Last week I reviewed a similar app called mRelease. The App had all of the promise of allowing a photographer or other artist the ability to create, sign and email Release Forms. As a Photographer I deal with Model Release forms all the time. I have two custom ones that I use personally and a 3rd one that my employer has me use when I do interviews. While I loved the idea of mRelease, the one problem with it is that there was no way to put in your own release/legal copy. While I can probably get by with a generic release most of the time for my personal photography, I can't when it comes to my employer's release.
Photographers Contract Maker lets you roll your own
A reader of my other review turned me on to this App. It has the one thing that the other App was missing and that is the ability to create CUSTOM RELEASE FORMS. I was able to easy copy and paste each of my release forms into an email message and send them to my iPhone. From there I was able to copy and paste the exact text I needed right into the App creating the 3 separate forms that I needed. I was blown away by the ability to insert "fields" with the text that would automatically pull content from the App such as client name, shoot date, photographer's name, websites, phone numbers, etc. Wow! Just what the doctor ordered. It took me about 15 minutes of tweaking to the get the layouts just the way I wanted them and I had my first test release created. I also love the fact that you can build your client list from your existing contacts on your iPhone/iPod touch. You can even go in on a case by case basis and edit the verbiage. This allows you to customize a release to a specific shoot adding or removing terms. Lastly I was able to sign it and do a test email. It all works!
You can get it here: 
Great, but I want a few more things
While this App is much more useful to me than the one I reviewed last week, there are a couple of things that I would like to see. I loved the fact that mRelease allowed you to include a photo. That was a very nice touch and useful to include things like a photo of their driver's license. I would also like to see a little more text formatting capabilities like "bold text". One of my releases has check boxes to allow the client to choose how they want their retouched photos delivered. So it would be nice to have a couple basic form fields like check boxes and radio buttons. Although the App allows you to sign the form right on your iPhone, there is no "clear" button to start over. You must go back one screen and tap "sign" again. There should either be a clear or a "shake" to clear feature. Lastly the icing on the cake would be allowing for the photographers logo.
Enter or edit your own custom text
If you're going to be a doing a lot of these, you might want to make an investment in a iPhone stylus to make it easier for your clients to sign.
The Bottom Line
Even without adding my requests, this App is a winner! You can't beat the introductory price and it allows me to have the exact release that I'm already used to using! This App is a must have for any photographer or other artist that needs to do release/contract forms!
Photographers Contract
Create, Edit, Sign and Email 1 Page Photography Contracts
- Michael Shiffler
- Get on App Store
- $2.99
All info was collected on 22nd March, 2010 when the app was reviewed.
About Terry White
Terry is the co-author of The Best Selling "The iPhone Book" 1st, 2nd and 3rd editions. He has been active in the industry for over 25 years and is the founder and president of MacGroup-Detroit, Inc., Michigan's largest Macintosh Users Group, host of the Adobe Creative Suite Podcast and a technology writer - Terry White Tech Blog.
Another very useful little App; thanks for sharing Terry.
O for one and forever (it seems) forgetting to being along the much needed Model Release forms so having an App that has it built in is a 'God' send. I'm sure over time the ability to add your own business/custom logo will be an option and when it does we're definitely onto a winner.
Cheers, Glyn
Although these two apps seem to be an aid to photographers, they pose a couple of questions to me. First, it seems to me that a model would like to peruse a contract before signing or have the clauses explained in a plain english narrative before they sign and it seems that this process would be very cumbersome to try to do that on the small screen of my iPhone. Secondly, I would think that the model would want a hardcopy on the spot rather than an electronic copy emailed to them. Thirdly, is the signature via the phone legal and binding?…..is it above reproach in an actual legal setting. It seems like this method of contracting opens the photographer up to someone being able to weasle out of the contract at a later date. Those are my concerns with these apps and Im wondering if you have any thoughts on those matters. Thanks Terry.
