Penny Bird terms of service and photography contract

Please read these terms of service carefully before accepting a quote, booking your session, or making any payment. By accepting a quote or making a booking, you agree to these terms on behalf of all participants in your party.

1. Booking a Session

To get started, you’re welcome to book a free discovery call via Zoom or phone Penny Bird on +44 (0)7903 188611. This chat is your chance to check we’re a good fit, ask questions, and explore your brief and availability.

Once you’ve made your decision, you can book online or confirm by phone or email at penny@pennybird.co.uk.

After your brief is received, Penny Bird will send you a quote. You can accept, decline or amend this as needed.

When is your session confirmed? A booking becomes binding once the quote is accepted and/or the session fee is paid. At this point, a contract is in place.

2. Cancellation, Rescheduling, and Force Majeure

Client cancellations: The session fee is non-refundable. However, if you give what Penny deems reasonable notice - usually enough time to fill the slot - she’ll reschedule at no extra cost. A second rescheduling will incur a 10% administration fee.

No-shows or late cancellations may forfeit the session fee. Sessions are not transferable without prior agreement.

Force Majeure: If Penny Bird must cancel or amend the session due to circumstances beyond her control (e.g., illness, extreme weather, or equipment failure), you’ll receive a full refund of any session fee paid.

3. Prices and Validity

All prices are fixed until March 31st each year and may increase annually in line with inflation. Quotes remain valid for seven days from the date of issue unless otherwise stated. Please refer to the website for current pricing.

4. Health and Safety

  • General risks: Clients attend sessions at their own risk and are expected to follow current UK Government Public Health guidance.

  • Supervision: A responsible adult must supervise any young people or animals during the session. Please inform Penny of any allergies - especially as a pet is present in the home studio.

  • Venue rules: You agree to comply with any site-specific health and safety requirements imposed by a session location.

5. Insurance and Liability

Penny Bird maintains full public liability and professional indemnity insurance. Should an unforeseen event result in photographic failure or cancellation, liability is strictly limited to the total value of the contract. If you need the insurance schedule for a venue, please request it.

6. Photoshoot Guidelines

  • Artistic Licence: Penny will use her creative judgment regarding lighting, styling, and composition. She’ll always aim to deliver to your brief, but some flexibility is required based on conditions. Her decisions on image selection and creative interpretation are final.

  • Events and Weddings: Please provide a list of essential formal photographs, including names and relationships. Assign a coordinator if needed. Penny is not responsible for missed shots due to uncooperative subjects, lateness, or restrictions from venue staff or ceremony officials.

7. Delivery of Photographs

  • Galleries and AI protection: To ensure your images remain protected against the latest AI-based watermark removal tools, all galleries are delivered in low resolution and overlaid with an AI-resistant watermark. Your final high-resolution files will be delivered in full quality, watermark free.

  • Your privacy: Your images will never be knowingly submitted to AI training datasets or image banks. All efforts are made to store and deliver your files securely via SmugMug and private backup tools.

  • Copyright and Licensing: Penny Bird retains full copyright on all images. Unless you opt out, she may use your images in her portfolio, on her website, or for promotional purposes.

  • Relicensing of Business/Product/Dog imagery: In some exceptional cases, business photographs that are non-identifiable or generic in nature (for example, hands typing, back-of-head shots, or product details) may be re-licensed by Penny Bird to carefully selected third-party businesses for their own marketing or editorial use. This will never include sensitive or exploitative contexts, and identifiable images will not be re-licensed without express written permission from the client.

Upon full payment, you are granted a worldwide, non-exclusive license to use the images for your personal or business needs, excluding resale, redistribution, or competition entry. Credit is appreciated but not required unless otherwise agreed in writing.

  • Image release and editing: Penny selects the best images and applies her premium signature edit. Unedited files or RAWs are never released. Standard retouching is included. Advanced editing or additional requests may incur extra charges—quoted upon request.

  • Use of AI tools in standard retouching: Penny uses various AI tools for tasks such as extending and cleaning up backdrops, removing shine or light bounce, reflections in glasses, temporary blemishes from skin and dodging and burning. It is a principle of the business never to use these tools for face or body reshaping or over editing of images, unless specifically agreed with the client in advance.

  • AI and manipulation clause: Images may not be altered in a way that misrepresents Penny Bird’s work, including the use of AI image-generation tools or machine learning platforms. This includes uploading photographs to services that create derivative works, style transfers, or deepfakes.

  • Image specifications: Requests for specific sizing or keyword embedding must be made at the time of booking and are included in your session fee.

  • Galleries and delivery: All images are delivered via a secure online gallery service called SmugMug. Your gallery can be made password protected on request, helping keep your images out of the public domain - please ask.

  • Turnaround: Finished images are typically delivered within 48 hours to 14 days of your session, depending on the nature of the shoot.

If your session fee excludes images, you’ll receive a SmugMug gallery to view and purchase selected images directly. The gallery will be available for a period agreed in advance.

  • Storage: Digital files are backed up for a minimum of 12 months. However, if files are lost, damaged or destroyed beyond Penny Bird’s control, no liability may be claimed.

8. After Service

  • File recovery: If you lose your digital files within 12 months of the shoot, Penny will reactivate the gallery link free of charge. After this period, an admin fee applies for deep archive retrieval.

  • Post-delivery requests: Additional editing, resizing or keywording requests made after seven days from gallery delivery will incur an admin fee and be quoted for editing time.

  • Complaints: If you’re dissatisfied with any part of the service or product, please notify Penny Bird in writing within seven days of the session or receiving your images. She’ll do her best to resolve it quickly and fairly.

9. Privacy and Data Protection

  • Data collection: Personal data is collected only where necessary to fulfil the contract or comply with legal obligations. This may happen via website forms, email, phone, social media or online booking tools.

  • How your data is used: It’s used solely to deliver your services, understand client needs and improve experiences. Your data is stored securely and in line with GDPR, and is typically deleted after 6–10 years.

  • Access and security: You may request access to or deletion of your data at any time by contacting penny@pennybird.co.uk. In the event of a security breach, you’ll be notified promptly.

10. Governing Law and Disputes

This contract is governed by English Law. Any disputes will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts. However, both parties agree to make reasonable efforts to resolve any concerns informally before taking legal action.