Artistic Reference

I'm often asked by artists, for permission to create art based on a photo of mine, so I've provided this short information page for reference.

I find it a huge compliment to have photos selected by people who, by the nature of their work, have an eye for an image. Before photography, I used to draw from photo references myself, and spent much time trawling around for something interesting to draw. Since I'm now taking photos myself, I'm more than happy to help those who are looking for reference material, and am pretty reasonable about doing so.

Low Key Lion PortraitLarge male lion, photographed against a dark background.
Captive subject, UK. Licencing

If you would like to create artwork based on one of my photos, the following options are available:

• "Amateur" Licence: 
  • Use for reference is free to amateurs / hobbyists, as long as the derivative work is not sold.
  • Note that you can start with an amateur licence, and upgrade to pro if you decide to sell your work.
  • Completed work should be accompanied with a discreet attribution/credit to source material when displayed or shared online.
• "Pro" Licence 
  • For any works which are sold.
  • My written permission is required for this.
  • The fee is 10% of the sale price.

Please note: Any sale or creation of derivative works for commercial use is not permitted without my written consent, and breaks copyright law, not to mention is quite rude. Please play fair.

Contact Me

The best way to cover yourself legally is just to get in touch, providing the following information:

• Your name and country.
• A link to the photo(s) you'd like to use, either from my website or my Flickr back-catalogue.
• Which licence you intend to use.

I can then get back to you and provide permission to use the image(s).

Share Your Art

Finally, once you've finished, please do share your work with me - I'd love to see it.

If you have a Facebook page or Twitter account, please mention mine when you share your work, and I'll re-share it from my page.

At some stage, I'd like to create a gallery here of other people's interpretations of my photos, with some links back to your website/twitter/etc, so let me know if that's something you'd like to be involved with.