contracts

BWShooter: I have no experience with these kinds of contracts, but I'll take a shot at it. Are there any professional or trade organizations out there for photographers? Perhaps they would have a website that either contained form contracts or links to sites that have form contracts.

Also try Nolo Press: they publish a lot of books for non-lawyers on a variety of legal subjects, including drafting contracts (although I'm not sure if there's anything that is directly related to model contracts).

Hope this helps.

I bet if you work through an agency, they will already have a standard contract. Read it.

There are several hundred examples out on the WWW. Try a Google search on "Model Release".

Just keep in mind that as you play with the wording you may muck things up enough to make the release useless - or worse, harmful to yourself. Draft one up and have a legal professional look it over for you just to be sure.

so far I have this:

This contract is made between ________________,
whose address is __________________________,
hereinafter referred to as the photographer ,
and ,
whose address is _________________________ ,
hereinafter referred to as the model/client.
In consideration of mutual promises and forebearances, the
parties agree as follows:
Author's Grant.
The model grants permission to be photographed knowingly for
a work of approximately _______ photos, hereinafter referred to
as a portfolio, which may or may not be published in {clothbound and/or trade paper
and/or mass market paper edition(s)} by the photographer.
Right's Purchased.
(a). This use of the work by the photographer entails the
assignment , for
publication in the English language anywhere in the world.
It is also understood and agreed that the photographer may
use this Work only in the above-mentioned fashion and
reprintings of it, and that the Author shall retain all
other rights to the Work not specified here.
(b). This use of the Work by the photographer entails the
assignment of purchasing rights, both in the
English language and in translation anywhere in the world,
and in clothbound, paperback, book club, reprint.
It is also understood and agreed
that the photographer may use this work only in the above-
mentioned fashion and reprintings of it, and that the
photographer shall retain all other rights to the Work not
specified here.
The photographer grants permission for transcription of the Work
into tape, talking, or oversized type book, only in
the case that the Work is selected for such
transcription by an organization.
The photographer agrees to provide proper
copyright information about the Work, and to provide
information about the source of first publication for proper
credits.
Payments and Royalties.
(a). For the rights granted to the model/client above, which will be paid within thirty (30) days of signing this agreement. earned by the photographs equal the total amount paid out , the model will receive a 50/50 pro rata share of the earnings, if any, earnings to include all income from trade, book club, reprint, translation, and foreign sales of the photos , or any subsidiary rights sales income received by the photographer for this work.
From all earnings received by the photographer, less agent's fees for representation of the photographs, fifty percent (50%) will be distributed to the parties involved on a pro rata basis in terms of the published word count of the Work at least twice each calendar year, on or before June 30th and December 30th. All other expenses other than agent's fees and advances against royalties must be met by the Anthologist for his/her share.(b). For the rights granted to the Anthologist above, the Author will receive a payment in the sum of $______, which will be paid within thirty (30) days of {signing this agreement/publication of the anthology}.
In the event of sale of the photographs to a mass market publisher for reprint publication, the Author will receive a 50/50 pro rate share of the photographs earnings, if any, earnings to include all income from trade, book club, reprint, translation, and foreign sales of the anthology, or 90 any subsidiary rights sales income received by the photographer for said work.
From all earnings received by the photographer, less agent's fees for representation of the anthology, fifty per cent (50%) will be distributed to the photographer on a pro rata basis in terms of the published photographs of the work at least twice each calendar year, on or before June 30th and December 30th. All other expenses other than agent's fees and advances gains royalties must be met by the photographers from his/her share.
Access to Records.
In the event of photographer's failure to make timely payment, the Author may have access in person or by his/her agents or by power of attorney to all financial records of the above-named anthology upon presentation of a copy of this agreement to the appropriate location of said records. Authors' Warranties and Indemnities. The photographer represents and warrants that he/she is the sole author(s) of the work, that the work is original, and that no one has reserved the rights granted in this agreement. The photographer also represents, to the best of his/her knowledge, that the work does not contain any libelous material, and is not in violation of any rights of privacy or any other rights of third persons, and does not violate any existing common law or statutory copyrights, and has not been published before in any form.
The model agrees to hold the photographer harmless against
any judgement finally sustained that the work contains libel,
plagiarism and/or invasion of privacy.
No competing Publication.
The photographer agrees not to publish or permit others to
publish this work in any form prior to its publication and
appearance in the above-named work,
nor until six months after the appearance of the work.
Author's Copies.
The photographer agrees to provide the model with one
complimentary copy of the original edition of the work
upon publication, and to the best of his ability, to provide
copies of other editions that may be published in North
America, and to inform model of any other editions which
are planned or may appear.
The photographer agrees to inform the client of his/her
current address.
Changes in Text or Title.
The photographer agrees to make reasonable efforts to notify the model in advance of any editorial changes in title and/or text of the work, and to secure the models approval for any such changes whenever possible.
The model agrees that such approval will not be unreasonably withheld.
The photographer will furnish the model with galley proof or
page proof of the work. The photographer agrees to return such proof
with corrections in not more than thirty (30) days from
receipt thereof.
Reversion of Rights.
In the event that the above-mentioned collection of photographs has not been published within 24 months of signing of this agreement, rights revert to the model, and the photographer has the right to sell or arrange for publication of the above- named work in any manner, with the reservation that the model will have the non-exclusive, one-time right to include the above-named work in an collection of photos about {the theme and/or principal content of this work} at any time in the future without paying any additional monies beyond those already paid to the Model under this agreement, and without prejudice to all other rights of the
in this agreement. The photographer is expected to make no repayment of advances if for any reason--publication delays or otherwise--rights under this agreement have reverted to 168 the Author.
Copyright. The photographer agrees to list a proper copyright notice for the Work in the name of the Author in the front matter of the work, and to take all necessary steps to protect the Author's copyright in the United States, and in the International Copyright Union. Venue. This agreement shall be deemed executed under the laws of the state of {photographer's or model's state of residence}. _____{State} law shall be the applicable law of this agreement.
The parties acknowledge that each had read and understood this contract before execution. In witness whereof the parties have executed this contract in duplication originals on this _____day of ______.
Photographer or client's agent Date If signed by Agent, give Agent's address where payment should be sent.___________________________ ___________________________
Author/Agent Social Security or Tax ID Number ___________________________
Please sign and return all copies.
One copy signed by all parties will be returned for your files.

BWShooter: Where did you find this? Author? Anthologist? Who are these people? This looks like a mix of a number of different contracts. As it stands, it's something of a mess.

I would strongly suggest you seek an attorney to draw up a contract that is legal and binding. It is worth every cent if something happens to go wrong, which it may with this sort of thing.

You need firm legal representation with this. Do shop around for price and a lawyer that will give you the time that will give you a binding contract. If you happen to get sued later, you can also sue an attorney for not properly representing your interest. Don't expect this to be fun! So go for a good attorney the first go at it, not the lowest bidder. Know what you are paying for and use someone thorough at a price you can agree on. It may not be cheap, but neither will a future law suit.

Don't do this at home! You need legal representation.