I allow to use my pictures for free in some cases, but please read and observe my requirements listed below.
Usage rights summary:
| Personal, in print | Free |
| Personal, on Web | Free with hyperlinked credit and inscription on larger images; see useful recommendations below |
| Commercial and non-profit, on Web | Requires registration, usually allowed for free with hyperlinked credit and inscription on larger images |
| Commercial, in print | May be purchased, ask |
| Non-profit, in print | Can be free for some organizations, ask |
Specifically, use in a scientific presentation: if the presentation is distributed electronically in any way, please make sure it includes a tiny photo credit line containing "Vadim Makarov www.vad1.com" on all slides where my photos are used. The credit line does not necessarily have to be discernible when you project the slides (yes you can make it unobtrusive), but should be present in the electronic file on the slide(s) where you use my photos.
It is possible to order quality prints of my images (Fuji Frontier digital prints made on standard photo paper, archival quality). 20x30cm is my favorite size, but larger or smaller print sizes are also available. Please email for exact price.
For framing photographs, see my advice.
My pictures are available in several sizes. You may try to reach files with endings given in this table:
| 128x192 thumnbnail | |
| 170x255 thumnbnail | |
| 256x384 (large thumbnail) | |
| 512x768 | |
| 1024x1536 | |
| original scan size, typically 2592x3888; only few photos are available on-line in this size |
For example, to fetch a 256x384 thumbnail for use on your page, you take the URL of my image
For a particular image, some sizes may not be available, as well as they may differ from those given in the table. For best quality, I recommend you to stick to available image sizes. If you must resize, start from the largest file available and apply appropriate sharpening after scaling it down.
The easiest way to use my picture is to
You may also host HTML page with large image on your server and link to my site from that page.
If you want to present my images in any other way, then an explicit hyperlinked credit is required on every page where the image(s) are used. Examples of the credit line:
I guarantee not to break any link to my HTML pages. You should, however, download all my JPEG files that you are using to your server and use these downloaded copies on your pages.Photographs courtesy <a href="http://www.vad1.com/">Vadim Makarov</a>
Photo by <a href="http://www.vad1.com/photo/">Vadim Makarov</a>
Photos from <a href="http://www.vad1.com/photo/lights-trondheim/">Lights of Trondheim</a> gallery
If your site uses frames, I recommend you to include target="_top" in all your links to my site, e.g. <a href="http://www.vad1.com/" target="_top">Vadim Makarov</a>. This is better for usability reasons.
The reason for this requirement is that images can be found separately via image search engines and copied
without a look at the web page where they originate. The author and site address must therefore be marked in a text
printed in the image. This is especially important for images in larger sizes, because they are good for many commercial uses.
Note: remember that most of the pictures of people on my pages are not
model-released (but I may be able to contact the model promptly).
Advertising usage of photos (e.g., brochures,
catalogs, print ads) is very different from editorial usage of photos
(e.g., newspaper and magazine articles, books). You cannot use
pictures in advertising (e.g., an on-line product brochure or anything
else that is selling or promoting) without getting a model release from any person
whose image is recognizable in the photo.
One of the reasons advertisers pay $1000+ for images from
stock agencies is that those agencies have generally already gotten
the relevant releases. This can also be the reason for which an artist is commissioned to produce a digital painting
instead of using a real-life photograph in advertising.
Though socially oriented non-profit organizations (clubs, charities, etc.) will often be allowed to use my photos for free in their free publications, they also have to contact me first.
All images are available as high-resolution scans (usually 2600x3900) and can be delivered electronically (FTP,
Note: 1000x1500-pixel images available from this Web site are most often NOT of high enough resolution for use in printed media.
You will receive a full-resolution scan after we agree on the price or after you get my permission for publication.
For the sake of quality of your final product, I kindly remind you to use the large file sent to you and not the 1000x1500 or smaller JPEGs from my site
P.S. If you don’t have your own idea of how much to offer to a photographer for images,
you may check the prices survey of North American stock photography market.
If I see my image used on the Web (i.e. the use for which I would normally not require a fee) without credit, I contact the person responsible for the website, explain the conditions and ask politely to add the hyperlinked credit as required. Should he not respond, a polite complain to the hosting provider has had the desired effect in all the cases I’ve encountered so far.
I reserve the right to change this policy (though the changes will not be retroactive). Revision history:
