Photographing a finished building means working for several people at once: the architecture firm that commissions, the client who owns the building, the architect whose work is protected, the occupants. In Graindevue, the firm books your package in its own name, the architecture contract sets authorisations, site access and the architect's credit, and the rights assignment names who may publish the images.
This page follows the shoot of a finished building, from the request to the gallery. Graindevue works in euros, for photographers working in France. For a property photographed to sell or let it, see real estate photographers.
An architecture shoot, step by step
| Step | Who / where | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Request | The firm, on your profile | The "Architecture" type, your package, the date and start time, "Custom location" at the building's address. The project, spaces and views wanted go in the "Additional message". |
| 2. Billing | The firm | "My business": the firm's legal name and SIRET, the billing address and contact. |
| 3. Uses | You, "Rights" tab | Purposes, media, territory, duration, the firm's "Legal name" and "SIRET" as licensee, and the building's owner as a named beneficiary, with "Onward sharing" on "Bénéficiaires désignés uniquement". Then "Save". |
| 4. Contract | You, "Contract" tab | "Generate Contract" from the architecture template, "Edit Template" for the architect's credit, then "Send for Review". |
| 5. Signatures and deposit | The firm, then you | The firm signs, you sign, it pays the deposit. An invoice in your name goes to the firm. |
| 6. Visit | You, on site | The firm's representative goes with you. The balance follows the package's due date, with its invoice. |
| 7. Delivery | You, "Files" tab | Once the Booking is fully paid, "Upload" then "Share Gallery". |
Fictional example: a new library near Bordeaux
This example is made up to illustrate the flow.
Marc is a partner at a Bordeaux architecture firm that has just handed over a public library to a neighbouring town. He wants exteriors and interiors before it opens to the public, for the firm's site, an award entry and the architecture press. He books your "Building shoot" package for a Thursday at 8 am, at a "Custom location" set to the library's address, and picks "My business": the firm's legal name and SIRET. He is the one who decides and signs.
In the "Rights" tab, you start from the "Commercial standard" preset and click "Create the cession draft". You add editorial and press relations to institutional communication, replace social networks with press to keep web, print and press, and choose worldwide and five years. You enter the firm's "Legal name" and "SIRET" as licensee, name the town as a beneficiary, set "Onward sharing" to "Bénéficiaires désignés uniquement", then click "Save". In the "Details" tab, you click "Edit" on the "Payments" card and set "Balance Payment Timing" to "After Session". With "Edit Template", you write the firm's name into the architect's credit. The contract has the firm obtain the agreement of the town, which owns the building, and open the site to you with a representative.
Marc signs, you sign, he pays the 50% deposit. On the day of the visit, the project lead shows you around. The balance, set to "After Session", is paid by the firm the following week, then you share the gallery. For night views once the grounds are planted, Marc will send a new request.
The architecture contract
For a package of the "Architecture" type, Graindevue uses a template written for architecture photography. The contract text is in French. It includes:
- authorisations: the owner's if the client is not the owner, the architect's under their copyright, and any administrative authorisations;
- site access: keys, badges or codes, access to roofs, terraces and common areas, occupants informed, and a client representative present or reachable to guide the visit;
- your commitments: safety on a building site, confidentiality about the project and the building's security systems;
- credits: the photo credit and the architect's credit;
- image rights: of identifiable people, the building, neighbouring buildings and interiors;
- weather: a cancellation with a full refund requested at least 48 hours before, then a new request for another date.
The template's editable articles (your obligations, the client's, copyright, image rights, cancellation, mediation) can be adapted on the package, or for one project with "Edit Template" while the contract is a draft. What the firm and its beneficiaries may do with the images is set in the "Rights" tab, whose annex is signed with the contract; Graindevue alerts you 30, 15 and 7 days before it expires. See the contract management page.
Your offer, your prices
The package sets the duration in hours, "Minimum Shots", the delivery timeframe carried into the contract, and the price: "Simple price", "Itemize lines" or "On quote". On quote, you price each project in the Booking's "Pricing" section, and "Mirror the fee into pricing" adds the rights fee. The guide on pricing your photography helps you build them.
With the "Architecture" type, the package suggests a 50% deposit and a "Balance Due" of "Upon Delivery". As the gallery opens once the Booking is fully paid, choose the "Balance Due" setting according to when the firm expects its images, along with the payment methods, including SEPA transfer. See the payment deposit guide and the payment processing page.
If you have a SIRET and connect e-invoicing in "Invoicing", invoices addressed to a company established in France are transmitted to it through Super PDP. See the e-invoicing guide.
The firm's gallery
The gallery opens in the "Files" tab once the Booking is fully paid. You upload the series with "Upload" and deliver it with "Share Gallery"; the person who booked receives an email and opens the gallery signed in to their account. Only they and you have access. The firm downloads the images and passes them to the building's owner within the rights assignment. See the gallery delivery page.
What Graindevue costs
€29 per month after a 30-day trial with no card, and no platform commission on your Bookings. Online payments go through Stripe, whose processing fees apply. See the zero commission page.
Going further
- A property for sale or to let, for an estate agency: real estate photographers.
- The rights clauses to settle before signing: the photography contract guide.
- Getting found by the firms in your region: the SEO for photographers guide.
To generate an architecture contract on a test Booking, start the free 30-day trial, with no card.
Frequently asked questions
Who needs to authorise the shoot?
Under the template, the client guarantees the owner's agreement if they are not the owner, the architect's under their copyright, and any administrative authorisations, for example for a historic monument.
How do I add the building's owner as a user of the photos?
In the "Rights" tab, with the firm's "Legal name" and "SIRET" as licensee, add them as a named beneficiary, set "Onward sharing" to "Bénéficiaires désignés uniquement" and click "Save" before generating the contract. They may then use the images for the purposes, media and duration of the annex.
Where does the architect's credit appear?
In the copyright article, next to the photo credit. With "Edit Template", you write the name of the architect or the firm there.
What does the contract say about site access?
Access to the building and its surroundings, keys, badges or codes, roofs, terraces and common areas, occupants informed, and a client representative present or reachable during the visit.
What if the weather rules out the exteriors?
Either party can request a cancellation at least 48 hours before: the shoot is cancelled and the client refunded in full. The client can then send a new request for another date.
How does a second visit to the same building work?
Each visit is a Booking, with its own contract, invoices and gallery. The firm sends a new request on your profile.