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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Shooting for a university or college
Dannie Walls, Photographer
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Charlotte | NC | USA | Posted: 12:33 AM on 01.29.10 |
| ->> I was wondering what sorta prices can you get from a school and how they would rather pay, by event or a yearly fee. I know we have alot of shooters that work for/with schools so i'm looking for some ballpark rates. |
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Keith Kountz, Photographer, Assistant
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Fresno | CA | USA | Posted: 12:56 AM on 01.29.10 |
| ->> If...you get money, they usually pay per event. Most schools pay freelancer's by photo credit only. Good Luck! |
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Mike Janes, Photographer
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Attica | NY | USA | Posted: 3:19 AM on 01.29.10 |
| ->> I do freelance work for some colleges and they pay by a day fee, though as Keith said many do try to get it free nowadays with people trading access for photos. Price can differ from a D1 to JC as the usage is completely different. One college looking to change photographers has said they do not do it by a yearly fee anymore because the yearly sum screwed up how it's seen in the business office (not sure of that one?). Only ones I know who do it by the entire year though are those with full time staffers. |
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Steven E. Frischling, Photographer
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| | | Posted: 7:42 AM on 01.29.10 |
->> Dannie,
I lost out on a very profitable NCAA D1 contract I had for a few years to someone who now shoots for the school in exchange for the proceeds from the prints sales from each game.
From what I understand 'big games' garner about 4 to 6 prints sold per game, while smaller sports and games get maybe one print sold per game.
I'm sure its a great deal for the school...except the quality of work is horrible. |
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Walt Middleton, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Columbus | OH | USA | Posted: 8:11 AM on 01.29.10 |
->> Typically day rates... on occasion game rates (Which usualy end up about day rates)
NEVER NEVER NEVER TRADE FOR ACCESS... Even if you are a great Photographer... Two things will happen...
1, that school will never pay you for another gig...
2, you would have just encouraged that school to look for FREE again...
So, my advice. Pick a day rate that you can live with and stick with it. |
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TD Paulius, Photographer
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Orland Park | IL | USA | Posted: 9:19 AM on 01.29.10 |
| ->> I would expect that many of you, as I have been, will be shortly contacted by your school clients with new policies that athletic departments are budgetary conscious these days and you shall find out that individual sports have been given budgets, which are not as profitable in the past. |
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Willis Glassgow, Photo Editor, Photographer
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Florence | SC | USA | Posted: 10:08 AM on 01.31.10 |
| ->> I almost exclusively work with colleges and universities and as Mike said earlier it varies from DI to JC. It also varies by state, region and even conference. And there is no rhyme or reason. One DI school that I do work for complains that I charge too much while a DII from the same state is happy with a price just below the DI rate. I have lost several contracts and clients to guys either working for free (just a field pass) and guys working just for the right to sell images. Luckily for our business, the economy tanked and the of business selling prints is dying. We NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, EVER work for free. We get paid for EVERY assignment we shoot. I don't care how cool the assignment is, we do not shoot it, unless we have an agreement before hand to be paid for that game. Let me give you some examples. I shoot ALOT of college football. Last year I shot 25 college football games. But yet, I have NEVER shot the FCS Championship game in Chattanooga. I could get credentials easily since I work with the college that host the championship. I haven't covered it, because none of my clients have made it that far and I had no client to shoot for. So I watch it on TV. I have also never shot a bowl game or a final four or a Super Bowl or a World Series. Why?....No client. I just don't work for free. |
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Thomas B. Shea, Photographer
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Pearland/Houston | TX | USA | Posted: 11:30 AM on 01.31.10 |
->> Here in the Houston Area, Rice and UH have yearly contracts for the sports photographers. They have agreed on a price for the whole school year. I was the University of Houston staff photographer for 7 years. I shot for the marketing department and news department of the University so I shot many UH sports as an assignment. The SID would see me at the game and because I was being paid as a staff photographer by the school , the Sports Information Director could get my sports photographs for free. Now I shoot just for the College of Engineering at UH. I sometimes shoot UH sports for different clients,but I no longer give SID my pictures for free. I don't have to I own these sports pictures. Before the school own them and I didn't have a choice. Once you give someone free photos they will never expect to pay.
