Main Policy Content
PURPOSE:
Delineate photography guidelines for official University Libraries professional photography services, establish product owners for paid photography service needs and assets, streamline contracted payments for services, organize purchased photography into centrally managed repositories, and ensure compliance with University policies.
Professional Photographer Limitations for Practices and Use
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The University Libraries, via PRaM, owns all rights to all contracted photographer images, which are not to be used for commercial purposes. Images taken by contracted photographers are not permitted for use by the contractors for their business or promotional purposes, including on any social media platform.
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Non-person photography contracted by the University Libraries, included but not limited to facilities images, may be used by a photographer for promotional or business purposes only with the express prior written permission of PRaM.
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All photography for University Libraries purposes should be taken on Penn State property unless express written permission has been given by PRaM.
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This understanding and expectation will be made clear by PRaM to all contracted photographers. (See University standard photography/videography vendor agreement template in Supporting Documents .)
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University Libraries employees outside the University Park campus are asked to work with PRaM in advance of contracting with photographers to ensure that any contracted photography work follows these expectations as well as University policies and standards. (See University standard photography/videography vendor agreement template in Supporting Documents.)
Online Employee Directory Photography
A University photographer or vendor photographer contracted with the University Libraries through an approved University standard photography/videography vendor agreement will take online employee directory head shot photos for employees, managed by Strategic Technologies via the manager of web services. The manager will determine the best background options and related photography settings, including appropriate cropping of images and file sizes, according to appropriate website needs.
Responsibility and Acceptable Scope / Out-of-Scope Photography Requests
Responsibility for primary use of photos in online employee directory lies with Strategic Technologies (Strat Tech).
Photos are for University Libraries directory and possible other uses on the Libraries website (e.g. LibGuides).
Individual employee subjects will be sent a final digital image used in online directory for personal/professional use (e.g. conference speaker listings, etc.).
Photo credit is not required in the employee directory. In other instances, if credit is needed, the default “Penn State University Libraries” should be used.
PROCESS
Please see Directory Photo Guidelines on the Staff Site. (see link listed above)
Storage and Sharing
If PRaM staff member or other University multimedia employee (including designated employees at other campuses) is photographer, images are stored in “PHOTOGRAPHY” SharePoint folder and link to individual’s selected image is shared with individual photo subject. PRaM/University photographer will coordinate image needs, including file name, size, cropping, backgrounds, etc. with Strategic Technologies manager of web services.
If approved vendor is photographer, images should be shared in existing directory photo folder in SharePoint (or equivalent cloud storage option) and images should be named with the employee name and Penn State ID.
Images will be expected to be shared with Strat Tech contact(s) for uploading to online directory no later than three business days after photos are taken unless specified otherwise.
Records Management Lifecycle
Unless specifically requested otherwise, all images will be held until replacement images are taken and stored or until after employee leaves the University Libraries, following Records Management best practices.
Ownership and Discretion of Use
PRaM and/or the manager of web services has final discretion to determine viability of image use based on size and quality and reserves the right to request additional images/photography if warranted.
Non-PRaM photographer does not own rights to photos. University Libraries, via PRaM and manager of web services, retains all rights.
An official University multimedia employee or -approved vendor photographer contracted with the University Libraries will take feature/large-scale/significant event photos at the discretion and assignment of the University Libraries’ Public Relations and Marketing (PRaM) staff member (graphic designer or PRaM manager), with PRaM reserving all rights, including determining the frequency of use.
Special Note re: Small-Scale/Niche Event Photography Requests
PRaM will work with requesters on a case-by-case basis to determine the most feasible/reasonable approach based on identified criteria. See also the following section, “Responsibility and Acceptable Scope / Out-of-Scope Photography Requests.”
Responsibility and Acceptable Scope / Out-of-Scope Photography Requests
Photography coverage is dependent upon scope/size/strategic significance of each event. For PRaM-supported/-funded photography, PRaM retains the right to decide photo coverage/approach — and will communicate decision-making based on a posted photography needs per request — based on the following criteria:
Small/niche audience event photography scenario:
(e.g. internal/impacts one department, audience less than 20, images not for public or promotional purposes identified or agreed to by PRaM)
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Event host or designee takes photos desired for their use, most likely via personal smartphone.
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Host is responsible for photo files’ use, sharing and records management.
Large-scale/strategically significant event photography scenario:
(e.g. impacts multiple departments, audience of more than 20, images for public and/or promotional purposes identified or agreed to by PRaM)
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PRaM makes final determination of photographer and photography responsibility (PRaM, host, other) based on requester needs/shot list, identified promotional need, identified Development need.
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PRaM is responsible for photo files’ use, sharing and records management.
At University Park, PRaM will be the designated contact for photography needs being supported or paid for by PRaM. At other locations/campuses/units, contacts will coordinate photography needs but will be encouraged to take and submit their own photos.
Outside professional photography (not arranged through Penn State communications offices) will be financially supported by PRaM budgets with prior agreement/arrangement with PRaM and should be considered only in special circumstances.
PRaM has final discretion to determine viability of image use based on size and quality and reserves the right to request additional images/photography if warranted.
PROCESS
Equipment: Formal photography with DSLR camera or advanced smartphone shooting/editing technology; informal and backup photography with smartphone in point-and-shoot-style capacity.
All contracted photography work must be supported by a fully executed Standard Photography and Limited Event Videography Vendor Agreement. (See Supporting Documents.) Agreements must be executed prior to the event and are routed through the University Libraries Financial Officer for signature. Requests should allow adequate time for the approval process to be completed prior to the event.
For photography arranged through PRaM (whether with internal or external photographer), a shot list should be created and shared in advance to ensure that all needed subjects/etc. are captured to the satisfaction of the requester.
Requester should work with PRaM to share final shot list one to two weeks in advance of event. (If PRaM is not familiar with identity of subjects, requester should provide on-site assistance to photographer (preferred) or advance thumbnail “cheat sheet” to identify subjects if on-site assistance to connect photographer to intended subject(s) is not possible.)
Storage and Sharing
If PRaM is photographer, images are stored in PRaM’s “PHOTOGRAPHY” SharePoint folder and link is shared with requester as needed.
If non-PRaM photographer, images should be shared in SharePoint folder (or equivalent cloud storage option) along with Word document identifying each image number or file name with date and location/type of event, subjects in each photo, photographer (for credit, if desired by photographer; otherwise, default credit will be “Penn State University Libraries”), whether permission was received from all subjects (via model permission request form, if requested from PRaM) to use for fundraising purposes. PRaM will copy photos and document into above “PHOTOGRAPHY” SharePoint folder for PRaM use.
Photographer should provide photo credit if specific credit language is requested.
Images will be expected to be shared by the photographer within three business days after photos are taken unless specified otherwise.
Records Management Lifecycle
Unless specifically requested otherwise, all PRaM-stored images will be evaluated after three years and discarded according to Penn State Records Management policy.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
CROSS REFERENCES:
Photo Directory Guidelines (Staff Site; requires authentication to access)
Effective Date: April 26, 2022
Date Approved: March 15, 2022 (DLC)