Re:Photographers and IP (Score 1)

Perhaps losses was a an incorrect way of phrasing it, I simply meant that it is hard for photographers to make a decent living... I don't know of many people who get professional photographs taken and while he may be making a good hourly rate while working for you, how many sessions can he get lined up a day etc. In addition there is the infrastructure time and costs that go into having a smoothly running portfolio. On top of that there is post-processing time (which of course would be taken out of the equation if you did it yourself) and travel time (if he came to you, which it sounds like). I don't know what going rates are so I cannot really comment on the price you paid for your shoot and I suspect price varies greatly on localized supply and demand anyhow. I am only saying that it is within his rights for the photographer to ask for a premium for the RAW files or not give them at all. One additional point I hadn't thought of was the EXIF data on the files, which would give anyone who got a hold of the RAW the exact settings used on his camera (they can of course be cleaned off a jpeg but I'm not sure about a raw file). Its more complex than whether or not he has the RAW file. After reading the rest of the comments on this post I have to agree that it is not very open of the photographer to refuse to sell you the RAW files but it is his choice and yours to hire him. ~Shiva