"Ethical" means nothing if you cannot check it. This page lists what Graindevue actually does for photographers and how to see it in the product. Each commitment matches something that works in the product.
You set your prices
Graindevue sets no minimum or maximum price and shows no "recommended rate". In Studio, each Package works in one of two ways:
- fixed price: you enter the price excluding VAT in euros, on one line or split into several lines (album, prints, and so on);
- "On quote": the Package shows no price, and you set the price for each booking.
The only technical rules are amounts of zero or more, in euros. Your price plays no part in the order of results (see the next section): being cheaper does not move a profile up.
No paid placement
The marketplace sells no featured placement, bidding or "sponsored profile". The Pro subscription does not buy a place: a more relevant Free photographer stays ahead of a less relevant Pro one.
The order of results follows relevance to the client's search first:
- photographers who offer the requested session type (among the specialties declared on their profile), and are available on the requested date, come before the others;
- at equal relevance, those closest to the searched location come first, by distance band;
- among equally relevant photographers, those bookable online (with Pro, payments set up and an active Package) come first;
- after that, the order is set by a rotation rule (Exposure Rotation): a deterministic draw that depends neither on a payment, nor on your rating, nor on your signup date.
You can see the result on the public list of Graindevue photographers.
Your name and your links on your profile
Your public profile shows your name, your portfolio, your specialties and, with Pro, your Packages. If you fill them in, it also shows links to your website, your Instagram and your online portfolio.
Clicks to your website and your Instagram are counted in your Studio dashboard, on the "External Reach" card (over a rolling 90 days). To work on your visibility in Google, follow the method in our photographer SEO guide.
A fixed cost, no commission
The Free plan costs nothing. The Pro subscription costs €29 per month, billed monthly, after a single 30-day trial without a card. Graindevue takes no commission on your bookings and charges your clients no service fee. Online payments go through Stripe, whose processing fees apply according to its pricing; the amount you receive is shown in your Stripe account.
Cost details and a comparison worksheet to fill in with your own figures are on the zero-commission photographer platform page. How a payment runs (deposit, balance, direct payment) is described on the payment processing page.
Cancelling, and what happens next
You cancel yourself, without calling anyone: in Studio, "Settings", "Subscription" tab, "Cancel Subscription" button. You keep access until the end of your billing period, and you can change your mind with "Reactivate Subscription" while the period is still running.
Once the paid period has ended, you move to the Free plan:
| Item | What happens |
|---|---|
| Marketplace profile | stays published, without online booking, and becomes bookable again if you subscribe again |
| Pro tools | restricted, even for projects in progress |
| Your history | readable and exportable, and an existing booking can be cancelled with a full refund |
| Public pages of your Site | no longer served, and your Site stops taking new bookings |
| Client area of your Site | stays available to your clients |
| Your data | kept after the subscription ends |
Your data: what you can take with you
What you can download:
- contracts as PDF, from the "Contract" tab of each booking (your client can also download theirs);
- invoices transmitted through e-invoicing: the official file (Factur-X) is downloaded from the "Invoicing" page in Studio;
- delivered photos: your clients download the originals from their gallery.
For an access, portability or deletion request about your data, write to the address given in our privacy policy, which commits to an answer within 30 days.
Your Site
You create your Site from Studio as soon as your profile is live. Details are on the photographer website page. Your Site lets you:
- edit an autosaved draft, preview it, then publish the whole Site, with a history to go back to an earlier version;
- use a
graindevue.siteaddress or connect your own domain name, which you keep owning; - present your Packages and take bookings from the Site;
- give your clients a client area (bookings, contract signing, payments, messages, gallery);
- publish articles, view cookieless visit statistics, and edit your legal notice.
Frequently asked questions
How does Graindevue make money without commission?
Through the €29 monthly subscription. Graindevue takes no commission on your bookings and charges your clients nothing. Online payments go through Stripe, whose processing fees apply according to its pricing; the amount you receive is shown in your Stripe account.
Can I pay to appear higher?
No. There is no featured placement option. The order follows relevance to the client's search (session type, availability, distance). Only at equal relevance do photographers bookable online, which Pro allows, come first, then a rotation rule applies that depends neither on a payment nor on your rating.
How do I track visits that come from my profile?
Your profile shows a link to your website and your Instagram, and clicks are counted on the "External Reach" card of your dashboard. For your visibility in Google, follow our photographer SEO guide.
What happens if I cancel?
You keep access until the end of your billing period. After that, you move to the Free plan: your profile stays published without online booking, Pro tools are restricted, even for projects in progress, and your Site's public pages stop. You keep reading and exporting your history, your Site's client area stays available to your clients, and your data is kept.
How do I get my data?
You download your contracts as PDF from each booking, and the official file (Factur-X) of your invoices transmitted through e-invoicing from "Invoicing". For an access, portability or deletion request, write to the address given in our privacy policy.
To see these commitments on your own account (Packages, profile, cancellation), create a trial account: 30 days, no card required. For a question on a specific point, talk to the founder.