How Should You Fight a Bad Contract?

This past Sunday, the Photo Brigade’s Robert Caplin invited me to moderate a superstar panel composed of legendary photojournalist David Burnett, former Sports Illustrated staff photographer Al Tielemans, music and sports photographer David Bergman, sports and editorial photographer Rob Tringali, and corporate and editorial photographer Robert Seale to discuss the business of editorial photography.

Because it was a long panel, I’ve broken down the responses by questions below so you can jump to the relevant parts quickly.

• Q: You’ve seen bad contracts before, what makes this unusual? David Burnett responds.
• Q: Are you surprised that Time, Inc didn’t solicit the opinions and thoughts of photographers before presenting a shrink-wrapped contract for 90+ brands? Al Tielemans responds.
• Q: What has the process of trying to organize photographers to show solidarity on the issue been like? Robert Seale responds. Robert Seale responds.
• Q: What do you say to the young photographer about not signing the contract when they’re trying to pay their rent? David Bergman responds.
• Q: How do we reconcile telling other photographers not to sign bad contracts while simultaneously saying you have to participate in social media and give away photos for free? Rob Tringali responds.
• Q: Why haven’t more people publicly come out in opposition to the contract to provide “social proof” and help to influence other photographers? Al Tielemans responds. David Burnett responds. David Bergman responds.
• Q: What should trade organizations be doing that they’re not doing? Robert Seale responds. David Bergman responds. David Burnett responds.
• Robert Seale on secondary monetization of the Time, Inc. contract.
• David Burnett on employees vs freelancers. Al Tielemans responds.
• Devin Allen got the cover of Time magazine as a non-pro. David Bergman responds.
• “There’s a relationship between a photographer and editor too,” says Rob Tringali.
• “When I started…Bob Wagner taught me about copyright…and he explained why I needed to charge more,” says Al Tielemans.
• Q: Gage Skidmore is giving away free photos of politicians, one of which is used by Donald Trump on his homepage. How do you educate a kid like this? David Bergman responds.
• “Once you’re the free guy, you’re always the free guy,” says Rob Tringali.
• “The schools that are churning out these photographers don’t spend quite enough time on these business points,” says David Burnett.
• Q: What do new photographers need to know to enter the business? Robert Seale responds.
• Q: How do we inform photographers about less glamorous (but common) licensing scenarios, rather than telling them about outlier cases of the photo of a kid who becomes president? Al Tielemans responds.
• “90% of [professional] photography is just problem solving,” says Rob Tringali.
• Q: Have you heard words of support from photo editors on the contract issue? Rob Tringali responds.
• “This contract is coming from the top…and that’s where the disconnect is,” says Al Tielemans.
• “So much rides on the credibility of those pictures,” says David Burnett.
• “Would Time ever run a story from a writer who maybe isn’t experienced to be in Libya?” asks David Bergman.
• Q: What’s the future of sports photography? Robert Seale responds.
• Q: Is paid photography only going to exist in extreme situations? Rob Tringali responds.
• “Everybody wants to own our work. It has value,” says David Bergman.
• Q: Has social media had a positive effect on your business? David Bergman responds.
• Q: Are you frustrated by photographers who leverage their following vs their skill (e.g. Brooklyn Beckham)? Robert Seale responds.
• Q: Are blogs good marketing? David Burnett responds.
• Q: What does the average photographer not understand about marketing that some “Insta-famous” photographers/personalities to? Al Tielemans responds.
• “Kids today who are doing the Facebook, YouTube and Google, if they are out shooting for themselves, they are monetizing that all themselves. They own all those images…that should be a great lesson,” says David Bergman.
• Q: Why haven’t we had any cross-over personalities (a la YouTube stars) in editorial photography? Al Tielemans responds.
• Q: What are your business goals and how are you marketing against those goals? Robert Seale responds.
• Q: Why won’t photographers talk about price? David Bergman responds. Al Tielemans responds.
• “I don’t there’s any secret…I don’t think people are hiding their pricing,” says Rob Tringali.
• Q: How do we address amateur photographers who are “devaluing” their photography? Can we? Robert Seale responds.
• Q: Are there any editorial outlets that are treating photographers fairly? David Burnett responds.
• Q: How do you treat pricing of motion and video? Al Tielemans responds.