Free photography contract template
Fill in your details and get a complete contract — scope, fees, retainer, cancellation, copyright, delivery and portfolio use. Copy it, download it or print it.
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PORTRAIT / HEADSHOT PHOTOGRAPHY AGREEMENT
This agreement is made between:
Photographer: [Photographer Name], trading as [Business Name] ("the Photographer")
Client: [Client Name] ("the Client")
Date of shoot: [Date]
Location: [Location]
1. SCOPE OF SERVICES
The Photographer agrees to provide portrait photography services, which may include individual, couple, headshot or creative portrait work as discussed on [Date], beginning at approximately [Start Time], for approximately 2 hours, at [Location].
2. FEES AND PAYMENT
Total fee: [Total Fee]
Retainer due on signing: [Retainer Amount]
Balance: the remainder of the total fee, due on or before [Date].
The retainer is earned on receipt and is not refundable. It compensates the Photographer for reserving the date and turning away other work for it. No date is held until this agreement is signed and the retainer is received.
3. CANCELLATION AND RESCHEDULING
If the Client cancels, the retainer is not returned. If the Client cancels within 14 days of the date, the full fee remains payable.
The parties may agree in writing to move the booking to another date, subject to the Photographer's availability. The retainer transfers to the new date once, and a booking may be moved once without an additional charge.
If the Photographer must cancel for reasons within their control, all sums paid — including the retainer — are returned in full.
4. DELIVERY
The Photographer will deliver a set of professionally edited, high-resolution digital images via an online gallery within 14 business days of the date, unless a different timescale is agreed in writing.
The Photographer selects and edits the images delivered. Unedited or rejected frames are not part of the deliverables and are not supplied.
5. COPYRIGHT AND USE
The Photographer retains copyright in all images. The Client is granted a personal, non-commercial licence to print, copy and share the delivered images.
The Client may post the images online provided they are not cropped in a way that removes any credit or watermark, and provided no filters or edits are applied that materially alter the Photographer's work.
6. PORTFOLIO USE
The Photographer may use images from this session in their portfolio, website, social media and printed marketing, unless the Client withholds permission in writing before the date. Where permission is withheld, the Photographer will not publish images of the Client.
7. CREATIVE CONTROL
The Client has engaged the Photographer for their particular style. Editing, colour treatment and image selection are at the Photographer's discretion, exercised reasonably and consistently with the work shown to the Client before booking.
8. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
In the event of equipment failure, illness, accident, or any other cause preventing the Photographer from attending or delivering, the Photographer's liability is limited to a refund of sums paid under this agreement. The Photographer will make reasonable efforts to arrange a suitable replacement photographer where time allows.
The Photographer is not liable for indirect or consequential loss.
9. IMAGE STORAGE
The Photographer will retain the delivered images for a minimum of 90 days after delivery. After that period the Client is responsible for keeping their own backups, and the Photographer is under no obligation to retain or re-supply files.
10. CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND CONTROL
Neither party is liable for failure to perform caused by events outside their reasonable control, including severe weather, illness, government restriction, or venue closure. The parties will co-operate in good faith to reschedule.
11. ENTIRE AGREEMENT
This document is the entire agreement between the parties and replaces any prior discussion or correspondence. It may only be varied in writing, signed by both parties.
12. GOVERNING LAW
This agreement is governed by the laws of [State/Region].
SIGNATURES
By signing below, both parties confirm they have read, understood and agree to
the terms above.
Photographer: ______________________________ Date: ______________
[Photographer Name]
Client: ___________________________________ Date: ______________
[Client Name]
This is a starting point, not legal advice.
Contract law varies by state and country, and this template can’t know your circumstances. Have a lawyer in your jurisdiction review it before you rely on it for real work — particularly the cancellation, liability and copyright terms.
Want clients to sign it without printing anything?
Sign&Shoot sends this as a link. Your client picks a date, e-signs on their phone and pays the retainer in one go — with a full audit trail (timestamp, IP, browser, explicit consent) behind every signature. Free for two bookings a month, no card.
Try it freeWhy this template says “retainer” and not “deposit”
Almost every photography contract on the internet asks for a “non-refundable deposit”. It’s worth knowing that in many US states, a deposit is refundable by default — it’s understood as money held against a future obligation. Attaching “non-refundable” to it creates a phrase that argues with itself, and that’s the phrase you’d be defending if a client cancelled and asked for their money back.
A retainer is different. It’s paid to reserve your time, and it’s earned the moment you accept the booking, because from then on you’re turning away other work for that date. That’s a much easier thing to explain — to a client, and if it ever came to it, to anyone else.
Changing the word on its own doesn’t do the work. The clause still has to say plainly what the money buys and what happens on cancellation, which is what the generator above writes for you. But if you’re going to pick a word, pick the one that means what you actually intend.
This is general information rather than legal advice, and the position varies by state — another reason to have a local lawyer read your contract once.
Common questions
Yes. There's no signup, no email required and no watermark. Fill in the fields, then copy, download or print the result. Nothing you type is sent anywhere — the document is assembled in your browser, which is why we can ask for a client's name and fee without it being a privacy problem.
Use retainer. In many US states a 'deposit' is refundable by default, which makes the very common phrase 'non-refundable deposit' close to self-contradictory — and it's the weaker position if a client disputes a cancellation. A retainer is understood as a sum paid to reserve your time, earned when you accept the booking and turn away other work for that date. This generator uses 'retainer' throughout for that reason. It's a wording choice, not a magic spell: the clause still has to say clearly what the money is for.
A signed agreement between two parties is generally binding, but whether any specific clause holds up depends on your state or country and on the circumstances. This template is a starting point written to be sensible and readable — it is not legal advice and it hasn't been reviewed for your jurisdiction. Have a local lawyer look over it before you rely on it, especially the cancellation, liability and copyright sections.
Not from this page — this generates the document, not a signing flow. Electronic signatures are legally recognised in the US under the E-SIGN Act and UETA provided you capture consent and keep an audit trail. Sign&Shoot does that (timestamp, IP address, browser, explicit consent, and the signed contract locked against alteration), and you can use it free for two bookings a month. Any reputable e-sign tool will also work.
At minimum: who the parties are, exactly what you're delivering and when, the total fee and payment schedule, what happens if either side cancels or reschedules, who owns the copyright and what the client may do with the images, whether you can use the photos in your portfolio, and a limit on your liability if something goes wrong. The generator includes all of these plus clauses specific to the shoot type you pick.
The core terms are the same, but weddings carry more risk and more moving parts, so the template adds clauses for the day's schedule, group-shot expectations and meal breaks on long coverage. Weddings are also where cancellation terms matter most, since you're turning away every other booking for that date.
Comparing tools to send contracts with? See the HoneyBook alternatives round-up.