{"id":1437,"date":"2015-06-23T18:01:07","date_gmt":"2015-06-23T17:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/?p=1437"},"modified":"2015-06-24T00:01:53","modified_gmt":"2015-06-23T23:01:53","slug":"who-is-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/2015\/06\/who-is-right\/","title":{"rendered":"Who is right?"},"content":{"rendered":"

I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have the guts to take my camera off to a war zone, yet here I am in a battle with the Music Industry.\u00c2\u00a0 I am fighting for my right of ownership of my pictures and to receive a fair deal.<\/p>\n

\"metallica<\/p>\n

Highlighted by Taylor Swift\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s admirable open letter to Apple to receive a fair deal for musicians and Jason Sheldon\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s excellent open letter in retort asking for the same fair deal for Photographers – it turns out Miss Swift has a contract photographers are forced to sign before shooting her live which gives Taylor Swift complete ownership of all pictures.\u00c2\u00a0 This kind of contract is getting more and more common.\u00c2\u00a0 The Foo Fighters have a full ownership of rights contract you have to sign if you want to shoot them.<\/p>\n

“‘I hereby grant, transfer, convey and assign to you all right, title and interest throughout the universe in perpetuity, including, without limitation, the copyright (and all renewals and extensions thereof), in and to the Photos’.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Why?\u00c2\u00a0 The main reason is merchandise.\u00c2\u00a0 Nothing derails a cleverly planned marketing campaign more than unofficial merchandise springing up all over the place and I for one am on the bands side.\u00c2\u00a0 I agree that photographers given access to photograph a band shouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t then exploit them by selling images for unofficial merchandise like calendars and posters.\u00c2\u00a0 We should however have the right to sell a good image on to other publishers.<\/p>\n

\"51whkl7gc6L._SY300_\"<\/p>\n

Unfortunately in the last few years – probably brought on by the increase in illegal downloads – the artist managers and legal teams have looked for a way to re-address who was getting the raw deal in the music industry, the photographer or the artist?\u00c2\u00a0 Their answer, to lean heavily on the photographer by issuing an aggressive \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcall rights\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 exploitation contract usually issued just before the act is due on stage.\u00c2\u00a0 If you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t sign, you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get into the pit.<\/p>\n

It is like going to your butchers and asking for half a dozen sausages and the butcher sells them to you only on the condition that his wife and family join you for dinner! \u00c2\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Well you could say, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcbut you get a front row seat to see some top artists for free!\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 \u00c2\u00a0If I wanted to go see a ‘top artist’ I would buy a ticket and enjoy the show with a beer in my hand!<\/p>\n

\"IRON<\/p>\n

This is work.\u00c2\u00a0 I am not there to sing along to the lyrics or play air guitar (although some photographers do!).\u00c2\u00a0 We are there to capture the moment which full-fills our commitment to who ever commissioned us to be there. Yes it is fun, it is exciting and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why I got into it.\u00c2\u00a0 But it wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t that artist now on stage who helped me build my portfolio, or persuaded me to spend years photographing unknown bands in dive bars for free, or phoned countless picture editors begging for work, who trawled the streets with my portfolio knocking on doors.\u00c2\u00a0 I did that because I knew if I could make a living doing this, it would make me happy (and it has made me happy\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6so far!).\u00c2\u00a0 That artist didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t buy my first camera or the one I use now that is \u00c2\u00a35000. I had to work in jobs that I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to be doing and spend everything I got on lenses, film, processing and equipment.\u00c2\u00a0 Not to mention travelling the breadth of the country photographing anything with a guitar to gain experience and learn the skill of shooting shows.\u00c2\u00a0 I earned my place in the pit and so has the majority of photographers who are privileged to be there.<\/p>\n

