Who owns the photos I had taken? Can't I do whatever I want with them?

There is sometimes confusion as to what a client is able to do with the images they purchase from a photographer and who owns the "rights" to the images. Copyright of photographs belongs to the photographer who took them. 
(Copyright is the set of exclusive rights granted to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work.)

What this means, for practical purposes, is that a client is not legally able to resell, alter, make copies of or post their photos online without the permission of the photographer. This include things such as grabbing a print screen of your photos from your online gallery or scanning one of your purchased prints and then printing another copy for yourself. Of course, a client and photographer may come to an agreement that would allow any or all of those things, but unless you have such an agreement in writing, please do not violate the photographer's copyright to the images they've taken.

As for my images and my clients, unless we've come to another agreement, I do not allow either proofs or finished images from your online gallery to be posted publicly by clients or their friends and family. However, I'm more than happy to provide a web optimized, watermarked version of every 5x7 or larger print that you purchase, for you to use for posting on Facebook or Google+, etc. Please don't print these images; they are for web use only.

If you require digital images rather than prints or have some another need or question that isn't addressed here, please don't hesitate to ask about these things prior to scheduling a photo session. I will do my best to accommodate your needs whenever possible and to make sure we are both happy with the arrangement.