If you use or create visual media, chances are you don't get through a day without interacting with the image licensing market. An image licensing agreement is a legal contract that protects the rights of the photographer and the user, but licensing pictures is a complicated process — and only getting more so as the Internet makes it more difficult to track usage.

There are three general categories of image licensing. With a traditional license, you negotiate a one-time-use fee based on the value of the image. With a reserved rights license the buyer pays a premium to limit use within a particular industry or geographic area. The royalty-free license allows unlimited use for one standard fee based on image size, but does not guarantee exclusivity. When looking into licensing images, consider the following:

1. Review stock photo license terms carefully when buying images from an agency or library, so you know what you're getting.

2. Negotiate creative image licensing directly with the photographer or exclusive image licensing agent.

3. If you are a photographer, sell your photos to an agency or library and let them license images for you.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Learn more about stock images licensing before buying images

When you're buying stock images, licensing information is an important consideration. Even within the standard photo licensing categories, terms and conditions vary from agency to agency, situation to situation. To make sure you're getting the best value for your stock photo license and to stay within the law, stay up to date with image licensing policies.

I recommend: Fotosearch provides a one-stop survey of the leading image libraries, with direct links to each agency's image license agreement. If your image needs are limited to online use, check out GumGum's innovative, affordable ways to license photographs for Internet use, which include CPM (cost per 1,000 views) and ad-supported options. Visit The PLUS Coalition to learn about efforts to implement the simplified PLUS (Picture Licensing Universal System) arrangement that encodes licensing and usage tracking data into digital image files.

Deal directly with the photographer or the photographer's image licensing agent

Negotiating your image licensing with the photographer or his representative can have advantages in terms of cost and exclusivity. Photographers who handle their own image licensing, instead of selling to a stock agency, have more flexibility in determining the terms of the image license agreement, and you may reduce the risk of having a photo used by a competitor.

I recommend: Ted VanCleave is known for iconic floral and architectural images and handles his own creative image licensing. Visit Terra Galleria to browse the breathtaking outdoor, adventure, nature and travel images of photographer Quang-Tuan Luong, for whom Terra Galleria acts as an exclusive image licensing agent.

Contact leading stock images licensing agencies to sell your photographs

If you're a photographer, sell your work through a stock agency or library, which will handle the photograph licensing process for you. You retain the copyright to your work in most cases. Agencies range from the big powerhouses known for providing the best in photojournalism licensing and creative image licensing to so-called microstock agencies that supply low-cost images.

I recommend: Getty Images is a leader in stock images licensing. Among microstock agencies, iStockphoto is widely respected and often serves as a "farm system" for the powerhouse agencies like Corbis. For help in making the most of the image licensing market, contact the consultants at Creative Touchpoint, where you can sign up for a free e-newsletter on photo marketing.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Be aware that a royalty-free (RF) image license agreement may appear to be the least expensive option, but it doesn't offer exclusivity. Chances are that, if you are using that image, so are hundreds of others -- including your competitors. If you want to secure a unique image, you'll have a better chance with a traditional or reserved rights stock photo license.