Competing Usage

Here's the bottom line: With royalty-free photos you can not have any idea whatsoever, or any control over, who else is going to use them or how they are going to use them. Period.

So, the instant you contemplate using a royalty-free photo in your project, there is a very important question to ask yourself, and then some elements to answering it systematically that we will describe below:

The Question To Ask:

Does it matter if someone else uses the exact same photo?

Now, that seems like a pretty simple question, but, when you go to answer it, you realize that it depends on a variety of factors. The fact is, if you use a royalty-free photo, there is a chance that, indeed, such competing uses might occur. But since there is definitely a price advantage (and other advantages, as well) to using royalty-free photos, answering “the question” can also involve assessing “odds”, as well as thinking-through just how much of a problem it would be if someone else uses the photo in a way that you'd prefer they didn't.

So, let's talk about some of the ways to assess and think about those issues...

How To Answer It:

The components that will lead you to your answer fall into three areas. Let's take them one at a time:

1. What, really, are the odds?

A few years ago, the odds that someone would use the same royalty-free photo as you were much greater than they are now. Back then there were relatively few photos available as royalty-free, so everyone was fishing in the same rather small pond.

That is no longer the case. Although the quality of the imagery can be very... uneven... there is lot of new photographic material entering the market as royalty-free. Every time a new royalty-free photo enters the arena, the odds of competing usage diminish further just that little bit, simply because there are that many more images to pick from. So, yes, the odds are improving day by day, but there is still no certainty...

How To Improve Your Odds

Buy single images. It's that simple.

Are we telling you not to buy discs or subscriptions at all? Not by a long shot. From a price point of view, disc collections and subscriptions are the most cost-efficient way to purchase high-end photography that the planet has so far seen.

That's why so many people do it.

But remember: There are lots of royalty-free photos out there, and only some of them are marketed as parts of disc volumes or as subscriptions. But, those images are the ones that will tend to be used more than the ones that can only be purchased as single images.

It's simple mathematics: On a project where you DO want to use a royalty-free photo, but the nature of the project is such that you want to increase your odds of not having to contend with a competing usage, buying a single image that is not on a disc or in a subscription will improve your odds dramatically.

2. Even if someone else does use the same picture, will it really matter?

It is reflexive and understandable to view the notion of a competitor using the same picture as you do with a degree of ... chagrin (or worse) ...

However, since the only way to absolutely preclude such an occurrence is to purchase a rights managed image at far greater cost than royalty-free, if the odds seem to be with you (see above) our recommendation is to assess and weigh the following factors as you decide:

Do the pictures have people/models in them?

Viewers remember pictures with people in them far longer, and far more specifically, than pictures that do not have people in them.

Therefore, if the picture you're thinking of using does not have models in it, your chances of being embarrassed by a competing usage-- even if it does happen-- are far less. People aren't going to remember, necessarily, that they've seen the same picture used twice.

Will you be using the project as the “major visual” in the project?

If not, if the picture is secondary or supportive or essentially just one of many “graphic elements”, the competing use issue is diminished considerably, possibly to insignificance. After all, the viewer is going to key in on whatever you do use as the “major visual”, so if you protect that, it might very well be sufficient.

Incidentally, that's why, as you'll see as you read on, many savvy art directors are using a combination for their projects: Rights-managed photos for the major visuals, and royalty-free photos for the backgrounds, objects, and supporting elements. It makes good sense.

Will you be altering the picture or only using part of it?

Are you going to change, crop, alter or rework the image? Obviously, as you move away from the look and feel of the original image the competing use problem diminishes accordingly.

How broadly will the piece be distributed?

Is the distribution of my piece broad enough to even worry about this?

Doing an in-house presentation? A local newsletter? A Web page buried seven levels down? Who cares if someone else uses the picture? Royalty-free makes complete sense.

While at first blush you might say to yourself, “No, it would be too awful to be embarrassed by having someone use the same picture in the same way,” it's a good idea not to be too restrictive in your thinking, since there unquestionably are significant cost and logistical advantages to royalty-free photos, especially when you consider number three, below:

3. Do you really want to pay for rights protection -- and will you really get it?

Ultimately, that's the question you're going to have to answer if you want to significantly reduce -- or eliminate altogether -- the risk that the same image will be used by someone else in a way that conflicts with yours.

Many, many times, that is exactly the way you should go: getting the extra protection, as well as access to images that exist only as rights managed.

However, if you do, be sure that you fully understand the protection you are getting from the photo agency as part of the price you are paying. Don't assume you are getting “full” protection. Quite often, you must pay extra for the level of protection that will make you comfortable. On the other hand, if you're not careful, you will wind up paying for certain aspects of protection that you actually don't need.

Negotiating a fair price for a rights managed image can be tricky, and you need to have a clear field of vision, and it helps to know some inside tips.

That's why we've produced a guide for exactly this issue: How to get the edge in negotiating fees for rights managed images. You can access it at:

Demystifying Rights Managed Purchasing