for thousands of dollars is sold for nothing? Or only people who were invited to wedding have ability to purchase photos?

Your example's a different issue to the OP. He took the photos, holds the copyright and can sell prints to whoever he likes. You were questioning whether he needs permission to do that from the people in the photo, which I believe he doesn't in those example countries.

If someone purchases your photos unless there's some sort of specific contract they don't have the copyright so can't legally reproduce in most circumstances. There are exceptions, like reproducing a work for critical review but selling prints is certainly not allowed without permission from the copyright holder (the photographer).

[DBCdp]

Mighty nice of you to be "giving" away what those in the industry count on to feed their families. Have you given any thought to tax law? If you're selling, you need a tax ID in the US. If you give a DVD, you've manufactured product and are required by law to pay tax on the "compensation for services" that you described. It has been tax exempt to allow digital files to be downloaded on the internet, this is about to change but as yet is still true as far as I know. The reason is that you have not produced a physical product...that one copy at $0.21 changes everything!

So, if your friends paid you $200 to cover your expenses and you sell 1 print...even at .21 (or $0.09)...you're required to pay tax on the entire amount you got for shooting the event. Even at that minimal amount...$200.21...States in the US are willing, in this economy, to prosecute for not paying the tax and this means that they can assume (and WILL assume) you've been doing this for 10 years and hit you with whopping fines and backtaxes! Welcome to the wonderful world of doing business!

This is why pro's charge what they do for their work. Insurance, overhead, equipment costs....yada yada yada. And yeah, the desire to feed their families.

[PeterJ]

Wow I'd never thought of it like that, I was about to start cooking dinner but now I'll be thinking of a starving chef and his family and go to a restaurant instead  .

But to the OP your plan sounds good, put them somewhere they can download full res and anyone that wants premium prints will know what to do and somewhere like Snapfish as an easy option. While probably fair to say they won't be the word's best prints I've found them to be adequate and some of the photo gifts are pretty cool.

[nightbreath]

I live in Australia and it's fine, and about 99% sure same goes for the USA and UK. A model release is required for commercial use but that's a bit different to what it sounds. Selling prints to anyone is fine, the commercial use is only if you use them to promote products such as advertising, using on the front page of magazines or the front of your website / portfolio and things like that.

But what if someone purchases your photos to print them in large format as an art piece. So something that could have been sold for thousands of dollars is sold for nothing? Or only people who were invited to wedding have ability to purchase photos?

Your example's a different issue to the OP. He took the photos, holds the copyright and can sell prints to whoever he likes. You were questioning whether he needs permission to do that from the people in the photo, which I believe he doesn't in those example countries.

If someone purchases your photos unless there's some sort of specific contract they don't have the copyright so can't legally reproduce in most circumstances. There are exceptions, like reproducing a work for critical review but selling prints is certainly not allowed without permission from the copyright holder (the photographer).

It was not about reproduction by third-parties, you give people ability to reproduce the pictures in any amount via printing in those services. I want to approach art in my wedding pictures, so my concern is that people who are not related to the couple I was shooting may like to print pictures of them    Or am I missing something?

P.S. In our country if you don't have legal agreement pictures are owned also by people showed on the picture.

[PeterJ]

It was not about reproduction by third-parties, you give people ability to reproduce the pictures in any amount via printing in those services. I want to approach art in my wedding pictures, so my concern is that people who are not related to the couple I was shooting may like to print pictures of them    Or am I missing something?

P.S. In our country if you don't have legal agreement pictures are owned also by people showed on the picture.

I see that is different in the Ukraine then, here in Australia and I believe in the UK / USA being in a photo doesn't give any sort of ownership of them. So if I took a photos of a wedding and a guest scanned them or took a digital copy and posted to Facebook let alone tried to sell them that would be a violation of my copyright.

[Heavyweight67]

Sounds like all you need is some type of cloud storage, maybe something like Drop Box, you can then just let people know the address of your public folder, they can then download what they need...also (maybe just as a thought) not everyone is going to print...so many people now have electronic albums/galleries...etc...

Quality control would be your only issue regarding printing doing it this way, the Do-it-yourself kiosk could make your beautifully taken and PP images less than perfect..