\"ACDC\"<\/p>\n

When you are down the front in the pit your first thoughts aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t about how I can exploit the artist.\u00c2\u00a0 You are getting ready to anticipate how you are going to get the best out of this show.\u00c2\u00a0 Your earplugs go in, you set your camera to a rough setting in preparation to the show and the unknown entity of what lights there may or may not be.\u00c2\u00a0 You weigh up where the best angle will be to avoid the frame being obstructed by mike stands or monitors.\u00c2\u00a0 What side is the lead guitarists and you mentally note where you will shoot from for the guitar solo.\u00c2\u00a0 Once the show starts that is when the chaos begins.\u00c2\u00a0 Where you thought the singer will be goes completely out the window when the singer struts on stage and kicks the mike stand over narrowly missing you. Beer rains overhead and bodies start to pile over the front of the pit as stage divers and crowd surfers fall over the barrier like leaves sucked down a storm drain.\u00c2\u00a0 The singer never stays still long enough to get a good composition and the light is so low you are desperately trying to find a shutter speed that is high enough to freeze him.\u00c2\u00a0 Just when you think you have a great shot you are pushed out of the way by security carrying an over zealous fan. Your thoughts of a full double page spread live review in next months magazine are fading fast.\u00c2\u00a0 There is a direct coloration between the quality of a shot and the coverage you will get in the mag and how much you earn.\u00c2\u00a0 You also need to shoot every member, sharp and well exposed and get a wide shot of the entire stage.\u00c2\u00a0 If you can do all of this in 3 songs with no flash, you will make a great music photographer.\u00c2\u00a0 We are then usually ejected from the venue.\u00c2\u00a0 The job is usually over and done with in little over 10 minutes.<\/p>\n

\"MILES<\/p>\n

So to go through all that and then hand over the rights is just exploitation.<\/p>\n

By signing the \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcagreement\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 you herby transfer all intellectual world-wide rights to the artist.\u00c2\u00a0 The \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcartist\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 now owns your copyright and you have no ownership or right to use your images anywhere other than the single use stated in the agreement.\u00c2\u00a0 On average I would say most new photographers shooting an average size band in an average size venue receives about \u00c2\u00a360-100.\u00c2\u00a0 Bigger shows and more space in a magazine the photographer will earn anything from \u00c2\u00a3100-\u00c2\u00a3300.\u00c2\u00a0 it isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t life changing money at first but if you shoot enough shows you can make a living, build up an archival image library that has the potential to be of value into the future.\u00c2\u00a0 This rights grab prevents any chance of a second sale. If the magazine that commissioned you wants to run a poster of that artist next month which could earn you \u00c2\u00a3300-\u00c2\u00a3500 you aren’t able to do so.\u00c2\u00a0 But, the artist now has the right to supply the magazine you worked for with the image you took for free.\u00c2\u00a0 You get nothing, but the indignity of feeling exploited.<\/p>\n

\"slip\"<\/p>\n

Thankfully I work for several high profile bands and work directly with artist management who appreciate the need for good photography.\u00c2\u00a0 I occasionally give all rights to use my images but the difference is they pay me for it.\u00c2\u00a0 They appreciate that if I promise I will deliver a great set of pictures I will be true to my word because I am more than qualified to do the job well and have the right tools for the job.\u00c2\u00a0 But I am only in this position because I have been able to make a living as a photographer and establish myself over many years.\u00c2\u00a0 I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t say the same for my contemporary\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s who are just entering the music photography world.\u00c2\u00a0 How can they afford to upgrade equipment and make a living if there is no way of selling their pictures on?<\/p>\n

\"MILES<\/p>\n

The music industry needs to realise these photographers in the pit have already gone through a lot to earn their position there and deserve a little more respect.\u00c2\u00a0 By all means issue contracts preventing the sale of pictures for merchandise but don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t take away our ability to make a living.<\/p>\n

JOHN McMURTRIE<\/p>\n

All images are copyright JOHN McMURTRIE<\/p>\n

jmc@picturedesk.co.uk<\/p>\n

None of the bands pictured in this post have ‘RIGHTS’ grab contracts. \u00c2\u00a0I should also add the publisher I regularly work for refuses to deal with bands that issue unreasonable contracts.<\/p>\n

News piece on Jason Sheldon’s letter.<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-england-birmingham-33232244<\/a><\/p>\n

IRON MAIDEN – ‘ON BOARD FLIGHT 666’ by JOHN McMURTRIE<\/p>\n

http:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/Board-Flight-666-Iron-Maiden\/dp\/1409137597\/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&sr=&qid=<\/a><\/p>\n

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I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have the guts to take my camera off to a war zone, yet here I am in a battle with the Music Industry.\u00c2\u00a0 I am fighting for my right of ownership of my pictures and to receive a … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1437","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1437","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1437"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1437\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1454,"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1437\/revisions\/1454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1437"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1437"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.picturedesk.co.uk\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1437"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}