Toby,
Usually if the model has potential issues with the language in your release they are discussed well in advance before the shoot because the model has requested it.
I've yet to have a model ask for a copy of the release that they've signed, let alone a hard copy on the spot. Perhaps if it were a model that this was your first time working with, then you'd need to go the paper route. However, for the models I work with on a regular basis, this is PERFECT!
Lastly, digital signatures were enacted into law by the Clinton administration, so YES it would be legally binding the same goes for digital signatures in Acrobat PDFs.
Thanks Terry!
It would also be great if there were another signature field for a witness, and fields for witnesses info.
Terry,
This is a nice app! I definitely agree with your take on what's missing though. Those things would make for a pretty complete little app. I was wondering where you obtained your contracts. Did you write them from a template or have them done professionally?
Patrickwc,
Two of my contracts come from modified templates, the other one is from a corporate attorney.
Thanks Terry! I appreciate the help.
Terry,
Thanks for the great review. Just to be clear, does this App NOT allow you to include a photo with the release document? To me this is a complete deal-breaker if the ability to include a quick iPhone generated image is not designed into the App. I have always included a headshot Polaroid (R.I.P. SX-70) or a quick inkjet print stapled to my releases and it's been essential when names and original negatives or digital files got disconnected.
-Robert Capra
Robert,
Thanks! Just to be perfectly clear. This app does NOT allow you to include a photo in the release. The one I reviewed last week does, but lacks the ability to customize the release itself.
T
Thanks a lot Terry! Now I am hoping to see a review on Easy Release and see which one you prefer of the three.
Since Easy Release doesn’t appear to allow for custom releases, I have no interest in it. So my favorite between the 3 is this one.
Just thought I would chime in- I love this app and have been following the creator, Michael The Maven, for some time now. He has mentioned in his forum that there is an update coming soon which will include many of these desired features, including image insertion.
The latest Easy Release Does indeed allow for custom releases, AND branding in the header of the PDF. May be worth another look.
Andy,
Definitely work a look now! Thanks for the tip. This may be the one. I also can’t wait to see the first one that takes advantage of the iPad!
Andy,
Tried it! Don't like it! Although YES, it now lets me paste in MY release and YES, it lets me have my logo and model's picture on the release, there are some things that I don't like about it: 1) It doesn't pull from your Contacts! So you have to enter all of the model's info right then and there. (deal breaker!) 2) It only allows two fields (for model releases) to be put in to your custom text "model" and "photographer". I need shoot date, addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, etc. 3) Some of the information in the actual PDF release overlapped each other (my contact info and the models name). Bug! It has potential! However, I almost feel like I just blew $10 because in its current form it's unusable for me. I can't believe you can't pull from the Contacts list. Granted once you enter a model once, you can then use that model again, however, I don't have time to retype info that I already have in my iPhone!
UPDATE! I've been in contact with the developer of Easy Release and I worked through at least one of the problems. 3) the overlap was caused by my logo being too wide. So I reworked my logo and now the text doesn't overlap in the PDF.
Although this App (Easy Release) has lots of potential, not being able to pull in a model's info from my Contacts seems very backwards. I get that they allow you to put in MORE info about the Model such as Race, but I should be able to START with the contact I already have rather than having to re-key it all from scratch. Especially on an iPhone keyboard.
None of these apps are perfect, however it seems that all of them are just a step (feature) or two away from perfection! Easy Release has the most potential since it's now the furthest ahead. We'll see how it all plays out.
Looking forward to what Easy Release does with the iPad application release. If the updates cover the above suggestions, it’s definitely a winner for me. Will it be made specifically for the iPad and not a port of the iPhone version?
Hi!
I love the app, and the idea of it, but I have a few questions about it.
1. Is it available for the iPod Touch, or only the iPhone?
2. Is there a release form for the MODEL to give the the PHOTOGRAPHER? This would be so helpful!
Thank you!!