Model release form template
A model release is the contract that lets a photographer, brand or agency publish and license pictures of a person, usually in return for a fee or images. This one covers commercial and stock use, retouching, sensitive subjects, credit, and a parent signing for a minor model. Read it below, then send it ahead of the shoot or sign it on set.
Updated November 5, 2026 · 4 min read
The contract
Gray blanks are yours to fill in before you send. Each signer fills in the blanks in their color.
- You, before sending
- Model (or parent)
- Photographer
Model Release
This Model Release (the "Release") is made on Release date between Photographer or studio name (the "Photographer") and Model's name (the "Model").
1. The shoot
The Model will pose for photographs on Shoot date at Shoot location for Client or project. The photographs, video stills and any images made from them at this shoot are the "Images".
2. Payment
In return for this Release, the Photographer will give the Model the following: Fee or other payment, within Days to pay the model days after the shoot. The Model agrees this is full payment for every right in this Release.
3. Rights granted
The Model grants the Photographer, its clients, and anyone they license the Images to, the right to copy, publish, display, distribute and license the Images, and the Model's likeness in them, in any media now known or later developed, for advertising, trade, editorial, stock and any other lawful purpose. These rights are granted for this term and territory: Term and territory.
The Photographer owns the copyright in the Images. The Model will receive no further payment for any use, and does not need to approve the Images or the materials they appear in.
4. Retouching and composites
The Images may be cropped, retouched, color-graded and combined with other images, text or graphics. The Photographer will not change the Model's face or body so much that they look like a different person, and will not create a composite that shows the Model nude or in a sexual context.
5. Sensitive uses
Sensitive subjects include physical or mental illness, sexuality, drug or alcohol use, crime, debt, religion and politics. The Images may be used to illustrate a sensitive subject only if the Model initials here: Initials: sensitive uses. Where the format allows, any such use will carry a statement that the person shown is a model.
6. Credit and the Model's portfolio
Where credits are given, the Model may be credited as Credit line, but a missing credit is not a breach of this Release. The Model may show up to Portfolio images final Images, as delivered by the Photographer, in their own portfolio and social media, once the client has published them. The Model may not sell or license the Images.
7. Release of claims
The Model releases the Photographer, its clients and licensees from claims for invasion of privacy, misuse of likeness, defamation or false light arising from uses this Release allows. Once the payment in section 2 has been made, this Release cannot be withdrawn.
8. The Model's promises
The Model confirms that they are free to sign this Release, that no agency contract or other agreement prevents them from doing so, and that the details they give below are true. If an agency represents the Model, its name is: Model's agency.
9. Models under 18
If the Model is under 18, the parent or legal guardian signing below consents to this Release on the Model's behalf, agrees to its terms and confirms they have the legal right to do so. Model's date of birth: Model's date of birth
10. General
This Release is governed by the laws of the state of State. It is the whole agreement about the Images and can be changed only in writing signed by both parties. Electronic signatures count as original signatures.
Model's contact details
Address: Model's address
Phone: Model's phone Email: Model's email
I have read this whole Release, including the rights in section 3, and I am the Model or the Model's parent or legal guardian.
Model, or parent or guardian of a minor model
Photographer
Opens it in SignMaster as a template you can edit and send.
A starting point, not legal advice. Have a lawyer review it for your state and situation.
On this page
Why photographers and brands ask for one
You own the copyright in the photos you take, but copyright doesn't give you the model's permission to use their face to sell something. That permission comes from the release. Without it, an image of a recognizable person usually can't go into an ad, onto packaging or into a stock library, and stock agencies routinely reject such files without one.
A release also settles money and boundaries in advance: what the model is paid, how far the retouching may go, and whether their picture can illustrate a sensitive topic like illness or debt. Those last two are where most model disputes start.
What the template covers
- The shoot: date, location and the client or project, so both sides know which images the release covers.
- Payment: a fee, images for the model's portfolio, or both, and when it's paid.
- Rights granted: use in any media for advertising, trade, editorial and stock, with a blank for the term and territory when the fee is smaller.
- Retouching and composites: what's allowed, and a ban on changes that make the model look like someone else.
- Sensitive uses: a separate opt-in by initials before images illustrate health, sexuality, politics, crime or similar subjects.
- Credit and portfolio: an optional credit line, and the model's right to show a set number of finished images.
- The model's promises: no conflicting agency contract, and true contact details.
- Minors: a parent or guardian consents and signs for a model under 18.
Mistakes that make a release worthless
- Getting it signed after the shoot. A model who has already seen the images has every reason to renegotiate.
- Leaving out what the model gets. A release should give the model something in return, even if it's only images for their portfolio, and say so in writing.
- Letting an agency's paperwork and yours contradict each other. If the model's agent sends a form, decide which terms win before anyone signs.
- Releasing a minor without a guardian. A minor can usually cancel a contract they signed alone; the parent or guardian has to sign.
- Filing releases away from the images. Name the signed release after the shoot and keep it with the files, so a client or stock reviewer can match them years later.
Property and brands are separate
A model release covers a person. A recognizable private building, a piece of art, a tattoo design or a brand logo in the frame may need its own property release or permission, especially for stock and advertising.
How to sign it on set with SignMaster
- 1
Open the template
Choose Use this template above. It opens with two signers: the model, who signs first, and you as the photographer, who countersigns.
- 2
Fill in the shoot
Before the day, fill the gray blanks: date, location, project, the fee and the term and territory you're buying. The model's name, address and initials stay blank for them.
- 3
Send it ahead, or sign in person
Email it the day before so the model reads it without a camera pointed at them, or hand over your phone at the shoot with Sign in person.
- 4
Add proof of age if you need it
If a client or agency asks for ID, add an attachment field so the model uploads a photo of their ID while they sign.
- 5
Countersign and file it
You sign last. The signed PDF and its certificate of completion go to both of you by email, so the model has their copy before they leave the studio.
For a casting day or a team shoot
Shooting twenty employees for a company website, or a group of extras for a campaign? Put the shoot details in the template once and bulk send it from a spreadsheet of names and emails, one envelope per person. Each signed copy arrives in your account, and the results file shows who still needs to sign before you start editing.
Questions? Answers.
Is a model release the same as a photo release?
Close, but a model release is usually a paid, broader grant for advertising, stock and commercial use, and both sides sign. A photo release is a simpler permission for an organization's own channels.
Do I need a model release for a photo I'm not selling?
For editorial use, such as news or documentary, usually not. For anything that advertises or promotes a product, service or business, get one.
Does a model release need a witness?
Not as a rule, but some stock agencies' own release forms include a witness line. If yours does, add a Witness signer to the template; see how to add a witness to a contract.
Can the model take back a signed release?
Not under this template once the payment in section 2 has been made. The sensitive-use permission only exists if the model initialed it separately.
Sources
- N.Y. Civil Rights Law § 51, action for injunction and damages · nysenate.gov
- California Civil Code § 3344, use of another's name or likeness · leginfo.legislature.ca.gov