On another note I have been the Houston Dynamo photographer for the past 4 years. Last week I was called and told that they can no longer afford my fees. They didn't even tell me what they could afford, they just told me they had to find someone that could fit their budget. I am guessing someone emailed them and told them they would work for free for passes. I am sure their free price will show in their work. This is very frustrating to me, I make my living as a photographer. I don't give away my pictures. Now someone is giving away their pictures or working for way below market value and I have lost a client with a decent contract. |
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Randy Abrams, Photographer
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Bath | NY | US | Posted: 12:49 PM on 01.31.10 |
| ->> I've never shot for a college, but it seems like they would take advantage of student photographers a lot. That gives them free shots (could be a work study type of setup for the student) that most likely would be fine for their school websites and media guides. Does anyone see a lot of students shooting at the colleges? |
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Nate Ryan, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Northfield | MN | | Posted: 8:42 PM on 01.31.10 |
->> I am a student, and I do shoot a lot for the school. I'm shooting for both the sports information and media relations departments. Unfortunately I do not get paid better than any student sitting at building help desk doing their homework. but the experience is very helpful. I think my school (DIII) will start needing to hire more outside help after I graduate this spring.
However, I just got stuck dealing with the alumni magazine, which would like to use a photo I shot when not working for the school. But apparently IRS rules will not allow them to pay me as an independent contractor at the same time as I have a work study account. Still trying to sort it out. |
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Michael Durisseau, Photographer, Assistant
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Santa Fe/Houston | TX | USA | Posted: 8:56 PM on 01.31.10 |
->> Hey, Tom,
Sorry to hear about your deal with the Dynamo going down the tubes...perhaps they will find out you get what you pay for in that case... |
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Jesse Beals, Photographer
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Tracyton | WA | USA | Posted: 3:00 AM on 02.01.10 |
->> Lots depends on the college. I have heard from other shooters they get between $150-$400 a game, and thats about the average I get when I shoot for Universities. A lot depends on the school and there budget, but you also have to be careful. The Universities when they hire you get all the rights to your photos unless you get that put in fine print before you sign the contract.
Good luck and don't take accept any tickets / school clothing in return for photo shoots. This kills the market for the rest of us. |
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Mike Janes, Photographer
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Attica | NY | USA | Posted: 4:02 AM on 02.01.10 |
| ->> Randy - I know of a few colleges in our area that do that, have student photographers that just hand over everything (usually working with the school paper and the athletics department gets them free). Shot a game with them a few years ago and by the end felt like my head was banging into a wall having to listen to them. They said a lot of things in front of the media director and other "higher ups" from the local pro team they shouldn't have...and you had to love the reasoning for giving gifts (prints) to players - "because they're on the team and we don't want to upset them" or something along those lines, along with a full description of how they sell to anyone else, just not athletes. Not sure those colleges had paid photographers, just students. However, off the top of my head can not think of any others in our area that do not have paid freelancers coming in - some good, some not so good - and pay is not the greatest, but it never has been in our area. |
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Chuck Steenburgh, Photographer
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Lexington | VA | USA | Posted: 6:29 AM on 02.01.10 |
->> "The Universities when they hire you get all the rights to your photos unless you get that put in fine print before you sign the contract."
Jesse, this really isn't true...they may try to bully you into believing this, but if you are a freelancer then this does not constitute a "work for hire" arrangement unless your agreement specifies that.
I shoot for a DI school on a game-by-game basis and retain the rights to my photos...in addition to being paid for each game, we have a revenue-sharing agreement for print sales made via their site and I also earned a separate fee when some of my images were used in a scope outside our normal arrangement (billboard campaign). |
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Peter Buehner, Photographer
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Orono | ME | USA | Posted: 6:48 AM on 02.01.10 |
->> I work for a University and get paid on a yearly basis. As of now, the public affairs department hires a photog to shoot for them as well since I don't have a contract and the University understands that the photos are mine (well, public affairs understands that and won't use them without written permission). The money isn't great but falls within the $150-$400 range mentioned above.
Once my contract gets ironed out, I think that the entire University will have usage to my photos for promotion purposes only (no commercial usage).
The school is also very liberal in handing out press passes to anyone who asks so it isn't uncommon to be shooting next to a couple of students who shoot for free. The school paper pays a couple of bucks a photo (literally $2)and has a couple of floating credentials for any who say they will shoot a game or event.
Peter |
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