Signing example
Sign a model release form online
Signing a model release form online for paid work has to record more than consent to be photographed: the shoot date, each use the model agrees to, how long, and the fee. This two page release for a swimwear catalogue shoot in Byron Bay has the model confirm her name, type her agency or none, type an X for web use and for print use, and sign before the photographer countersigns.
The document, with its fields
The pages as a signer sees them, with the signature, name, title and date fields placed where each party has to complete them.
Model Release
This release is between Bastien Kowalczyk, photographer, trading as Bastien Kowalczyk Photography (the Photographer), and the model named below (the Model). It covers a paid commercial shoot for the Photographer's client, Driftwood and Salt Swimwear, and records exactly where the photographs may be used, for how long, and what the Model is paid. The Model completes the details, chooses the uses, and signs first.
1. The Model
The Model confirms they are 18 or older. If an agency is named, the Photographer sends the agency a copy of this release and pays the fee through the agency.
2. The shoot
| Date | Tuesday 13 October 2026, 6.30 am to 12.30 pm, six hours including hair and makeup |
|---|---|
| Location | A public beach walk north of the town, and the Photographer's studio, Byron Bay |
| Client | Driftwood and Salt Swimwear, summer 2026 collection |
| Wardrobe | Six one piece swimsuits and three cover ups from the collection. No nudity, no sheer garments, and no change of wardrobe in a public place |
| Fee | $650.00 for the session and the uses chosen below, paid within 14 days of the shoot |
3. Where the photographs may be used
The Model chooses each use separately. For each use the Model agrees to, the Model types an X in its box in their own signing session. An empty box means no: the photographs will not be used that way, and the fee is not reduced.
| X | Use |
|---|---|
| Web. The client's website and online store, its email newsletters, and its own social media accounts, including paid advertising on those accounts. | |
| Print. The client's printed catalogue, swing tags, in store posters and point of sale displays in Australia. |
No other use is permitted under this release, including television, outdoor billboards, packaging sold by third parties, or any use by a business other than the client. Any other use needs a new release and a new fee.
4. Term
The client may publish the photographs in the uses chosen for 3 years from the shoot date, and must stop new publication when the 3 years end. Printed material already distributed by then does not have to be recalled, and posts already published may stay on the client's own accounts as an archive.
5. What the photographs may not be used for
- They are not altered beyond normal retouching of light, colour and blemishes. The Model's body shape is not changed.
- They are not used in a way that suggests the Model endorses a product other than the client's swimwear, or holds any personal opinion.
- They are not used in connection with any sensitive subject, such as health conditions, politics, or adult content.
- The Model's surname is not published. A first name may be credited if the client wishes.
6. Copyright and the Model's rights
The Photographer owns the copyright in the photographs and licenses the client to use them as this release allows. The Model is not paid any further fee or royalty for those uses. The Model may ask for copies of up to ten final images for their own portfolio, not for commercial use, once the client publishes the campaign.
7. Safety and conduct on the shoot
The Model may bring a support person. The Photographer keeps the set professional, a female hair and makeup artist is present throughout, and the Model may stop the shoot at any time if they feel unsafe or unwell, without losing the fee for time already worked.
8. Privacy
The Photographer keeps the Model's contact and payment details only to manage this release and pay the fee, and does not pass them to the client unless the Model agrees.
9. Signatures
The Model signs first, then the Photographer countersigns. Each receives the completed release by email.
Release MR-2026-031 · shoot Tuesday 13 October 2026 · web and print uses as chosen on page 1 · term 3 years
Who signs what
- Leilani Strathmore, model
- Name field and a text field for agency, or none, on page 1 · Two optional checkboxes on page 1: web use, print use · Signature and stamped date on page 2 · Email link
- Bastien Kowalczyk, photographer
- Signature and stamped date on page 2 · Email link, invited after the model signs
The signing journey
Step 1
Eight fields on two pages
Name, agency and two use boxes on page 1, a signature and date for each of the two signers on page 2.
Step 2
The model chooses each use
Both boxes are optional. Leilani typed an X for web and for print; either left empty would have kept the photos out of that use.
Step 3
Signed before the shoot
The release is signed on 5 October 2026 for a shoot on Tuesday 13 October, so terms are settled before anyone is on set.
Step 4
The photographer countersigns
Sign in order is on. Bastien is invited once Leilani's signature is stamped, and his signature completes the release.
Every field, and who fills it
Leilani Strathmore's name fills from her recipient record on page 1, and she types her agency, or none, beside it. She types an X in the web box and the print box in the uses table, then signs page 2 with a stamped date. Bastien Kowalczyk signs the right column with his own date. The shoot on Tuesday 13 October 2026, the six hour call, the wardrobe limits, the 3 year term and the $650.00 fee are printed.
How to adapt this envelope
A model under 18 needs a parent or guardian to sign as well, added as the second signer with their own signature and date; the photo release example shows that shape. A client wanting television or outdoor use adds a third box with its own fee. A shoot with several models is one envelope each, because each model chooses their own uses.
Why an electronic signature works here
Australian electronic transactions law accepts an electronic signature that identifies the signer and shows intention by a reliable method. The photographer owns the copyright in the images under the Copyright Act 1968, and the release is the model's permission for the uses chosen, which is why each one is listed rather than assumed.
What makes this signing flow work
Uses chosen one at a time
A release that says the photos may be used anywhere is the one models regret. Two separate boxes, web and print, each with its own definition, let the model agree to exactly what the client needs, and the signed PDF shows an X beside each use she accepted.
Agency typed by the model
If an agency represents her, the fee is paid through it and the agency gets a copy. Making that her field, with none as a valid answer, means the photographer's payment instructions come from the model, not from an assumption.
Term and fee printed above the signature
A three year term and a $650.00 fee are what separate this paid release from a casual photo consent. Both are printed in the table the model reads before signing, and the certificate records the time she signed against them.
Questions people ask
Should a model release be signed before or after the shoot?
Before, wherever possible, so the uses, the term and the fee are settled while the model can still say no. This release was signed eight days before the shoot. A release signed after the photos exist puts pressure on the model to agree to whatever was already shot.
Can a model sign a release on their phone before arriving?
Yes. The link opens in any mobile browser with no account or app. On a narrow screen the typed fields, here the agency line and the two use boxes, move into a panel above the document, and the model signs once, so the whole release takes a few minutes on a phone.
What if the model leaves both use boxes empty?
The release still completes, because both boxes are optional, but clause 3 then permits neither use. The client could not publish the photos at all, so a photographer seeing two empty boxes would talk to the model before the shoot rather than after it.
What if the model does not sign before the shoot day?
The envelope stays open for 30 days from when it was created, which the app does not let the photographer change. The photographer can resend the invitation to the same email, or the model can sign on set in a hosted session from the photographer's device.
What happens if the model declines the release?
The envelope moves to declined and the photographer is emailed with the model's reason. He is never invited to sign and nothing is stamped. Without a release the shoot should not go ahead on these terms, so the parties talk and a revised release can be sent.
Is the fee paid through the envelope?
No. The envelope records the agreement; payment happens separately. Clause 2 says the $650.00 is paid within 14 days of the shoot, and page 1 says it goes through the agency typed there if there is one, so the signed release is also the payment instruction.
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