HOW TO HIRE · PHOTOGRAPHY & VIDEO

How to hire a portrait photographer in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

Portrait photographers need no licence in the UK. Here is who owns the portrait, what the licence must allow, and what to ask.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a portrait photographer in five steps

  1. Say what the portrait is forPersonal, a book jacket, a website, a press release — the use sets the licence you need.
  2. See complete sessionsA whole gallery from one sitting shows range, not just one perfect frame.
  3. Agree retouchingHow much, how natural, and how many images are retouched.
  4. Get the licence in writingPersonal use and commercial use are different licences.
  5. Fix delivery and the gallery periodWhen you get the images and how long the gallery is open.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

Portrait photography is open to anyone in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland — no register to check, no licence. The checks are a full sitting gallery, references and written terms.

Ask for a complete gallery from one portrait session.

Copyright and your licence

Section 11 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 makes the author — the portrait photographer — the first owner of the copyright in your portraits. It passes to you only by a written assignment signed by them (section 90); what you normally receive is a licence.

Read the licence clause: can you use them on a website, in print or in publicity? Ask for a written assignment if you need the copyright. legislation.gov.uk →

Your privacy right in commissioned photographs

Section 85 of the 1988 Act gives anyone who commissions photographs or a film for private and domestic purposes the right to stop copies being issued, shown in public or put online. The portrait photographer owns the copyright but needs your permission to use your portraits in a portfolio, advert or competition.

Agree in the contract whether your images may be used, and where. legislation.gov.uk →

ICO data protection fee

Your details and your portraits are personal data in the hands of a portrait photographer. Unless exempt, a business handling personal data pays the ICO data protection fee (£52 or £78 a year for most small firms) and appears on the ICO's public register.

Look the business up on the ICO register, and ask when your files will be deleted. gov.uk →

VAT

Portrait sessions are standard-rated: VAT at 20% applies to the sitting, the retouched finals and the frames. A business whose taxable turnover passes the £90,000 registration threshold must charge it and show it as a separate line on the invoice.

Ask for the VAT number, and see the portrait sitting, the frames and the 20% VAT on separate lines. gov.uk →

“What is the portrait for, and what licence do I need?”

A good answer: A portrait photographer asks this first, then offers a personal or commercial licence to match.

“Can I see every frame from one portrait session?”

A good answer: A full gallery, so you can see how the photographer directs and what an ordinary frame looks like.

“How much retouching is included in the portrait price?”

A good answer: A number of retouched images and a style — natural skin, blemishes only, or more.

“How many images will I choose from, and receive?”

A good answer: A proofing gallery size and the number of finals.

“Will you use my portrait in your portfolio or ads?”

A good answer: Only with your consent, in writing.

“What happens if I do not like the portraits?”

A good answer: A clear reshoot or partial refund policy.

“Are you on the ICO register?”

A good answer: Yes, with a business name you can search.

Getting the quote right

  • Who actually attends the sitting — the photographer named, or a studio associate, employed or subcontracted
  • Session length, studio or location, outfit changes
  • Number of images to choose from and number of retouched finals
  • The licence: personal or commercial, and for how long
  • Prints or frames as separate lines
  • Travel or studio hire
  • The reshoot terms
  • The VAT number, with VAT on the portrait session shown separately

Walk away if

  • Only one or two perfect frames shown, never a full sitting
  • No written licence for a portrait you will publish
  • Heavy retouching you did not ask for, with no option
  • Your portrait posted online without consent
  • No delivery date
  • Pressure to buy prints at a viewing
LOW
£100
TYPICAL
£200
HIGH
£400

What a portrait photographer costs: £100–£400 per session

Portrait photographers price by the session, with retouched images, prints and any commercial licence added on top. Portrait Photographer price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Portrait photographers near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. BriefWhat the portrait is for, the look, clothes, location.
  2. Set-upLighting and background prepared before you arrive.
  3. The sittingDirection on pose and expression, short breaks, outfit changes.
  4. ProofingA gallery of unretouched choices for you to pick from.
  5. Retouch and deliverYour choices retouched to the style agreed, delivered with the licence.

Proofs
Unretouched images you choose from.
Retouching
Editing skin, light and detail on a chosen image.
Personal licence
Use for yourself — prints, personal social media.
Commercial licence
Use to promote a business, product or publication.
Usage period
How long a commercial licence lasts.
Studio hire
A separate fee where the photographer rents the space.

AFTER

When the job is done

Save the finalsTwo copies, with the licence terms in the same folder.
Check the retouchingAsk for agreed changes now, not months later.
Record consent decisionsWhether the photographer may use your portrait.
Tell others how it wentA review of the portraits can only come from a booked job on Locufy. Problems first go through the make-it-right step.

STEP 1Put the portraits in writing to themA short email is enough: the problem, and whether you want the portraits put right or money back. A business must perform a service with reasonable care and skill (CRA 2015, s49), with repeat performance or a price cut as your remedies.
STEP 2Ask Locufy to help put it rightWhen you score a booked portrait photographer below four stars, you choose whether the portrait photographer sees the problem first. We follow it through, then you review.
STEP 3Trading Standards for a trader who will not engageSince portrait photographers have no regulator, the route for the portraits is advice and a possible Trading Standards referral: Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 in England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 800 9060, or Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 in Northern Ireland.
STEP 4Small claims, as a last stepIf the portrait photographer still will not refund or put it right, a small claim needs no solicitor: £10,000 is the limit in England and Wales, £5,000 for simple procedure in Scotland, £5,000 in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a portrait photographer: questions people ask

Portrait photography needs no licence anywhere in the UK.

The photographer, under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, unless they assign it in writing. You get a licence.

Not if you commissioned it for private and domestic purposes: section 85 of the 1988 Act lets you stop it.

£100 to £400 a session, typically around £200. Retouching, prints and a commercial licence move the price. Session, retouching and print prices are in the portrait photographer price guide; your town above finds photographers near you.

Yes, normally. Personal licences do not cover publicity; ask for the use in writing.

Raise it in writing. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 requires reasonable care and skill; ask for a reshoot or a price reduction.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in photography & video

How to hire: Headshot PhotographerHow to hire: Family PhotographerHow to hire: Newborn PhotographerHow to hire: Pet PhotographerHow to hire: Wedding PhotographerHow to hire: Event PhotographerHow to hire: Product PhotographerHow to hire: VideographerAll 701 hiring guides →

Portrait photographers near you

Portrait photographers in LondonPortrait photographers in ManchesterPortrait photographers in BirminghamPortrait photographers in GlasgowPortrait photographers in BelfastAll portrait photographers on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, section 11 — first ownership
  2. Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, section 90 — assignment
  3. Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, section 85 — privacy of commissioned photographs and films
  4. gov.uk — pay the data protection fee
  5. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  6. Citizens Advice — more help with a consumer issue
  7. gov.uk — make a court claim for money: court fees
  8. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  9. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register