Photographers: the usage-license and RAW-files clauses clients keep asking about

"Can we get all the RAW files?"

If your contract doesn't say who owns what — and whether RAWs are even for sale — that question turns into an unpaid second shoot. Here's how I write the usage-license and RAW clauses so the answer is already in the SOW.

What the client actually buys

They buy edited deliverables plus a usage license. They do not buy your camera, your catalog, or your copyright unless you sell those separately.

Write the deliverables so a stranger could check them off:

• [N]-hour session at [location]
• [N] professionally edited images (color + light retouch)
• Online gallery delivery within [N] business days
• Web-resolution and print-resolution files
• Usage license as described below

Put these in "out of scope"

• Advanced retouching (body/skin, compositing, object removal)
• Additional hours on site (billed per 30 min)
• Travel beyond [N] miles / parking / permits
• Prints, albums and products
• RAW / unedited files

That last line is the one that stops the "just send the RAWs" email from becoming free work.

Usage license (the clause that matters)

Keep copyright. License the use.

• Usage license: Client receives a [personal / commercial, specify media and duration] license. Photographer retains copyright.
• Upgrade path: commercial usage license as a separate line item (flat fee), not buried in the session price.

Portrait pricing for a brand shoot is a scope problem, not a courtesy. Price the commercial license up front.

RAW files: sell them or refuse them — pick one

Two clean options:

1. Not included. RAWs stay with you. Say so in exclusions. Offer a commercial-license upgrade on edited files instead.
2. Sold as an add-on. Name the price (per session or per set) in the quote table so "can we get the RAWs?" has a number attached.

Do not leave it silent. Silence is how RAWs become a free deliverable.

Revisions vs. a new edit

Clients pick favourites from a proofing gallery; [1] round of minor edit requests on the selected set is included. Re-editing in a different style (new color grade, heavy retouch, crop language) is a new edit — change order, not a free revision.

Other clauses that save shoots

• Weather & reschedule: Outdoor sessions may be moved once at no charge for weather. Client reschedules with <[48] hours' notice forfeit the deposit.
• Model releases: Client is responsible for obtaining releases from people featured in commercial shoots unless agreed otherwise.

Scope-creep red flags

• "Can we get all the raw files?"
• Brand shoot booked at portrait pricing
• "Just a few quick headshots" for an entire team

Each of those is a change order, not a favour.

If a client is already late on the balance after delivery, here's a free late-fee clause and email: https://opspack.vercel.app/late-fee

If you want this pre-filled: the Client Contract & Scope Kit for Photographers ($19) has the proposal, SOW, plain-English services agreement, change-request triage, scope-creep emails, revision log, late-invoice emails and the photographer niche guide this post is based on: https://opspack.vercel.app/kits/client-contract-kit-photographers — or browse all templates from $5: https://opspack.vercel.app/kits

Templates are a starting point, not legal advice.