Effective 24 August 2026
These are the standard terms I work under. They're published so you know what to expect before you ask for a quote — no surprises in a contract at the end.
Every project gets a written proposal covering scope, deliverables, and price. That proposal, signed, plus these terms, is the agreement. Where a signed proposal says something different, the proposal wins.
Booking
A date is held when the deposit clears. Not when we agree in principle, not when the proposal is signed — when the deposit clears. Until then the date is open to anyone.
- $500 and above — 50% due at booking
- Under $500 — 100% due at booking
The deposit is non-refundable. It covers the date I've taken off the calendar and the work that happens before the shoot — scouting, scheduling, crew, prep.
The balance is due on delivery. Retainers are billed monthly in advance, due on the 1st, with a six-month minimum term.
Balances more than 30 days past due accrue 1.5% per month. Final files stay unreleased until the balance clears.
Rescheduling and cancellation
One reschedule is included, at no charge, with at least seven days' notice. The deposit moves to the new date.
Inside seven days, or on a second reschedule, the deposit is forfeit and a new one is required to hold the replacement date. This isn't a penalty — it's a day I can't sell twice.
If you cancel, the deposit is retained. If costs have already been committed on your behalf — travel, crew, permits, rentals — those are billed at cost.
If I have to cancel for a reason within my control, you get every dollar back, and I'll help find a replacement shooter. If neither of us can proceed because of something genuinely outside our control — weather that makes the shoot impossible, a venue closure, illness, a travel shutdown — we reschedule without penalty, and any unrecoverable third-party costs are shared.
What you get, and when
Deliverables, image counts, and video lengths are specified in your proposal. Selects are mine to make unless we've agreed otherwise; you're hiring an eye, and that's the part you're hiring.
Delivery timelines are set out in your proposal and depend on the size of the shoot and the deliverables. Rush turnaround is available at 20–25% above the base fee — worth asking about on brand-experience work, where content usually has to run while the event still matters.
Revision rounds are specified per project. Additional rounds, and changes that alter the agreed scope, are quoted before the work starts.
Files are delivered as high-resolution finished images or graded video, through an online gallery or your own cloud storage. RAW files, unedited footage, and project files are not delivered — they're working material, not the product. Archives are kept for 12 months after delivery, then may be deleted. Keep your own backup.
Copyright and licensing
I retain copyright in everything I create. That's the default under U.S. copyright law and it's the default here.
You receive a non-exclusive license to use the delivered work for the purposes set out in your proposal. The scope of that license — where the work runs, for how long, and in what markets — is priced into your quote.
Unless your proposal says otherwise:
- Organic social, your website, and internal use — perpetual, no expiry
- Paid media, out-of-home, and print advertising — 12 or 24 months, renewable
- Broadcast, packaging, and paid usage beyond the agreed scope — quoted separately
The license is yours, not transferable. You may not resell, sublicense, or distribute the work to unaffiliated third parties without my written consent. If a partner brand, a venue, a PR agency, or another property in your group wants to use the images, that's a licensing conversation and I'm glad to have it — the rate is usually modest and the answer is usually yes.
Extended commercial licensing runs 20–40% above the base fee depending on scope and term.
No AI training. You may not use the delivered work — including captions, keywords, and embedded metadata — to train, fine-tune, or develop any artificial intelligence or machine learning system, or permit anyone else to. You may not apply generative AI tools to alter, extend, or create derivative versions of the work. This restriction runs with the files, binds anyone you pass them to, and survives the end of the license.
Credit. For editorial and press use, please credit Jonathan Zuluaga. It isn't required for your own commercial and social use, though it's always appreciated — and in practice, credited images are how most of my work finds its next client.
Portfolio rights. I may show the work in my portfolio, on social media, and in submissions for awards or publication. If a project is confidential or embargoed, tell me before the shoot and I'll hold it for as long as you need.
On location
You're responsible for securing access to the location, any permits the venue requires, and permission to photograph the space. If a property or brand requires a release, I'll need it before the shoot.
For work involving recognizable people — staff, guests, talent — you're responsible for their consent to being photographed and for the work being used as agreed. Where I'm engaging talent directly, I'll handle releases and bill them through.
Travel
Within the Chicago metro, travel is included.
Beyond it, mileage is billed at $0.65 per mile round trip. For trips over 3.5 hours by road, or any trip requiring a flight, flights and accommodation are billed separately at cost, agreed in advance. Travel days on multi-day productions are billed at half day rate.
Liability
I carry professional liability and equipment insurance; a certificate is available on request for venues that need one.
If something goes genuinely wrong on my side — equipment failure, a file loss, an illness that means I can't shoot — my liability is limited to the fees paid for the affected project, and I'll either reshoot at no charge or refund. That's the honest ceiling for a studio this size, and it's the standard across the industry.
I'm not liable for indirect or consequential losses — a campaign delay, a missed launch, lost revenue.
Confidentiality
Anything you share about an unannounced property, menu, product, or campaign stays with me. I'll sign your NDA if you have one.
Governing law
Illinois law governs. Disputes go to the state or federal courts in Cook County, Illinois.
Before anyone lawyers up, let's talk. Almost everything is a phone call.
Changes
These terms may be updated. The version in force for your project is the one current when you sign, and it's attached to your proposal.
Contact
Jonathan Zuluaga — Zulu Creative LLC Chicago, Illinois info@jonathanzuluaga.com